Many of our students at Christ Church are parents or carers. We know that the current crisis is hitting you hardest of all. It’s a real struggle to balance all everything right now, so we are scouring the internet and networking with our contacts to give you a list of the most useful online resources that can keep your children busy, entertained and educated in this difficult time.
Here you will find a wide range of things from exam specific revision help to fun activities for younger children to guidance on how to talk about anxiety and stress with children and young people struggling to cope with change and uncertainty.
We hope this goes some way to helping you to stay afloat, and please know that we are working hard to find ways to support you in the meantime. If you have any feedback or suggestions please do not hesitate to contacts us at hello@ccsu.co.uk.
Mixed ages
These resources span multiple age ranges and topics.
https://blogs.canterbury.ac.uk/adviceresourcesforschools/ Our own faculty of education has a blog that’s filled with advice and resources for schools and parents alike.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize BBC bitesize has been a staple of home schooling and revision for over a decade. They really are the experts in the field, and are currently releasing new content daily.
https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/support-resources-to-share-with-parents/ The education endowment foundation is a charity that conducts research into improving educational outcomes for students from lower income households. The website is packed with reports, blogs and resources, but this is their main page of resources for parents.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMY4o8_rPjmFoatx7F4TvHQ Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. On their youtube channel they’re running interactive live lessons on a range of topics, which are recorded and available to watch later. Their videos are mainly for primary aged children.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/twinkl-partnerships/bbc-partnerships/bbc-education-bbc-partnerships Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Twinkle and the BBC have worked together to create a range of resources for home schooling for children of all ages.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/go/games-twinkl-go and https://www.twinkl.co.uk/go/interactive-activities-hotspots-twinkl-go Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Here you can find educational games and interactive activities for a range of ages.
https://youngminds.org.uk/blog/talking-to-your-child-about-coronavirus/ Young minds is a charity that works to tackle the mental health crisis in young people and children. They’ve put together a resource to help parents to talk about coronavirus with their children.
https://mediasmart.uk.com/parents/ In a world where young people are constantly in contact with online content, advertising and embedded commercial messages, the media is everywhere. Media smart aims to teach young people how to understand, interpret and engage safely with the media around them. The resources on here are for 7-16 year olds.
https://www.wwt.org.uk/discover-wetlands/home-learning-and-family-fun?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlNqGoc216QIViu3tCh0JOQIxEAAYASAAEgLH9vD_BwE WWT are a wildlife conservation trust. They have released lots of educational and fun activities to get children learning about their local wildlife. These activities are for a range of ages, but mostly nursery through to upper primary school.
https://www.khanacademy.org/ The Kahn academy was set up by a mathematician who was tired of having to help his siblings and cousins with their maths homework individually, so he started making videos that they could access alone. Several years later he now has a huge library of excellent maths, science and other resources for children of all ages.
https://ed.ted.com/ TED ed is an offshoot of the TED talks groups. They provide short, easily followable videos and connecting resources on a huge range of subjects that children (and adults) of all ages will find interesting. Whether you want to expand on a topic children have already found interesting, or give yourself five minutes to have a cup of tea while they watch something interesting and informative, these are the answers!
https://www.century.tech/explore-century/parents/ Century is an interactive educational technology company that has won awards for their work towards reducing the education inequality gap. They have released their English, Maths and Science resources for all age groups, for free.
https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/books/free-ebooks/ Oxford Owl are an educational support company. They have just released hundreds of new books to their online e-book library so you can enjoy them with your children! You can also check out their videos of some of our favourite children’s authors and professional sotry telling reading stories here: https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/storyteller-videos/
EYFS
Children of below five years of age go through activities FAST! These resources will help you to stay one step ahead and keep your little ones engaged.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/home-early-years/early-years-class-management/school-closure-home-learning-classroom-management-eyfs-early-years Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Resources are often available in multiple languages and ability levels, and are easily printable.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zks4kmn BBC bitesize has been a staple of home schooling and revision for over a decade. They really are the experts in the field, and are currently releasing new content daily. This is their list of EYFS specific activities, although you may find more as you search through their website.
Key stage 1 (lower primary)
Children aged 5-7 are just starting to develop key skills and understanding. These resources are fun ways of solidifying that learning.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/class-management/school-closure-home-learning-classroom-management-key-stage-1-year-1-year-2 Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Resources are often available in multiple languages and ability levels, and are easily printable.
https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents/k-4/index.html Does your child love space? NASA has released a range of resources and activities to get children excited to learn more!
https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/ Oxford Owl are an educational support company. Scroll down the screen to choose the level your child is working at (year 1 or 2)
Key stage 2 (upper primary)
Upper primary children may appear to be more self-sufficient, but they are also tackling ever growing challenges in their learning. For some, these jumps can be very stressful. Here are some ways you can keep them engaged in their learning.
