Helpful links

Common Sense Media has reviews of books, movies, and television, which allows parents to make decisions about what content is appropriate for their children. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/ 

Switch Zoo allows kids to watch, listen, and play games to learn all about amazing animals. https://switchzoo.com/ 

Sesame Street has a site with a variety of games, coloring pages, videos, and learning resources. https://www.sesamestreet.org/ 

Starfall has fun activities for Pre-k and younger to practice literacy, emerging phonics and reading at home. https://www.starfall.com/h/index-kindergarten.php 

With Fun Brain, kids can play games while practicing math and reading skills. https://www.funbrain.com/math-zone?scrlybrkr=ded52610 

Dr. Jean Feldman's YouTube channel features an early childhood educator focuses on engaging younger children (0-3) fingerplays, math and movement activities. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7vkiqOCaP0oYd67yiOOkkA 

Little Baby Bum Nursery Rhymes: this video features classic nursery rhymes in a half-hour playlist. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwkjmjK3ud4&list=PL36053D3415FB9CA6 

The StoryTime Family is a YouTube channel featuring videos ranging from bedtime stories to stories about social skills and emotions. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvdUKabPUkx6p-zYlrxmJJw 

Literacy Central is an online destination for teachers, parents, and literacy volunteers to get thousands of free digital resources tied directly to the books children love and teachers turn to everyday. The portal provides tools to easily organize and keep reading resources in one place with customizable book lists, printable lesson plans, activities, games, reading passages, calendars, and videos. https://www.rif.org/literacy-central App version: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/literacy-central/id1271856078 

Paint 'n' Play is a website provided by the National Gallery of Art. It is a child-friendly digital painting site, and allows users to explore the color palettes and brush techniques of various artists, as well as allowing them to create their own. https://www.nga.gov/games/paint-n-play/?mc_cid=e7c559e050&mc_eid=aa32b5131f 

ViewSpace Interactives allow you to explore objects and materials from different perspectives, and discover how we can combine information to better understand the universe. Use these interactives to spy newly forming stars hidden inside giant clouds of gas and dust, search for pulsars in the remains of exploded stars, witness the effects of galaxy collisions, explore ways of detecting and investigating planets orbiting distant stars, and more. https://viewspace.org/interactives/about?utm_source=starnet_newsletter&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=image_tour_announcement&utm_id=march_2025 

The Fussy Librarian has free ebooks, with optional newsletters: https://www.thefussylibrarian.com/ 

KidLitTV Children can experience authors and illustrators reading their works through KidLit TV’s Read Out Loud program (https://kidlit.tv/category/read-out-loud/), which includes an array of titles featuring diverse people and cultures. Find more read-alouds, plus podcasts, activity ideas, book trailers, and more at their award-winning website. https://kidlit.tv/ 

Story Time from Space is a project of the Global Space Education Foundation, which sends children’s books to the International Space Station. While in space, astronauts record themselves on video reading these books to the children of Earth and share them on the Story Time from Space website. https://storytimefromspace.com/ 

At Storyline Online, SAG-AFTRA Foundation records well-known actors reading children’s books and makes graphically dynamic videos so that children around the world can enjoy favorite stories, such as The Kissing Hand, A Bad Case of Stripes, and Stellaluna. http://www.storylineonline.net/ 

Julie's Library: Julie Andrews and her daughter, children’s author and educator Emma Walton Hamilton, invite you into their library to read their favorite children’s books. Every story comes to life with sound, music and activities. Authors, kids and other special guests chime in, too. https://www.julieslibraryshow.org/ 

Lee & Low Storytime has a growing library of author read alouds which include several titles read in Spanish. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWvLSVUakWYPsIo4gTnMykhcleuJZVkYz 

International Children’s Digital Library (ICDL) : This non-profit identifies exemplary books that help children to understand the world around them and the global society in which they live and makes them freely available on the Internet. http://www.childrenslibrary.org/ 

PBS KIDS Read-Alongs offers families a place to come together and read along with favorite titles read by celebrities and PBS KIDS authors. https://www.pbs.org/parents/read-along 

