Resources for Families during COVID 19
The current global pandemic (COVID-19) has shifted many of our lives. With schools closing and mandatory work from home policies happening, many parents are finding themselves looking for ways to keep their kids busy, and stay sane while trying to work. Here are some helpful resources to help during this situation.
Telus waives fees for low income families:
Simple resources LINK:
The link below provides a great easy to read summary of Government and Non Govt supports/resources available during the pandemic : http://bowinnmamla.ca/covid19/supports/
Video: Talk to me, Play with me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeeoOlXcGAo&feature=youtu.be
Westcoast Families List of activities
https://westcoastfamilies.com/how-to-stay-connected-while-youre-stuck-on-the-couch/
Free Daily Yoga
https://oxygenyogaandfitness.com/
Simple story to share with young children explaining Covid-19:
https://www.scribd.com/document/454226522/Rock-Monsters
From ACTBC:
YouTube physical activities:
- E. with Joe offers free home physical activity videos for children
Anxiety during COVID-19
https://www.anxietycanada.com/
- New Emergency Relief Support Fund and added service flexibility for parents of children with special needs: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2020CFD0043-000650
- Families throughout B.C. to benefit from enhanced digital library services: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2020EDUC0019-000652
Zero to Three Activity Guide
https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/3264-at-home-activity-guide
More Free Activities and Resources
Here is a comprehensive list of free digital activities and learning resources for you and your kiddos to use indoors to make social distancing easier and fun. It’s quite an overwhelming list, so we curated some favorites for the under 5 year old crowd, below.
Digital Interactive/Movement:
- Circletime: Free Live or pre-recorded kids interactive classes. Learn and bond with your 0 – 6 year old. Follow and interact with an expert instructor. Waived fee while major quarantines are happening. Use code: HUCK3 for free access to classes.
- Go Noodle: Free library of interactive videos to keep the kids moving while stuck inside. Free to use.
- HERE Meditation: The HERE mobile app is designed to help rapidly relieve stress & anxiety. It works by pairing interactive exercises (staring/swiping), with breathing, music and/or guided meditation to stimulate the relaxation response and promote executive functioning. Free to use.
- Cosmic Kids Yoga – Free YouTube channel that provides an instructional guide to yoga and mindfulness for kids ages 3+. Free to use.
Music & Arts:
- Chrome Music Lab: A website that makes learning music more accessible through fun, hands-on experiments. Free to use.
- Tinker Lab: Is a website with tons of ideas for kids activities. We wanted to highlight all of the great art activity recommendations. Free to use.
Academic:
- Kinedu: Offering access to all of its 1,800+ science-based activities for kids 0-4. Free until April 15.
- Digital Museum Tours: A great way to see some of the world’s best museum exhibits with your kids, Travel + Leisure put together a list of 12 museums who offer virtual tours. Free to use.
- Khan Academy Kids: An award-winning online education program for children ages 2 – 7. The mobile app was designed by child development experts at Stanford University and engages kids in core subjects like early literacy, reading, writing, language, and math, while encouraging creativity and building social-emotional skills. Free to use.
- CoolMath4Kids: For our 12 and under users, Coolmath4Kids is an amusement park of games, lessons and more, designed to teach math and make it FUN. Free to use.
- Penguin Kids: @PenguinKids is holding IG Live Story Time at 11am EST every week day. Free to view.
- Melissa & Doug: Free ABC lettering and coloring printables. Free to use.
Parenting Tools/Resources:
- All Kids Network: Offer FREE educational resources, worksheets, writing prompts, themed coloring pages, craft and snack ideas for parents, teachers & caregivers. Free to use.
- Huckleberry: Keep your kid’s nap/bed times on track for more predictable days. Huckleberry’s SweetSpot tool will give you alerts on when the next best time. We know how precious those day time naps are for parents. Free to use.
- Amazing Educational Resources: An extensive list on parenting/academic resources that is continually updated. Free to use.
Managing Anxiety & Stress in Families with Children & Youth:
