Our district and most others in California announced multi-week closures today.

In addition, some excellent online tools just announced they are making them free to schools who are closed down, though it would have been a bit better to make those announcements well-known prior to the closures. It’s a lot more challenging to add new tools without having practiced with them beforehand.

Nevertheless, here are some important new updates to The Best Advice On Teaching K-12 Online (If We Have To Because Of The Coronavirus) – Please Make More Suggestions!:

The most important piece of news is that Raz-Kids, one of my favorite online tools and one of a very few that I think are worth paying for, has made its service free to teachers and their students affected by the closures. I cannot say enough positive things about this site, especially for English Language Learners (I’ve also used it with English-proficient students). If you’re school is closed down, get this right way so students can read books on their own with audio support.

Newsela  is a site most teachers use for their articles, but fewer pay for its virtual classroom capability.  They’re making all their bells-and-whistles available free to teachers and students affected by closures. They also provide a lot of guidance on how to use it all (at the same link).

I have an enormous amount of respect for EL Education and the support it provides to schools and teachers across the country.  They just published How Can We Support Student Learning Amid School Closures Due To The Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

Coronavirus Is Shutting Schools. Is America Ready for Virtual Learning? is from today’s NY Times.

What Teachers in China Have Learned in the Past Month is from Edutopia.

Scholastic Learn At Home offers a number of helpful free resources.