PBS Books Storytime is a resource developed by the PBS Books channel to offer author read-aloud stories and book features for educators, libraries and families. The segments feature children’s book authors and others in “Read-Aloud” segments and/or video features on new and best-loved children’s books. https://www.pbsbooks.org/pbs-books-storytime/ 

Goodnight With Dolly features Dolly Parton reading aloud titles from the Imagination Library. Snuggled in bed with her Imagination Library book, Dolly shares stories that are just right for this moment in time. https://donate.imaginationlibrary.com/goodnight-with-dolly/ 

Author Kate Messner's Read, Wonder, and Learn! is a complilation of resources from favorite authors and illustrators that include everything from first-chapter and picture book video read-alouds to drawing and writing mini-lessons. https://www.katemessner.com/read-wonder-and-learn-favorite-authors-illustrators-share-resources-for-learning-anywhere-spring-2020/ 

Lit2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 format. http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/ 

International Children’s Digital Library is the world’s largest digital collection of children’s books, and all of them are free! http://en.childrenslibrary.org/ 

Digital Book Index is a catalogue of all the major e-book sites, university collections, and other smaller publishers. It has some children's books, but also includes titles for teens and adults, as well as research materials. http://www.digitalbookindex.org/search001a.htm 

Read.gov is created by the Library of Congress, and includes free e-books. https://www.read.gov/ 

Project Gutenberg is entirely free, and focuses on books which are old enough to be out of copyright. https://www.gutenberg.org/ 

Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices: ALSC and Netflix partner up for a collection of 12 episodes featuring prominent Black celebrities and artists reading children’s books from Black authors. No login necessary.  https://www.netflixbookmarks.com/ 

Unite For Literacy provides free digital access to picture books narrated in many languages. https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/?LangId=spa&shr=1 

#ReadTogether with Reach Out and Read, videos of reading aloud. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLP_pdG1A03h1lPXP-VSuS5fZYJVO21rB1 

The Big List of Children's Authors features author read-alouds, virtual author visits, and more! https://www.weareteachers.com/virtual-author-activities/#.XngHwI_NlU5.twitter 

Open Culture: This collection provides a list of free educational resources for K-12 students (kindergarten through high school students) and their parents and teachers. https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources 

Storyvoice is the world’s first interactive, live read-aloud show where authors and illustrators read, draw, and connect live with a global listening audience. Hosted by Scholastic, recordings of previous sessions are also available. https://storyvoice.scholastic.com/streams/public 

Georgia Aquarium's African Penguin webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/african-penguin-cam/ 

San Diego Zoo's Ape cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/ape-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Baboon cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/baboon-cam 

Georgia Aquarium's Beluga Whale webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/beluga-whale-webcam/ 

San Diego Zoo's Burrowing Owl cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/burrowing-owl-cam 

Georgia Aquarium's California Sea Lion webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/california-sea-lion-cam/ 

San Diego Zoo's Condor cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/condor-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Elephant cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/elephant-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Giraffe cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/giraffe-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Hippo cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/hippo-cam 

Georgia Aquarium's Indo-Pacific Barrier Reef webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/indo-pacific-barrier-reef/ 

Georgia Aquarium's Jellyfish webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/jelly-webcam/ 

San Diego Zoo's Koala cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/koala-cam 

Georgia Aquarium’s Ocean Voyager webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/ocean-voyager/ 

San Diego Zoo's Penguin cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/penguin-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Platypus cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/platypus-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Polar Bear cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/polar-bear-cam 

San Diego Zoo's Red Panda cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/red-panda-cam 

Georgia Aquarium's Sea Otter webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/southern-sea-otter-webcam/ 

Georgia Aquarium's Sharks! Predators of the Deep webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/sharks-predators-of-the-deep-webcam/ 

San Diego Zoo's Tiger cam: https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/videos/livecam/tiger-cam 

Georgia Aquarium's Underwater Puffin webcam: https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/webcam/puffin-cam/ 

The Dolly Parton Imagination Library is a unique book gifting program that mails a brand new, age-appropriate book to enrolled children every month from birth until five years of age, creating a home library of up to 60 books and instilling a love of books and reading from an early age. The cost of the books and the mailing is typically financed by community businesses, school districts, civic organizations, individuals, or local government. https://imaginationlibrary.com/ 

