Entertainers and organizations are streaming activities and performances. Many of these resources are experiences that some families may otherwise never have access to due to travel and financial factors. Discover Online Resources to keep your child’s learning fun, while being quarantined indoors from the COVID-19 virus in the United States.
The Shows Must Go On
Last Friday, May 15, The Shows Must Goes On concluded its Andrew Lloyd Webber weekly programming with the broadcast of Cats, along with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s live commentary. But the shows will, indeed, go on! The Shows Must Go On YouTube channel announced that the series will continue with The Sound of Music Live!, branching out from its previous exclusive Andrew Lloyd Webber programming. The broadcast will stream on Friday, May 21 at 1pm (CST), and the recording will remain accessible for 48 hours.
WATCH IT LIVE HERE
Visit the museum online! Virtual galleries are unavailable, however, each exhibition has its own online presence. On the landing pages for their current exhibitions, you will find a variety of resources that enhance enjoyment and understanding of this magnificent art. The Frist Art Museum invites you to explore the links that can be found under the “Resources” heading on each exhibition’s page. There they have posted gallery guides, educator resources, media coverage of the exhibitions, and video. And with children out of school, FristKids.org is a tremendous resource for home learning and fun activities.
Frist Art Museum Storytime Online: “Flowers Are Calling” will be read online on June 8, 10:30am.
Written by Rita Gray and illustrated by Kenard Pak
This beautifully illustrated book invites the reader to marvel at the harmony of the natural world as plants, animals, and insects all play a role in the life of the forest.
WATCH IT HERE.
Nashville Symphony Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero hosts a virtual conducting class on Facebook Live. Viewers of all ages are invited to learn what it’s like to lead a symphony orchestra, hear about Maestro Guerrero’s own personal conducting style, and ask their own questions, which can be submitted ahead of time to socialmedia@nashvillesymphony.org or via the Nashville Symphony’s Facebook page. The live event will take place on Wednesday, April 15 at 6pm. Archives of all videos featuring Guerrero can be found at: NashvilleSymphony.org/GiancarloatHome.
Live From The Playroom
The Rock & Roll Playhouse is here to keep your kids engaged and happy every day of the week! Sing and dance with them on RRPH’s Facebook every Monday through Friday at 2pm, presented by In The Raw. Want to keep the fun going on the weekend? Tune into their livestream at noon on Saturdays on Industry City’s Facebook and at 10am on Sundays on Rockefeller Center’s Facebook.
The Rock and Roll Playhouse is a family-friendly rock concert series that has hosted shows in over 28 cities at 35 venues across the country. They’ve featured special guests such as Warren Haynes, Phil Lesh, George Porter Jr, Nicki Bluhm, Questlove, David Shaw, and more. They’re now bringing live music to your homes with their livestream series Live From The Playroom! Live From The Playroom offers kids and families delightfully bite-sized programs featuring 20-minutes of music that the whole family can dance and sing to. They have lots of special guests planned to join them at Live From The Playroom in the coming weeks; tune in and rock out with the whole family.
The Discovery Center is here to help you and your family have fun and keep learning from home by sharing activities, videos and favorite staff-picked links! This also includes SPARK Live on Facebook each Tuesday at 9am. Their goal is to continue engaging curious minds to fuel the future, so be sure to stay connected via social media, especially their Facebook page and blog.
The original Mr. Bond’s Science Guys in Nashville, TN and Maryland’s The Science Guys of Baltimore join forces to bring you online science events! Every Monday and Wednesday at 1pm and Friday at 10am. To learn more sign up for the newsletter at https://thescienceguys.org/ or follow them on all of their social networks.
Keith Trehy | NowPlayingNashville.com
Tennessee-based, PowerUp Fitness, an evidence-based physical activity program aligned with academic standards, launched a new “At-Home” resource: powerupfitness.net/athome to help families get students moving and learning, even in their living rooms.Currently, PowerUp Fitness has 15 family fitness videos available on their website, along with printable activity lists, with new resources being added daily. These include short, five-minute activities to full, 30-minute fitness classes, all available for free to families. The free resources and PowerUp Parent Packs can be found online: www.powerupfitness.net/athome.
