WHSPA Online Resources

About the list

The following is a list of free online resources for use during the Covid19 period. Some resources have only been made free for this period only, and may revert to a paid service at a later date.

There are also many resource links, guides such as referencing guides, and reading lists, etc, in my library section of the WHSPA website - check it out.

If you have any suggestions for this list or the library website, please let me know, liane.pfister1@det.nsw.edu.au

General Resources

This section includes general learning from home resources plus resources that cover multiple subjects

  • DoE Learning from Home Copyright Some of the copyright allowances and limitations have changed since the 2020 lockdown and the introduction of learning from home. These pages will be updated with current information as it becomes available.

  • Smartcopying Lockdown advice This is the official guide for all Australian schools during Covid-19 lockdown.

  • Copyright Information The Official Guide to Copyright Issues for Australian Schools with regards to remote & online learning during the COVID-19 outbreak.

  • Remote Learning with Microsoft Technologies You need to request permission to access this link, but the response is usually instant (an email is sent)

  • Tips for using Google Classroom during Covid-19.

  • Distance Learning Resources from Google for schools.

  • (AITSL)'s free resource for teachers supporting student learning at home

  • ABC Education ABC Education brings you thousands of free, curriculum-linked resources for Primary and Secondary students and teachers.

  • FBI Radio has compiled a comprehensive list of information and resources to help support everyone during this difficult time. There are creative endeavours to help you stay connected to art and culture, an array of entertainment options to cure your isolation boredom, some reliable and easily digestible information on the coronavirus pandemic, simple ways to help communities impacted by this crisis, and some resources for times of emergency or hardship.

  • Scootle a national repository that provides Australian schools with more than 20,000 digital resources aligned to the Australian Curriculum.

  • Open Educational Resources available across subjects such as Science, Maths, English and HSIE.

  • National Library of Australia Digital Classroom

  • State Library of NSW Learning from Home section has a selection of fun activities and online resources for students to enjoy at home.

  • All Digital School has tools and resources for teaching online, where to find them, how to access them, and what are the free/low-cost alternatives.

  • Online Excursions Dart Connection provides ways for teachers to engage with the curriculum to provide virtual experiences.

  • PBS Learning Media have curated FREE, standards-aligned videos, interactives, lesson plans, and more just for teachers.

  • ANU Press have over 880 CC and free educational resources that are fully open access.

  • Scholastic Learn at Home have created a free digital learning hub designed to support virtual learning plans.

  • BrainPop is a group of educational websites with over 1,000 short animated movies for students in grades K-12, together with quizzes and related materials, covering the subjects of science, social studies, English, math, engineering and technology, health, and arts and music.

  • Breakout Edu is a collection of digital games that students can play at home. including Maths, Science, coding, Team Building

  • Buncee is a creation and presentation tool for students and educators to create interactive classroom content, allowing learners of all ages to visualize concepts and communicate creatively.

  • ClassHook Blog helps teachers facilitate discussions using educational clips from popular TV shows and movies. On this blog, we’ll be posting new clips, updates, ways that different teachers are using popular media to engage and inspire their students, and more!

  • Kids Activities Blog provides a list of education companies offering free subscriptions due to school closings.

  • TEDED@HOME has created an array of videobased lessons to assist teachers, students and parents around the world who are engaged in schooling from home. The free resources are organised by grade level from K to university and cover a wide range of subject areas.

E-books

Audio Books

  • Wheelers ebooks & audiobooks Free subscription until 3rd Nov 2021. Use your DET username and password to login.

  • If you have a Local Council Library membership, you can access:

  • Audible is providing free audiobooks so that everyone can stream a large selection of their collection during the COVID-19 outbreak. As of 20 March 2020, anyone can listen to a mix of education, entertainment and general interest titles at no cost. These are available across six different languages.

  • ABC Kids Listen Download the ABC Kids listen app and listen to free stories, news and podcasts selected to entertain and educate pre-school aged children.

  • Kinderling Download the Kinderling app or stream online. It is a family friendly radio station, which provides a day long program for children and adults that includes music and educational activities.

  • Audio Books on Spotify This post explains the finer details searching for audio books on Spotify.

