35+ FREE online resources for kids at home
From live-streamed story times to free activity downloads to virtual tours of far-away places, here are some great online tools to keep kids learning and engaged during these homebound times.
Alaska State Library. Find free e-books for young readers.
Brain Pop. Educational videos, games and quizzes for kids.
Brains On. This podcast takes kid-submitted science questions and answers them with the help of experts. Featuring a different kid co-host each week, the result is a fun show that's as silly as it is educational.
Children’s Book Council Youtube Channel. Authors read their own children’s books.
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. Each day at 11 am (Alaska time) the zoo will host a Home Safari Facebook Live where they’ll highlight one of the animals living at the zoo. Includes a free activity the kids can do at home.
Color Our Collections. Free PDF downloads of coloring pages created from art in the collections of 117 institutions, including The New York Academy of Medicine Library, Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg, and The Royal Horticultural Society libraries.
Curiosity Rover. Climb aboard for a virtual tour of Mars.
Disney Junior Games. Play games in categories such as Action, Counting & Math, Music, or simply choose a game by selecting from a range of Disney characters.
Duolingo. Free online foreign language lessons, with over 20 languages to choose from.
Explore Live Cams. Watch wild animals live on webcams.
Famous Museums. Go on a virtual tour of these world-famous museums, including the Guggenheim and National Gallery of Art.
FarmFood 360. 11 virtual tours of farms from sheep, pigs and cows, to apples and eggs.
Great Schools. Give your child a boost using these free, printable reading worksheets.
Great Wall of China. Check out this virtual tour of China’s most famous landmark.
HippoCampus. Access more than 7,000 free videos across 13 subjects.
Jason Tharp. Tune in for daily drawing lessons on his Wonderville Studios page.
Khan Academy Free online courses, lessons and instructional videos on subjects including math, science, computer programming and history.
KidNuz. A daily, 5-minute news podcast made with kids in mind. The podcast provides briefings on the day’s top stories that are appropriate for kids ages 8-14.
Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems. Learn to draw with Willems, the best-selling children's author and illustrator behind the Pigeon Presents, Knuffle Bunny and Elephant and Piggie series. Each daily episode is accompanied by a downloadable activity page.
Mac Barnett. Check the Instagram page for daily story times.
Madcap Puppets. Daily puppet shows.
Molly of Denali. Join Alaska Native Molly and the gang for lots of adventures in Alaska. Includes videos, games and printable activities.
Mystery Science. Free, easy science lessons for remote learning.
NASA Kids' Club. Children in pre-K through fourth grade can learn the ins and outs of NASA's missions using hands-on educational games.
Oliver Jeffers. The author reads his stories live on Instagram at 10 am (Alaska time), Monday through Friday.
Pete the Cat. Check the Instagram page for live story times.
Peter H. Reynolds. The author of ‘The Dot’ will read aloud at 8 am each day on Facebook.
San Diego Zoo. Videos, activities and games, plus a virtual tour.
Scholastic. Day-by-day projects to keep kids reading, thinking, and growing.
Sight Words for Kindergarten. Get dancing! Sight words have never been so much fun.
Smithsonian. Lots of fun activities and games, live video of the National Zoo animals, and various online exhibits, such as an exhibit on superheroes, Alexander Hamilton, television and much more.
Story Pirates. A captivating audio show by real actors, comedians, and entertainers who tell stories that have been written by kids.
Story Time. Lots of great stories for children ages 2-13 to listen to.
Storyline Online. Watch videos featuring celebrated actors reading children’s books alongside creatively produced illustrations. See Viola Davis, Chris Pine, Betty White and more reading our favorite children’s stories.
The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspien. This serialized science-fiction story for kids, told in 15- to 20-minute episodes, centers on Finn Caspian, an 8-year-old boy aboard The Famous Marlowe 280 Interplanetary Exploratory Space Station.
The Science Mom and Dad. This fun two-hour livestream on Monday through Friday features science and math lessons, crafts and games. For ages 7-12.
The Young Chef’s Club. Kids will love this colorful site and the wide selection of recipes, projects and cooking lessons.
Yellowstone National Park. Take a virtual tour of some of the main attractions around the park, including Mammoth Hot Springs, Mud Volcano and Norris Geyser Basin.
