Resources for Learning from Home
Helping children and teens learn from home is no easy task. Educators and parents alike can explore this collection of librarian-selected resources for homeschooling, distance or online learning, and supplemental enrichment to keep learners motivated and engaged.
Click the category name below to view a list of our resources and links on that topic.
To view an A-Z listing of all of CCPL’s subscription databases, click here.
Your CCPL library card gives you 24/7 access to these helpful subscription databases from home.
Book Collection: Nonfiction - Elementary Edition: A searchable collection of non-fiction eBooks on popular school subjects for elementary school students. Subjects include careers, health, life skills, ethnicity, disabilities, adventure, sports, technology, biographies, music, science, history, civics and more. Library & Home Use
Book Collection: Nonfiction - Middle School Edition: A searchable collection of full-text non-fiction eBooks on a wide range of subjects for middle school students. Subjects include careers, health, life skills, ethnicity, disabilities, adventure, sports, technology, biographies, music, science, history, civics and more. Library & Home Use
Book Collection: Nonfiction - High School Edition:A searchable collection of full-text non-fiction eBooks on popular school subjects for high school students. Subjects include careers, health, life skills, ethnicity, disabilities, adventure, sports, technology, biographies, music, science, history, civics and more. Library & Home Use
ERIC: The Education Resource Information Center provides citations to education literature and resources. Library & Home Use
Explora Educator's Edition: The Educator's Edition of Explora highlights content relevant to teachers, including lessons plans, curriculum standards, and other professional development resources. Library & Home Use
Explora Elementary: Explora Elementary is for elementary school students, with many graphics and access to age-appropriate materials. Includes topic overviews and over 60,000 videos. Library & Home Use
Explora Middle School: Explora Middle School provides age-appropriate content and topic overviews for students in middle school in an easy-to-use interface. Library & Home Use
Explora High School: Explora High School searches across multiple resources to provide in-depth results in an easy-to-use interface. Library & Home Use
Learning Express Library: Interactive resource has over 300 online practice tests including SAT, ACT, GED, HiSET, GMAT, Nursing, Fire Fighter, Police, and Middle School & High School Math & Reading. Many tests are available in Spanish. Library & Home Use
Learning Express Library High School Equivalency Center: Prepare to get your high school equivalency credential with complete resources for the GED test, HiSET, and TASC. Library & Home Use
Learning Express Library School Center: Perfect for elementary, middle, and high school students. Prepare for tests, get help with assignments, and boost skills in core subjects. Library & Home Use
MAS Ultra School Edition: This database is designed specifically for high school libraries and contains full text for nearly 500 popular high school magazines including America's Civil War, American Heritage, American History, Archaeology, Astronomy, Bioscience, Careers & Colleges, Civil War Times, Congressional Digest, Discover, History Today, Nation, National Review, New Republic, New Scientist, Popular Science, Science News, Scientific American, Smithsonian, etc. All full-text articles are assigned a reading level indicator (Lexiles). Full text is also available for 85,670 biographies, over 107,000 primary source documents and more than 360 reference books (including the Columbia Encyclopedia, the CIA World Fact Book and World Almanac & Book of Facts); an Image Collection of over 592,000 photos, maps & flags, color PDFs; and expanded full-text backfiles (back to 1975) for key magazines. Library & Home Use
Middle Search Plus: Middle Search Plus contains full text for more than 140 popular middle school magazines. All full-text articles are assigned a reading level indicator (Lexiles). Full text is also available for thousands of biographies and historical essays. Additionally, Middle Search Plus contains primary source documents including Essential Documents in American History, reference books including the Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia; American Heritage Dictionary, 4th Edition from Houghton Mifflin; Encyclopedia of Animals; and thousands of relevant photos, maps and flags. Library & Home Use
Primary Search: Primary Search, designed specifically for elementary school students contains full text for more than 80 popular elementary school magazines. All full-text articles are assigned a reading level indicator (Lexiles). Additionally, Primary Search includes the Encyclopedia of Animals, and features Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, providing students with easy-to-read encyclopedic entries written specifically for kids. The database also provides the American Heritage Children's Dictionary, 3rd Edition from Houghton Mifflin and thousands of relevant photos, maps and flags. Library & Home Use
41 Free Educational Resources for Kids Stuck at Home: This exhaustive list of free resources has something for everyone trying to keep kids engaged and motivated when learning from home. Subjects include science, physical education, cooking, art, history, foreign languages, and more! A description and link to a website is provided for each resource.
America's Story from America's Library: This educational website from the Library of Congress contains resources and information about notable people, historical events, and more!
Animal Diversity Web: An online database of animal natural history, distribution, classification, and conservation biology provided by the University of Michigan. Part animal science encyclopedia, part virtual museum, the database is a learning tool for those interested in the study of animals.
Exploratorium Online Learning: The Exploratorium is a public learning laboratory dedicated to science, art, and human perception located in San Francisco, California. The institution's online Learning Toolbox has a free collection of resources for learning from home, including websites, videos, exhibits, and hands-on, teacher-tested science activities called Science Snacks.
International Children's Digital Library: This project by the University of Maryland and Internet Archive has created an online collection of literature that represents outstanding historical and contemporary books from throughout the world. The books have been digitized and many are translated into English and other languages by volunteers.