One-of-a-kind scavenger hunts help kids and families explore, discover, and connect. All you’ll need is your phone, your team, and your home. The interactive Let’s Roam app will present you with a series of challenges and questions ranging in difficulty and point value. You can pause as needed, spreading the activity across multiple days. Work through the challenges in any order and have fun. LEARN MORE HERE.
Checkout these Creativity Kits! They are primarily geared towards ages 4-14 but adults can enjoy them as well during a family art night. Purchasing creativity kits supports Turnip Green Creative Reuse staff, artists, and students during closures. For every 5 kits purchased, TGCR will donate 1 kit to a student in need! You can also sponsor a kit for a student in need.
STEAM Creativity Kit
Favorite Artists Creativity Kit
DIY Creativity Kit
Paper Scrap Kit
Fabric Scrap Kit
DIY Fabric Rope Kit
If you live within the Nashville area, they will ship the package to you or deliver it directly to your door, based on the size of the object and shipping address. If you are located outside of the Nashville area, they will ship the item to your home. Expected shipping/delivery time is 5-10 days.
Kits are $5-$29/Creativity Kit.
#PaintWithPaak
Grammy award winning singer/songwriter Anderson .Paak announces his inaugural #PaintWithPaak coloring contest. Something fun for the kids! Winning entries will receive something special! Download the sketch here, post tagging #PaintWithPaak, and FOLLOW @paakhouse on Instagram to see .Paak’s favs each week! The contest starts Friday, March 27, and will continue every Friday moving forward with a fresh sketch available at the @paakhouse Instagram bio link. Throughout the week, .Paak will be sharing some of his favorite posts using #PaintWithPaak.
“Goodnight With Dolly” will feature Dolly Parton reading a series of Imagination Library books all carefully chosen for their appropriate content at this moment in time. She will read from Facebook every Thursday from April 2 through June 4 at 6pm/c.
WATCH IT HERE.
Visit the Nashville Sounds Facebook page for a variety of activities including:
Kidsville has a plethora of fun activities for the kiddos including Kidsville Sound Story and a Parthenon Workout. VISIT HERE.
Tina Randolph | NowPlayingNashville.com
Spotify has released an app for children with more songs, stories and other content. The app is largely designed to boost sign-ups for Spotify’s top-tier subscription, the $14.99 (USD) per month Premium Family plan. This plan offers up to 6 people in the same household access to Spotify’s on-demand, ad-free music streaming service, each with their own personalized account. It also includes other exclusive features like Family Mixes, as well as parental controls, and now, the Spotify Kids application. The app can also be customized by age range.
Nashville Opera’s The Enchanted Forest
Your best friend’s a bee?
Enchanting!
Nashville Opera’s back with more magic for your streaming pleasure. This week, tune in to THE ENCHANTED FOREST, an original choose-your-own-adventure opera by Anna Young! As our story opens, a fire-breathing dragon threatens to burn down the forest and all its friendly inhabitants. It’s up to our brave princess and her best pal Bumble to save the day. (Happy Spoiler Alert: They do!)
Click and see what the buzz is all about!
Nashville Opera’s Little Red’s Most Unusual Day
Nashville Opera ON TOUR usually comes to you in school, but they are delighted to share their latest children’s opera with you wherever you are, video-style!
Get ready for bright sets and costumes, four professional opera singers, and an amazing pianist—all members of Nashville Opera’s acclaimed Mary Ragland Emerging Artist Program. LITTLE RED’S MOST UNUSUAL DAY is 40 minutes of opera fun with activities to boot!
Click and enjoy.
Nashville Opera’s BEAR HUG/ABRAZO DE OSO
Need a hug?
