Resources have been curated by NIET staff for informational purposes only. External sites are not endorsed by NIET.

Remote Learning Resources for Teachers

• NIET's Insights and Blog section is being regularly updated with resources and tips for educators, schools, and districts to maximize remote learning. Explore NIET's new Rubric Companion for Virtual Instruction as well as read key do's for today's virtual teaching, strategies for district leaders, recommendations to support aspiring teachers, how to balance working from home and managing children's schooling, and more.
• The Learning Policy Institute has posted a resource, Learning in the Time of COVID-19, covering strategies and tools to help schools and families with remote learning, including resources for social-emotional learning, students with exceptional needs, and English Learners. The organization recently added a blog series dedicated to education during COVID-19.
• Quality Matters developed a document detailing suggestions for accommodating Student Individualized Education Program and 504 plans as teachers transition to emergency remote instruction. Learn what accommodations students might have, how to address them, and how they relate to the National Standards for Quality Online Teaching. 
• The Educating All Learners Alliance created a hub on its website of curated tools, strategies, tips, and best practices for supporting students with disabilities online. 
• Easterseals developed a dedicated web section to help schools and families address the COVID-19 outbreak and resulting school closures. Among the resources are a school closure toolkit geared to students with autism, and an extensive list of online resources. 
• Sanford Programs has created the Harmony at Home toolkit to support social and emotional well-being for students and families. Also, parents, guardians, and educators can access short video modules on how to model, establish, and nurture empathy in students.
• ASCD has curated information about policy implications, common questions regarding lengthy school closures, resources and tips for online learning, and other considerations school leaders should address during this time. The organization's spring edition of Education Leadership focuses on how to get remote learning right.
• Teach Plus posted practical tips its network teachers have learned by using online platforms. They include developing routines and rituals in your new "classroom" space; taking advantage of Zoom's "Breakout Room" feature to form smaller student groups, strengthen connectedness, and differentiate instruction; and facilitate one-on-one student conversations.
• KQED Mindshift outlined strategies to accommodate to remote learning environments and tools for a smooth transition. KQED is also offering daily 15-minute webinars for teachers to help them get started using PBS Learning Media resources (compatible with Google Classroom).
• EdSurge has an active guide for schools responding to COVID-19 that includes information on digital learning, webinars, news, and a comprehensive set of digital learning resources.
• Common Sense Education has published a set of resources for teachers to prepare for school closures, including collaboration tools and lesson resources.
• The International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE) has published 10 strategies for online learning to help teachers who are making their classrooms virtual for the first time. 
• Newsela published a how-to guide on preparing for distance learning.
• Sign your students up for a virtual field trip to New York parks through the Wildlife Conservation Society. The trips are categorized by subject and grade level.