Epic! This digital reading platform for kids 12 and under with more than 40,000 high-quality and award-winning fiction and nonfiction books, audio books, and videos from 250 publishers. Epic! is completely free for teachers and librarians. https://www.getepic.com/educators 

Vooks is an entire library of storybooks brought to life through animation, read-aloud narration, engaging music and sound, and read-along text. Vooks is always free for teachers’ classroom use on one device. https://www.vooks.com/pages/educators/ 

First Book Marketplace offers free lesson plans and toolkits for a variety of topics. https://www.fbmarketplace.org/free-resources 

Open Culture: This collection provides a list of free educational resources for K-12 students (kindergarten through high school students) and their parents and teachers. https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources 

Literacy Central is an online destination for teachers, parents, and literacy volunteers to get thousands of free digital resources tied directly to the books children love and teachers turn to everyday. The portal provides tools to easily organize and keep reading resources in one place with customizable book lists, printable lesson plans, activities, games, reading passages, calendars, and videos. https://www.rif.org/literacy-central App version: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/literacy-central/id1271856078 

Bookshare is a leading source for free digital text-to-speech books. It’s the largest online library of accessible reading materials. To join Bookshare, you or your child’s teacher need to show that your child has a disability that presents a barrier to reading traditional print books; it is then free for all qualifying US students, including college students.  https://www.bookshare.org/ 

Storynory offers free audiobooks for young children. Each audiobook includes the digital text of the book. http://www.storynory.com/ 

Lit2Go is a free online collection of stories and poems in Mp3 format. http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/ 

Audible is Amazon’s audiobook website. It has many paid audiobooks. But there are also many “free listens” — you can stream hundreds of free audiobooks. Simply sign in with your Amazon account. https://www.audible.com/ep/FreeListens 

Spotlight On: Shakespeare introduces students to William Shakespeare, covering his life and works. Each episode includes key terminology, fun facts, and examples of content in action. https://www.digitaltheatreplus.com/spotlight-on-shakespeare?hsCtaTracking=53127896-4e45-4442-87b4-74e0828ec7d2%7C4dd0ba5b-00fc-4fad-9c91-d310a7279d4b 

Spotlight On: Theatre Foundations introduces the essential topics and skills needed to develop knowledge and understanding of theatre through a series of short, accessible e-learning videos. Each episode includes key terminology, fun facts, and examples of content in action. https://www.digitaltheatreplus.com/spotlight-on-theatre-foundations?hsCtaTracking=ea9de1ef-1661-48f3-ae8e-0a41665b321e%7C87faa882-b524-4de6-843f-610b6b85f6a9 

Spotlight On: The Production Team introduces the key roles involved in making theatre, covering who they are, what they do, each episode includes terminology, fun facts and examples of content in action. https://www.digitaltheatreplus.com/spotlight-on-the-production-team?hsCtaTracking=57e7474d-2a46-492f-bc87-9b060bf0cb61%7C7fb67bb9-ea92-46a1-8d78-65dd4459ac84 

Spotlight On: World Theatre introduces theatre styles and traditions from around the world. Each of these short e-learning videos includes key terminology, fun facts and examples of content in action. https://www.digitaltheatreplus.com/spotlight-on-world-theatre?hsCtaTracking=f1ec20e3-dc92-45bf-be78-5ce98de5e196%7Cc8c6e401-03ab-4e81-8f46-4e0c4a02e580 

Lee & Low Storytime tiene una biblioteca cada vez mayor de libros de autor leídos en voz alta que incluyen varios títulos leídos en español. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWvLSVUakWYPsIo4gTnMykhcleuJZVkYz 

Unite for Libraries tiene acceso digital gratuito a libros ilustrados narrados en muchos idiomas, incluido el español. https://www.uniteforliteracy.com/?LangId=spa&shr=1 

Érase una vez, Once Upon a Time tiene cuentos cuentos infantiles leídos en voz alta en español. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEgw_dAlo9yt-bLrFCDOPtA/videos 

Colorín Colorado iayudando a los niños leer y a triunfar!