  • International Childrens Library International children' s digital library - English and multiple languages

  • Open Culture cultural & educational media

  • Librivox Free public domain audiobooks, read by volunteers from around the world.

  • Where can I find books to read from home for the Premier's Reading Challenge?

Free Subscriptions

  • Amazing Education This link will open a document showing you a list of education companies that are offing free subscriptions during this time.

Virtual Tours

Virtual Australia:


Virtual Globe:


Virtual Space:

  • Access Mars

  • Boeing Future Join Boeing and Discovery Education on a mission to inspire the world through aerospace innovation with an exclusive virtual field trip to historic Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

HSIE

English

  • Everyone's an author is a DoE page with a creative digital writing program featuring ten great Aussie authors. Suited to Stages 1-4 with a focus on English, featuring A short author video with tips on an aspect of writing,; and a downloadable and free Learning Journal for students covering that aspect of digital writing.

  • Where can I find books to read from home for the Premier's Reading Challenge?

  • Book Creator Book Creator offers a simple way to infuse creativity throughout the curriculum, motivating students to become published authors and helping them develop future-ready skills.

  • Ninja Grammar Learn English grammar in a fun and exciting way. Play through multiple worlds, collecting power-ups, and learning parts of speech and sentence structure.

  • The British Library's Harry Potter exhibition

  • Harry Potter at Home hub where you’ll find all the latest magical treats to keep you occupied - including special contributions from Bloomsbury and Scholastic, nifty magical craft videos, fun articles, quizzes, puzzles and plenty more.

  • Harry Potter read aloud Teachers can now post videos of themselves reading aloud from the Harry Potter books to children prevented from attending school because of Covid.

  • Penguin Books Activities for lots of books, eg: Two Wolves, Roald Dahl

  • Penguin Books Teacher Resources notes and educational resources for some key education titles.

  • Teachers Hub Harper Collins has a learning from home resource section, plus a section of novel notes for teachers.

  • Pan Macmillan Australia Download free activities and Teacher Resources

Science

  • Questacon fun Science activities for kids, and also Questacon Virtual Excursions.

  • Science By Doing is an online website for high school Science Years 7-10 covering the Australian Curriculum. This site is free to all Australian students and teachers and presents science in an engaging, guided inquiry-based approach to lift student interest and understanding.

  • Stile blends interactive science lessons, science news stories and hands-on investigations to empower students to observe, think, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers. Free, unlimited access in Semester 1.

  • Alchemie Their mission is to create innovative, digital learning technology for students, including games to explain difficult scientific topics.

  • ChemMatters Articles by Chemistry Concepts

  • CK-12 Foundation Lessons in Maths and Science

  • Phet Interactive Simulations for Science and Math

  • Australian Science TV ideas to inspire and support your STEM teaching, free videos, articles, resources and teacher tools all linked to the Australian National Curriculum.

Maths

  • CK-12 Foundation Lessons in Maths and Science

  • NZ Maths It is written for the NZ educational system, but has lots of free Maths lessons

  • Resolve Maths by Inquiry is a national program that promotes relevant and engaging mathematics teaching and learning from Foundation to Year 10.

  • Phet Interactive Simulations for Science and Math

  • Maths is Power for you

  • My Open Math

Digital Technology

  • Digital Technologies Hub provides learning resources and services for teachers, students, and parents.

  • Australian Computing Academy Helping teachers implement the Digital Technologies Curriculum in classrooms around the country.

  • Digital Technologies MOOCS run a range of Digital Technologies programs for Australian teachers, including free, online CSER MOOC courses, free professional learning events, and our National Lending Library.

Art

  • Tate Kids, art activities, games and puzzles.

Special Education

  • Board Maker is a complete special education platform that supports education, communication, access and social/emotional needs of more than six million students in 51 countries.

Well-being

  • Student Wellbeing Hub This is a space for educators, parents and students to build safe, inclusive and connected school communities that promote wellbeing and learning. provides high quality, age-appropriate information and resources targeted specifically to educators, parents and students to support student wellbeing and safety. The educator area contains free, self-paced and certificated professional learning courses on a range of key topics for schools.

  • NSW DoE Staff Wellbeing and Wellbeing teaching at home