Remote Learning Resources for Families

• Common Sense Education has published vetted resources for parents to find educational video games and apps and ways to assess if an online tool is useful for learning.
• Wide Open School, a free resource geared to educators and families, aggregates videos from top education, media, and tech companies by content area and grade level as well as offers tools and services to set up virtual classrooms at home, access free or low-cost broadband, and create schedules with suggestions for appropriate lessons throughout the day.
• These 10 free learning websites for kids, including PBS Kids, Highlights Kids, FunBrain, Seussville, and more, provide entertaining and relatable lessons for a range children's ages and abilities.
• Mo Willems, children's author and Kennedy Center Education's artist-in-residence, is hosting daily Lunch Doodles. Just don't let the pigeon grab your pen!
• Children's author and illustrator Dav Pilkey is collaborating with the Library of Congress and Scholastic on leading drawings, read-alouds, and more.
• The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization has created a comprehensive list of educational applications and platforms to help parents, teachers, schools and school systems facilitate student learning and provide social compassion and interaction during school closures.
• The Smithsonian allows students to explore a wide range of information, games, and hands-on activities, plus content-specific resources in art, science and nature, history and culture, and more.
• iCivics is offering free games and print-and-go lesson plans to ensure a continuity of learning during school closures as well as tips for creating an effective virtual learning experience. 
• The Philadelphia-based National Constitution Center is offering daily live constitutional conversations for middle school, high school, and college students, available through Zoom, and accessible on home computer, laptop, or phone.
• National Geographic Kids makes groundbreaking storytelling jump off the screen. Learn from some of the best and brightest scientists, explorers, photographers, and filmmakers.
• The Exploratorium provides hands-on, teacher-tested, activities and uses easily available materials.
• Mystery Science pulled together its most popular science videos during the school closures.
• During school closures, Audible is offering access to a large collection of audiobooks with titles spanning six languages. 
• TED-Ed offers short, student-friendly videos on a broad range of topics.
• Amazing Educational Resources has posted a community document of A-Z sites to help families' learning at home.
• Travel + Leisure magazine compiled 12 virtual tours of museums across the globe. Bring history right into your living room.
• Storyline Online by the SAG-AFTRA Foundation streams videos featuring celebrated actors reading children's books.
• Random House Children's Books is hosting virtual storytime reads daily on Facebook as part of its new Read Together, Be Together initiative. New lineups are announced each week featuring favorite authors and celebrities.
• Dolly Parton is conducting read-alouds from her Imagination Library. Join the Facebook events or watch them on the Imagination Library's YouTube channel.
• LeVar Burton will start read-alouds on his Twitter page beginning April 6 for children and young adults.
• Art of Problem Solving offers a wide variety of free resources for avid problem-solvers.
• Join more than 300 million users in learning a new language through Duolingo, a free, science-based platform that offers nearly 25 languages.
• Teach students how to type or have them brush up on their skills with Dance Mat Typing from the BBC.
• The Cincinnati Zoo is "bringing the zoo to you" with daily Facebook Lives that are then archived on the zoo's website.
• Take a trip to the Santa Monica Mountains and learn about the great outdoors, history, and natural sciences with expert rangers.

Remote Learning Resources from Education Departments in Key Partner States

• Arizona Department of Education Virtual Learning Resources
• Arkansas Department of Education Digital Learning Resources
• Indiana Department of Education Remote Learning Resources
• Louisiana Department of Education Academic Resources for School Systems
• Minnesota Department of Education Distance Learning Guidance and Resources 
• Beginning Tuesday, March 24, South Carolina's SCETV will offer specific resources for students in pre-K through 12th grade three days a week. Educators and parents will have access to supplemental lesson plans and curriculum materials to facilitate meaningful use of the content. Access Knowitall.org for content posted by subject and grade level, SCETV's full library of Pre-K-12 content, and its Kids Channel.
• Tennessee Department of Education Academics School Closure Toolkit 
• TN STEM Innovation Network School Closure Resources for Parents and Educators
• Texas Education Agency Guide to Instructional Continuity

Remote Learning Resources from Award-Winning Educators

• Virginia Milken Educator Wade Whitehead provides fun, thought-provoking activities students can only do at home. The best parts? No screen time required and the ideas can be implemented regardless of socioeconomic variables and educational backgrounds.
• Oklahoma Milken Educator Hailey Couch, a kindergarten teacher, describes how she is helping her students cope with COVID-19 and creating a continuity of learning. She also helps manage online content distributed by the Oklahoma Play-Based Learning Initiative Facebook group.
• North Carolina Milken Educator Meghen LeFevers, a principal, offers suggestions for collaborating with professional learning communities during school closures. 
• Alabama Milken Educator and 2020 Alabama National Distinguished Principal Dr. Dilhani Uswatte models how virtual learning broadcasts can help make learning meaningful and engaging, while unifying the school in the process.
• Pennsylvania Milken Educator Dr. Jayda Pugliese, a principal, describes how she and her leadership planned for school closures. Now, they engage students in new ways through daily virtual morning announcements and new online clubs that highlight the talents of teachers.
• Nebraska Milken Educator Becky Streff provides advice and strategies for balancing teaching students and "schooling" your own children from home.
• West Virginia Milken Educator Jennifer Reaves, a technology integration specialist, describes how her role has changed and offers technology tips and tools for teachers new to remote learning.
• Washington State Milken Educator and 2016 State Teacher of the Year Nate Bowling, who is currently teaching in Abu Dhabi, hosted a podcast with colleagues about their experiences with remote learning.
• Ohio Milken Educator Brian Page designed a guide to help teachers formulate their online classes.
• Arkansas Milken Educator Amy Braswell wrote a blog post for Insight Advance to emphasize the importance of building relationships with students during the time of school closures. 
• Indiana Milken Educator Rick Crosslin has a popular YouTube channel containing over 200 K-6 science videos. Be sure to check out the science of hand-washing and making indoor model airplanes, easily accessible via the Milken Educator Awards website.
• 2020 Louisiana Teacher of the Year Chris Dier offered comfort to his high school seniors, modeling how teachers can communicate with and motivate their students in this time.