Nashville Opera is happy to post its second full-length children’s opera for you to stream and enjoy at home: BEAR HUG/ABRAZO DE OSO! It’s the first bilingual opera they ever presented in schools, and it was written by their own Anna Young, who directs their education programs. BEAR HUG’S catchy, danceable music is taken from the world of Spanish opera—called zarzuela—and if it happens to get stuck in your head, that’s just the happy side effect the Nashville Opera is going for! If you’ve got a young reader in the house, check out the accompanying story boards. They’re like little photobooks of the opera, and you can compare the English to the Spanish versions for even more fun. WATCH HERE.
LeVar Burton Kids
LeVar Burton, one of the world’s greatest storytellers and long-time host of Reading Rainbow, has created Skybrary and Skybrary School. Skybrary features digital stories and videos. LISTEN HERE.
TEG Field Trips are free, online games designed to take students on engaging and educational journeys through famous museums and historic landmarks, and even back to major moments in time. Much like The Escape Game rooms, players progress through games by uncovering clues and solving puzzles. To be successful, players must exercise their critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills. VISIT HERE TO PLAY.
Quaranteened is an original musical to be created by teen writers and songwriters about the changes in the world that our students are facing, right now, today. After the completion of the script, actors may audition to perform the script by being directed remotely and self-taping their pieces. The Theater Bug team will then edit together the scenes and songs to create a finished product! We will have a licensed clinical social worker present at group sessions as emotional and mental health support for students and staff. Not all who submit or audition will be admitted into the program.
This program is offered free of charge. Students will participate via Zoom, FaceTime and email. We are very excited to make some fantastic art with you, but ask that everyone remember that this is uncharted territory for us all. Participants will be asked for their understanding and flexibility as we learn how to create together!
TEACHING ARTISTS:
Nate Eppler
Cori Anne Laemmel
Laura Matula
ADDITIONAL STAFF:
Tony Matula – Director of Photography and Technical Support
Melissa Bowles – Emotional and Mental Health Support
Sarah Bolek – Stage Manager
Learn more by visiting here.
Don’t know what to do with your kid stuck at home? NCT has the answer: At-Home Acting Adventures! Fully digital, online, and LIVE interactive experiences to entertain and enrich student’s lives at home. Check out the class options for kids 3 – 18 years old, now with classes starting on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday!
Some of the classes include:
- Ages 5-7: Jungle Journey ONLINE!
- Ages 5-7: Super Human Training ONLINE!
- Ages 8-11: Character Creators ONLINE!
- Ages 11-18: Advancing Your Acting ONLINE!
NCT also offers ideas for activities: Teddy Bear’s Picnic and 2-minute At Home Drama Activities.
BroadwayHD streams over 300 productions as well as playlists. You can watch and list with a free seven-day trial, along with an $8.99 monthly plan.
Virtually experience Walt Disney World attractions, shows, hotels, monorails, trains, boats, park areas, and more within an interactive 360º video environment.
Mr. Matty’s World is the creation of local entertainer Matt Walberg. He has a long history of children’s entertainment and offers a unique escape from the chaos of everyday life! Check him out on his Facebook and also on his Website.
Giphy.com
This local momma has pulled together a list of online resources as well as some creative ways for the whole family to occupy their time. She also adds some self care tips!
Join the zoo each weekday for their feature “Bringing the Zoo to YOU!”. They will have chats with their keepers, a closer look at the animals that call Zoo Knoxville home, or maybe just a moment of zen.
Zoo Knoxville also wants to hear from you. Each week they will send out a call for participation from their fellow keepers.
THIS WEEK’S (3/16) ASSIGNMENT:
1) Draw a photo of your favorite Zoo Knoxville animal.
2) Take a photo of the drawing (or yourself with the drawing)
3) Post to your favorite social media account and tag @zooknoxville
For updates please visit their website: https://www.zooknoxville.org/
Astronauts read to your child from up above!