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/keystage2-ks2/ks2-class-management/school-closure-home-learning-classroom-management-key-stage-2-year-3-4-5-6 and https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/keystage3-ks3-teachers-toolbox/homework-help-revision-packs-teacher-toolbox-secondary/school-closure-support-free-taster-packs-ks3-ks4 Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Resources are often available in multiple languages and ability levels, and are easily printable.
https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents/k-4/index.html Does your child love space? NASA has released a range of resources and activities to get children excited to learn more!
https://home.oxfordowl.co.uk/ Oxford Owl are an educational support company. Scroll down the screen to choose the level your child is working at (year 3, 4, 5, 6)
https://wild-things.org.uk/our-events/stay-wild-at-home/ Wild things provide forest school training and guidance for schools across the country. They’ve released three activity banks for children to get outdoors and explore the wildlife around them. The activities themselves are appropriate for younger siblings, but the information packs that go with them are more appropriate for older primary/strong readers with support.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/forkids/ Is your child fascinated by history? This is the place to send them! Games, interactive activities, videos and more!
https://senecalearning.com/en-GB/ Seneca is an online revision hub for all secondary level exams. Just search for the exam you need to revise for and delve in!
Key stage 3 (lower secondary)
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/keystage3-ks3-teachers-toolbox/homework-help-revision-packs-teacher-toolbox-secondary/school-closure-support-free-taster-packs-ks3-ks4 Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Resources are often available in multiple languages and ability levels, and are easily printable.
https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents/5-8/index.html Does your child love space? NASA has released a range of resources and activities to get children excited to learn more!
https://www.bl.uk/learning/online-resources?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlNqGoc216QIViu3tCh0JOQIxEAAYAyAAEgJAR_D_BwE The British library holds thousands of texts from suffragette leaflets to shakespeare to Vogue magazines. They’ve created resource banks to explore themes such as Rights, The Middle Ages and Shakespeare. Take a look and see if anything sparks an interest!
https://senecalearning.com/en-GB/ Seneca is an online revision hub for all secondary level exams. Just search for the exam you need to revise for and delve in!
Key stage 4 (upper secondary)
https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resources/keystage3-ks3-teachers-toolbox/homework-help-revision-packs-teacher-toolbox-secondary/school-closure-support-free-taster-packs-ks3-ks4 Twinkle is a resource library used in many schools across the world. Resources are often available in multiple languages and ability levels, and are easily printable.
https://www.bl.uk/learning/online-resources?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIlNqGoc216QIViu3tCh0JOQIxEAAYAyAAEgJAR_D_BwE The British library holds thousands of texts from suffragette leaflets to shakespeare to Vogue magazines. They’ve created resource banks to explore themes such as Rights, The Middle Ages and Shakespeare. Take a look and see if anything sparks an interest!
https://www.nasa.gov/stem/forstudents/9-12/index.html Does your child love space? NASA has released a range of resources and activities to get children excited to learn more!
Additional needs/SEND
Many of the resources in other areas will be helpful, interesting and engaging for children with additional needs. However, the union understands that families with children with additional needs have another layer of challenge. Below are some resources we’ve found that might help you and your family during these difficult times.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zh9v382 BBC bitesize has been a staple of home schooling and revision for over a decade. They really are the experts in the field, and are currently releasing new content daily. This is their parents toolkit for SEND children.
https://www.makaton.org/shop/shopping/browseStore/Printable-resources?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9da4tpbF6QIVVOvtCh2QAwtdEAAYASAAEgKGvvD_BwE The Makaton website has some fantastic resources to help make makaton development, story telling, and learning more engaging and accessible for those who use makaton in the classroom (NB these resources are for sale, not free).
http://www.brainparade.com/products/see-touch-learn-free/ Brain parade is a free language development app that allows children to interact with games and lessons to further their comprehension and spoken language.
https://www.helpkidzlearn.com/ Help kidz learn is an online resource bank with a range of activities to develop everything from literacy and numeracy to language development to choice making.
https://www.sensoryapphouse.com/ Sensory app house has a range of apps designed to engage and calm children with PMLD or high sensory needs. They can be used in connection with other activities and sensory play, or as stand alone activities.
https://www.ianbean.co.uk/senict-members-resource-portal SENICIT provides free highly interactive software that works well with a range of assisted technology like buttons and switches. The free resources here require you to register as a member, but once done they are easy to access.
https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/free-speech-language-resources/ Speech and language kids has a range of free materials to use with children developing their spoken, written, communicative and comprehensive language abilities.
Longer term home schooling help
For some families with shielding members, going back to school may not be an option for some time. No matter where you are based, there are huge numbers of home school support groups set up all across the country. These groups can be a life line, sharing resources and support for parents. You can find a list of some of them here:
http://southeast.homeeducationnetwork.org.uk/html/local_groups.html
But if you find some that you think we should know about, please get in touch!
Government Funding Links:
Students with children or dependent adults
You can apply for:
It’s important to bare in mind that these only apply to UnderGraduate, Full time students
PG students can claim tax credits but in Universal Credit, they are penalised for their tuition loan.