Khan Academy: This website offers a free, personalized learning resource for students of all ages. Learners can set their own pace and coursework, or students out of school can take advantage of prepared daily schedules customized for specific grade levels. Khan Academy has partnered with institutions like NASA, The Museum of Modern Art, The California Academy of Sciences, and MIT to offer specialized content.
NASA For Students: The NASA STEM page of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's website provides access to a free catalog of articles, videos, activities, and games for students in grades K-12. Resources are organized by grade level.
Outschool: Over 10,000 online K-12 classes taught over live video chat. Classes are organized by subject, age, format, and length. Outschool is currently offering free classes for families affected by school closures. Any class scheduled between March 10 and June 1, 2020 is eligible for this offer. Visit their financial assistance page for more information.
Tynker: Coding for Kids: A kid-oriented coding platform that offers interactive, self-paced online courses to learn computer programming from home for children age 5 through 14+. Games can be customized by experience-level and what subjects the student is interested in.
TED-Ed: This non-profit education platform offers free access to a library of TED Talks covering a wide variety of subjects, original animated videos, and interactive lessons created by teachers from around the world. Educators and parents can create custom lessons built around any of the 3,400+ TED Talks including videos, questions, and discussion prompts.
Wide Open School: Built in response to Coronavirus school closures, this free website is a curated collection of online learning experiences and resources for educators and families. Educational content provided by organizations like National Geographic, PBS, Scholastic, Sesame Workshop, and more, is all accessible here in one place!
Crash Course: This channel makes engaging, educational videos taught by experts that cover a wide variety of topics. Check out the playlists for courses in computer science, film history, mythology, physics, philosophy, games, economics, U.S. government and politics, astronomy, anatomy & physiology, world history, biology, literature, ecology, chemistry, psychology, and U.S. history.
Crash Course Kids: The kid-friendly version of Crash Course focuses on grade school science. Courses include biology, engineering, physics, astronomy, and more.
Free School: This channel is dedicated to exposing children to famous art, classical music, children's literature, and natural science in an age-appropriate and kid-accessible way.
Geek Gurl Diaries: Carrie Anne Philbin teaches kids computer programming and robotics with tutorials and practical Minecraft coding exercises.
How to Adult: This channel is for learners of all ages dedicated to teaching everything you need to know as an adult that school never taught you. Courses include personal finance, automotive work, home economics, professional etiquette, and social skills.
National Geographic Kids: Explore the world with videos about awesome and weird animals, wacky pets, science experiments, space, and the world around us!
SciShow: Let your curiosity run wild with videos that explore some of the strangest, most unexpected questions about science and look for answers. Topics include chemistry, biology, space, medicine, and more. Be sure to check out the channel's "sister shows" SciShow Psych and SciShow Space.
SciShow Kids: SciShow Kids explores all those curious topics that make us ask "why?" Jessi and her robot rat Squeaks answer your questions and explain fun, complex science concepts for young, curious minds.
Science Max: This high-energy series explores the question "What if we did this science experiment, but made it BIGGER?" Fans of Bill Nye might also like this channel.
The Art Assignment: This channel is a weekly PBS Digital Studios production hosted by curator Sarah Urist Green. It explores art and art history and how it all fits into our world today.
The Brain Scoop: Hosted by Emily Graslie, the Chief Curiosity Correspondent of The Field Museum in Chicago, this channel explores the amazing things they have in the museum's collection. Topics covered include biology, conservation, culture, museum archiving, taxidermy, and dissection.
Free Homeschooling Resources: This reference website with a focus on expert-created education content offers a variety of free homeschooling resources including informative articles for parents, activity and project ideas, free printables, and more.
Homeschooling Guide for Children with Special Needs: This reference website by Understood.org is focused on educating children who think and learn differently due to all types of disabilities. This list of informational articles provides an excellent starting point for setting your child up for success in homeschooling and online schooling programs.
Tips for Quarantined Parents: The American Psychological Association has assembled a list of informational articles with age-appropriate information and resources for parents and caregivers.
Visit our Kids page to view our collection of helpful links for fun and educational Games & Apps for kids
Google Arts & Culture Virtual Exhibits: This site provides virtual access to 2,000 museum collections from 80 countries. Visit the Guggenheim in New York City, the Anne Frank House in the Netherlands, the Tokyo National Museum in Japan - even the White House - all from home! Explore history, art, and culture from across the world for free.
Take a Virtual Vacation Without Traveling: With this list of free online resources for virtual vacations, you can travel the world from the comfort of home. Walk the Grand Canyon without breaking a sweat, see the stunning mountain views (and ornery llamas!) of Machu Picchu, and wander the Old City markets of Jerusalem.
Virtual Field Trips for Kids of All Ages: This list of virtual exhibit and tours lets kids connect with learning opportunities they might not otherwise have. Spend a day exploring the Pyramids in Egypt, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, or Mount Everest to learn about the highest mountain in the world!
Explore Children's Museums Online: Access children's museums from across the United States - and even one in Australia! Museums like Florida's Glazer Children's Museum or the Minnesota Children's Museum provide a wide variety of enrichment resources including virtual exhibits, videos, activities and experiments, and all kinds of fun, educational things to enjoy from home.