Distance Learning

Guidance Documents

• Distance Learning Considerations (Updated 18-Mar-2020)
• Lessons from the Field: Remote Learning Guidance (Added 17-Mar-2020)
• Designing a High-Quality Online Course (Added 19-Mar-2020)
• Guidance on Diagnostic and Formative Assessments (Added 07-Jul-2020)
• FAQs on Distance Learning (Updated 21-Aug-2020)
• Instructional Time and Attendance Accounting (Updated 18-Jul-2024)

English Learner Support

The English Learner Support Division has collected links to distance learning resources that can assist educators with providing language support to students and families. For the latest information and resources regarding English learner education from the California Department of Education, including distance learning please visit the English Learner Updates Newsletters web page.

Grading and Graduation

• Resources for Making Local Decisions Regarding Grading Student Progress (Added 02-Feb-2021)
• Information on College Admissions, Grading, and Graduation Requirements - Spring 2020 (Added 01-Apr-2020)
• FAQs on Grading and Graduation Requirements - Spring 2020 (Added 01-Apr-2020)
  

Special Education

• Special Education Guidance for COVID -19

Webinars

For the remainder of the 2020 school year, the CDE plans to host Distance Learning webinars on Thursdays.

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Completed:

• Implementing the 2019 Arts Standards Through Distance Learning: Lessons from the Field (Video; 1:04:21)
  This webinar is hosted by the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division in collaboration with the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) Arts Initiative and The California Arts Project (TCAP). Presenters will provide a high-level overview of the 2019 California Arts Standards and then feature voices of arts educators from several disciplines sharing how they are implementing the 2019 standards through distance learning.
  • Implementing the 2019 Arts Standards Through Distance Learning: Lessons from the Field Slides (PPTX; Added 22-Jul-2020)
  • Implementing the 2019 Arts Standards Through Distance Learning: Lessons from the Field Notes
    
    
• Universal Design for Learning in Distance Learning for Early Childhood (Video; 2:23)
  Hosted by the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division in collaboration with the Early Learning and Care Division and the California Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Coalition, this webinar will provide information on UDL and its application to distance learning for early childhood education.
  
• Kelly Wylie and Kathy Wahl from the Santa Clara County Office of Education will provide a broad overview of UDL and guidance on integrating UDL principles as educators plan and deliver instruction in a distance learning format for preschool students.
  • Universal Design for Learning in Distance Learning for Early Childhood Slides (PPTX; Added 11-Jul-2020)
  • Universal Design for Learning in Distance Learning for Early Childhood Notes
    
    
• The Role of High–Quality Instructional Materials to Support Distance Learning (Video; 42:22)
  The California Department of Education and CalCurriculum examine the role of high-quality instructional materials in a distance learning context. This webinar includes information and guidance for local educational agency considerations related to instructional materials and the upcoming school year.
  
  • The Role of High–Quality Instructional Materials to Support Distance Learning Notes
• Going the Distance with World Languages: Proficiency-Oriented Distance Learning, May 28, 2020 (Video; 1:06:38)
  Nicole Naditz—Program Specialist for Instructional Technology and World Languages at San Juan Unified School District, National Board Certified Teacher, and former Chair of the World Languages Subject Matter Committee in the Instructional Quality Commission—facilitates this webinar focused on sharing ideas for engaging students of languages other than English. Ms. Naditz shares tools and resources that teachers can use in the context of distance learning to ensure students continue to develop and strengthen their language acquisition.
  • Resources related to this webinar:
    
    
    • Going the Distance with world Languages: Proficiency-Oriented Distance Learning Webinar Notes
      
    • Playlist of recorded live training videos (Video; 12:22) on designing learning experiences for distance learning, engaging learners in distance learning, differentiation, and specific instructional technology tools. Each video includes a links to additional resources.
      
    • CTFL-NCCSFL Can-Do Statements work in tandem with the World Languages Standards and World Languages Framework. They include Proficiency Benchmarks, which are often used as year-end goals or course outcomes; Performance Indicators, which define performance objectives to be demonstrated at the end of a unit of study; and Example Can-Do Statements, which reflect concrete learning targets that are the focus of daily language lessons.
      
    • Integrated Performance Assessment (PDF) task template includes nine tasks that can be used for the interpretive mode of an Integrated Performance Assessment, as well as for practice with the interpretive mode. Not all tasks are appropriate for all texts or for all proficiency ranges, yet teachers can select the appropriate tasks to use with authentic texts in order to gauge comprehension and students’ ability to interpret the meaning and intent of the text.
  