Classics for Kids® is here to help you learn about classical music and have fun too! Find Classics for Kids on the radio, listen to our podcast or listen to the programs online. Have fun online with classical music games.
The Classics for Kids® lesson plans and teaching resources give teachers now your homeschool Moms practical, effective plans and activities that use classical music to help children learn. and meet national and state standards.
Emily Arrow
Former Nashvillian, Emily Arrow has taken to her YouTube channel to offer. She creates music, books, workshops and videos for young children. Learn more about Emily at EmilyArrow.com and watch her YouTube Channel here.
Nashville-based company, GoNoodle® engages 14 million kids every month with movement and mindfulness videos created by child development experts. Available for free at school, home, and everywhere kids are! Let’s get kids moving at home.
Teach or improve their game with this printable instruction booklet. VIEW HERE.
View photos, listen to sound recordings and print materials available for online browsing.
Visit Nashville Public Library Online
Delve into Nashville’s history by viewing the library’s digital archive of over 100,000 historical photographs. They also have an online collection of their interpreted puppet shows.
Visit the animals at the Nashville Zoo with regular live-streams on their Facebook!
The Adventure Science Center’s lessons provide instruction, a materials list, and ideas for activities to get hands-on with science, including sample questions to get those gears turning. Visit here for the lessons.
Visit Cheekwood Estate & Gardens for their Tots! program with weekly lessons online.
Andrew Jackson’s The Hermitage is offering virtual tours of the mansion, cabins, and grounds on their Facebook page.
The Nashville Symphony will use their Facebook post videos that highlight music education. You can also visit their Home Resources page on their website for fun ways to teach key educational concepts through music. Principal Pops Conductor Enrico Lopez-Yañez shows how to make a hand drum with items you probably already have in your kitchen. Learn about women in classical music, look at orchestra instruments, and so much more. They are updating this resource regularly so visit often. Have a question or suggestion? Contact their Education Team via email at education@nashvillesymphony.org.
Newly added to the Museum’s website is TSM Kids! This new page acts as a portal to fun Tennessee State Museum resources that will help kids and their families learn and interact with Tennessee history. Travel back in time with stories and activities on the Junior Curators Blog, watch a Storytime video, download coloring book pages featuring objects from our collection, and solve Museum jigsaw puzzles. Content is for Pre-K age to children of all ages. Let your creativity run wild!
Click Here for TSM Kids page.
Visit 500 museums and galleries around the world online courtesy of Google Arts and Culture.
The voice of Olaf, actor Josh Gad, reads to your children from his Twitter account. WATCH HERE.
World famous composer Andrew Lloyd Webber will stream a production of one of his musicals for free on YouTube every Friday during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis. The show will be available for 48 hours. He also performs live regularly on his Facebook.
These will occur at 7pm UK time/1pm CST.
The Actors Fund, the national human services organization for everyone in performing arts and entertainment, announced today that SiriusXM Broadway host Seth Rudetsky and his husband, producer James Wesley, will produce daily online mini-shows, entitled “Stars In The House”, featuring stars of stage and screen singing and performing live (from home!) to promote support for The Fund’s services for those most vulnerable to the effects of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
New shows will be produced DAILY at the traditional theater times of 1pm/c and 7pm/c. Each star will be singing a mix of their hit songs and/or something unexpected. And between each song, Seth will interview the star as he does on SiriusXM, leading them to give fun, inside stories about their careers. Both the star and Seth will encourage people watching to donate at StarsInTheHouse.com, and James will be giving updates from The Fund as well as giving shout-outs to people donating in real time.