Technology Tools Level Up to Help Schools and Families 

• ISTE is keeping a running curation of ed tech providers offering support to closed schools.
• Google rolled out free access to its advanced Hangouts Meet videoconferencing capabilities to all G Suite and G Suite for Education customers globally, including meetings for up to 250 participants per call, live streaming for up to 100,000 viewers within a domain, and the ability to record meetings and save them to Google Drive. The features will be available at no additional cost to all customers until July 1, 2020.
• The Microsoft Teams videoconferencing tool is available for free to educational institutions through the Office 365 A1 offer along with a six-month subscription of Office 365 A5.
• Zoom is removing the 40-minute time limit on its basic free account for schools closed for the coronavirus that want to use 1:1 or group videoconferencing.
• Cisco Webex Personal Account is offering free subscriptions in response to COVID-19, with unlimited usage and up to 100 participants.
• Apple Education is offering free support to prepare teachers for remote learning.
• Canva for Education is offering a "super-charged" version of Canva to classrooms for free. Educators and students − can access templates for presentations, infographics, posters, class schedules and more all optimized for Chromebooks and fully cross-platform.
• Blackboard is offering free webinars to help teachers and professors make the transition to online learning.
• Instructure has provided guides for using Canvas and MasteryConnect during school closures, as well as tips for making online learning engaging.
• Many schools use Clever to safely log in students and teachers and complete work through various educational apps. Here's a guide for how to do this at home during school closures.
• Khan Academy published a quick start guide to help parents and others who are going online to help students learn during school closures. Don't miss the academy's template for what a typical remote learning schedule can look like.
• Coursera for Campus will be available globally for any community affected by COVID-19.

Data Providers Increase Broadband Availability for Remote Learning

• AT&T is suspending data caps for home broadband internet use.
• Comcast is making Internet Essentials, its low-cost internet service for families with low incomes, available free for 60 days to new customers and raising data cap limits on the service.
• The California Teleconnect Fund (CTF) provides a 25% discount on select telephone services and 50% discounts on broadband services to schools, libraries, hospitals and about 7,000 Community Based Organizations (CBOs). The State Public Utility Commission could consider temporarily expanding eligible services to include mobile hotspots and home connectivity.
• Altice USA is offering free broadband for 60 days to K-12 and college students.
• Charter Communications is offering free access to Spectrum Broadband and WiFi For 60 Days for new K-12 and college student households.

Curricula Services

• Age of Learning provides free access to schools closing due to COVID-19. It is prioritizing full district requests to ABC Mouse (pre-K), Adventure Academy (elementary and middle school), and ReadingIQ (digital library for children ages 12 and under).
• Book Creator is offering 90 days of collaboration upgrade (integrates with Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle).
• BrainPOP has free, unlimited instructional video use for closed schools (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, and other major management systems).
• Discovery Education streaming video is making access free through the end of the school year and is offering a new content channel, "Viruses and Outbreak." 
• Kami is offering free, premium access (integrates with Google Classroom, Canvas and Schoology).
• Kahoot! is offering free, premium access (integrates with Microsoft Suite and Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, Apple Schoolwork).
• Lead4ward has a school@home resource with templates and tools to help districts and schools plan remote learning week by week.
• LearnZillion offers over 1000 free standards-aligned instructional videos (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, D2L, Blackboard).
• Nearpod is supporting schools with tools and webinars (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, Blackboard, Google Classroom, itsLearning).
• Outschool is a collection of 10,000 online small group activities.
• Pear Deck has complimentary access to Pear Deck Premium (integrates with Google Classroom, Microsoft 365, Immersive Reader).
• Pronto is offering teachers free access to its video and chat services (integrates with all major learning management systems).