In times like these, it is encouraging to see organizations coming together to support their communities! While the library offers a ton of awesome resources for free, check out these free resources from organizations all over the world.
Reading and Writing Resources
Storyline Online | Listen to some of your favorite celebrities read a wide variety of children’s books.
Drawing Lessons Online | Author and illustrator Jarrett J. Krosoczka is live streaming drawing lessons from YouTube every day.
Just for Kids: A Cosmic Exploring of the New Coronavirus | This kids comic is based on NPR interviews with healthcare professionals.
Author Read-Alouds and Drawing Lessons | Author Kate Messner and friends are sharing videos where they read their books aloud.
Authors Everywhere | Authors are sharing anything from read-alouds to writing workshops on this YouTube channel.
Dav Pilkey Drawing Lessons | The brain power behind Captain Underpants brings drawing lessons to you in partnership with the Library of Congress.
TeachingBooks | Find resources for children’s books and YA books. Listen to read-a-longs, author talks, homework help for certain books, and more.
Museum Experiences
Seattle Aquarium and Monterey Bay Aquarium | Take a trip to the aquarium to look at otters and other animals without getting wet!
National Women’s History Museum | Women’s History Month doesn’t have to end when March does. Learn about women’s history all year long.
Smithsonian Learning Lab | Find learning modules from the Smithsonian.
NASA STEM Learning | Seek great STEM resources straight from NASA.
Museum of Modern Art | Take a virtual tour of the MoMA’s most popular pieces.
San Diego Zoo | Tigers, giraffes, elephants, and more are available to watch at your leisure.
The Louvre | Take a trip to one of France’s world-renowned museums from your couch. You will need Adobe Flash Player to take a virtual tour.
Social Distancing Resources
Social Distancing 101 | Learn more about why we are social distancing at this time.
Online services are continuing to offer free temporary access to their services during the emergency. Here are some additional resources you can check out for yourself:
TeachingBooks is offering unlimited access to their new Book & Reading Engagement Kit: Home Edition through 9/15. The site features reading resources for children and teens, as well as teaching activities for educators and caregivers.
Microsoft Digital Literacy courses | Microsoft Digital Literacy is for anyone with basic reading skills who wants to learn the fundamentals of using digital technologies. Send this to friends or family members who may need to improve their computer skills as we all communicate and work online.
Infobase databases are free through 6/18, including The World Almanac, World News Digest, and Ferguson’s Career Guidance Center. If you get asked for it, username is wapubliclibrary, password is washington.
BookBrowse is offering free access to their book reviews and reader’s advisory tools through 5/30.
CareerExplorer is offering free access to their site for the remainder of the school year.
SkillSoft business training is offering 60 days of free access to their business skill courses.