Stars scheduled to appear include: Iain Armitage, Shoshana Bean, Laura Benanti, Sierra Boggess, Wayne Brady, Betty Buckley, Laura Bell Bundy, Andréa Burns, Kerry Butler, Norbert Leo Butz, Ann Hampton Callaway, Liz Callaway, Carolee Carmello, Kristin Chenoweth, Gavin Creel, Melissa Errico, Raul Esparza, Christopher Fitzgerald, Kathryn Gallagher, Ana Gasteyer, Mandy Gonzalez, Justin Guarini, Debbie Gravitte, James Monroe Iglehart, Rachel Bay Jones, Jeremy Jordan, Marc Kudish, Judy Kuhn, Anika Larsen, Linda Lavin, Beth Leavel, Telly Leung, Beth Malone, Melissa Manchester, Lesli Margherita, Lindsay Mendez, Idina Menzel, Varla Jean Merman, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Jessie Mueller, Julia Murney, Rosie O’Donnell, Kelli O’Hara, Christine Pedi, Alice Ripley, Adam Pascal, Faith Prince, Keala Settle, Marc Shaiman, Kate Shindle, Jennifer Simard, Elizabeth Stanley, Patrick Wilson, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Scott Wittman, and many more to be announced. WATCH HERE.
“I Voted” Sticker Contest
Davidson County students in 7th through 12gh grade can design Nashville’s next “I Voted” sticker that will be displayed on shirts, lapels, and Instagram! The sticker celebrates the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote. Sponsored by Metro Arts and the Davidson County Election Commission. Read more about rules and guidelines here.
Storytellers Museum founder, Brian Oxley, will be doing a Facebook live-stream every Monday at 2pm CST starting today, March 16th. He will be reading from one of his 15 children’s books from his Grandpa Series. Please join and invite your children to listen in! Also, they will have a Facebook Live Steam at 3:30pm CST on Saturday, March 21st for an acoustic performance by Mark Alan Cash.
Enlighten your child’s day (and yours) with knowledge about animals at the zoo. Some of the events on Facebook will feature the animals from their zoo and take you on a wildlife discovery adventure. They will focus on a new animal each day and also on the future of wildlife.
KidsActivities.com
KidsActivities.com has put together a list of education companies that are offering free subscriptions due to the school closings. The websites feature art, science, reading, and so much more.
Storyline Online
Storyline Online is offering its FREE children’s literacy resource featuring the world’s best storytellers reading books aloud. Each video includes an activity guide with lessons for K-5 students to do at home. https://www.storylineonline.net/
Many museums around the globe are offering virtual tours you can take from your living room. Museums listed on Travel + Leisure include British Museum, Guggenheim Museum, Musee d’Orsay, Van Gogh Museum, The Uffizi Gallery and more. View all of them listed here.
Scholastic
Scholastic releases free daily courses for kids stuck home amid coronavirus school closures (News 13 WBTW)
Scholastic set up a ‘Learn From Home’ website with four categories: PreK and Kindergarten, Grades 1 and 2, Grades 3-5, and Grades 6+. Each section is already equipped with one week of content for students with 15 additional days on the way.
Kids’ author Mo Willems is here to make your weekdays a little better for a while: Starting today, he’ll release a new “Lunch Doodle” video each weekday at 1pm EST.
Broadway may currently be shut down but you can bring Broadway into your home!
Meet Fiona and other amazing animals!
The Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera’s free nightly opera streams is now available. Due to unprecedented demand and web traffic, they recommend you access the stream through the Met Opera on Demand apps for Apple, Amazon, and Roku devices and Samsung Smart TV. The free streams will be available on the apps without logging in under “Browse and Preview” in the apps for connected TV, and “Explore the App” on tablets and mobile devices.
DreamBox Math is here to support you and the learners in our communities during these uncertain times. We’re offering a 90 day free trial of DreamBox through April 30th, so kids can keep on learning, even if they’re not in school. Learn More: https://bit.ly/38SwfbH.
Need more? Here is a list of some free learning websites:
If we missed something, let us know in the comments box below and we will update.
English
Arabic
Chinese (Simplified)
Chinese (Traditional)
French
German
Japanese
Korean
Kurdish (Kurmanji)
Spanish
Vietnamese