  
  
• Support for Distance Learning: the History–Social Science and English Language Arts/English Language Development Frameworks, May 14, 2020
  Hosted by the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division in collaboration with the Monterey County Office of Education and the California History–Social Science Project, this presentation provides an overview of how the state-adopted curriculum frameworks in history–social science and English language arts/English language development can support teachers and administrators in implementing a distance learning instructional program.
  • Support for Distance Learning: the H-SS and ELA/ELD Frameworks Webinar Notes
• Virtual Support Circle for Educators Webinar May 7, 2020
  Hosted by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tony Thurmond, and the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division, this Virtual Support Circle for Educators features an online panel of educators and experts who share their experiences, tips for educator wellness, and resources. This was originally streamed on Facebook live. You can find our posts and videos by following CAEducation on Facebook.
  • Virtual Support for Educators Webinar Notes
    
    
• Implementing UDL in a Distance Learning Environment, April 24, 2020
  Hosted by the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division in collaboration with the California Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Coalition, this webinar will provide information on UDL, a framework that can assist in the planning of instruction through a lens of equity and inclusion, whether that instruction is delivered in a classroom or from a distance.
  • Implementing UDL in a Distance Learning Environment Webinar Notes
    
    
• Key Principles for a Quality Distance Learning Approach April 17, 2020
  This video presentation is designed for K–12 teacher teams to virtually collaborate and learn together about some key principles and practical examples to consider as you design your lessons in a distance learning environment. Throughout the video presentation, you'll have an opportunity to discuss with your colleagues the ideas presented and how you can apply new learnings into your planning.
  
  
• What Districts are Doing to Support their Students and an introduction of the English Learner Support Division Resources, April 9, 2020 (Added 14-Apr-2020)
  This webinar highlights the work of Glendale Unified School District and Natomas Unified District in transition to distance learning. It also introduces California Department of Education English Learner resources, presented by the English Learner Support Division.
  • What Districts are Doing to Support their Students and English Learner Support Strategies Webinar Notes (Added 10-Apr-2020)

The links below are to information and resources provided in consultancy session webinars presented by the California Partnership for Math and Science Education (CAPMSE). These webinars did not record the breakout sessions, although future webinars will include that content. For more information, please visit the CAPMSE website .

• Creating meaningful math and science learning experiences for high school online, April 2, 2020 (with the Exploratorium's Institute for Inquiry)
  
  
• Using technology, applications, and other resources to support all learner access to math and science from a distance, April 9, 2020 (with Dr. Nathan Swett)
  
  
• Exploring UDL for STEM in a distance environment, April 16, 2020 (with Dr. Rachel Lambert and Dr. Alexandria Hansen)
  
  
• Creating meaningful math and science learning experiences for K-8 students, April 30, 2020 (with teachers from the Instructional Leadership Corps)

A comprehensive listing of all CDE webinars related to the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

State, County Office of Education, and District Resources

This section contains links to resources, tools, and programs that local educational agencies (LEAs), county offices of education, and state partners have shared with us to support California teachers and families.

• Developed collaboratively with CCEE, Riverside COE, and San Diego COE, the Continuity of Learning Playbook provides guidance about how to best leverage existing resources, translating individual activities into an action-oriented preparedness plan for the delivery of services to support the continuity of learning for all students. Whether LEAs are implementing an on-site, remote, or hybrid model, this Playbook will support school and district leadership teams make evidence-based decisions aligned with best practices to address the following topics and needs:
  • Communication/Family Engagement
  • SEL/Trauma-Informed Support
  • Effective Scheduling
  • Special Education
  • Staff Engagement and Professional Learning
  • Assessment of Needs and Progress
  • English Learners
  • Integration of Programs and Resources

• Kern County Superintendent of Schools: At-Home Learning Resources.
  Kern County schools are using a combination of paper packets and online tools like Google Classroom, Canvas, Zoom and other virtual learning applications. The At-Home Learning Resources page includes resources related to Canvas, as well as Supplemental Distance Learning, Camp KEEP Digital Content, and Distance Learning Support.
  
  
• The California Collaborative for Educational Excellence has developed a series of modules on equity, learning systems and strategies, special education and additional matters related to distance learning.
  
  
• San Diego Unified School District has created an instructional resource page designed to provide family support during school closures.
  
  
• Digital Learning Integration and Standards Guidance Project
  The 2019–2020 California State Budget allocated funding for the Sacramento County Office of Education to develop draft distance learning curriculum and instructional guidance for mathematics, English language arts, and English language development to be adopted by the State Board of Education by May 31, 2021.
  
  
• San Diego County Office of Education has designed distance learning units of study in grades K-12 that are focused on grade-level essential learning in each content area. These units integrate English language arts, English language development, mathematics, science, history/social science, arts, computer science, and physical education content and provide flexibility and student choice.
  

Quality Distance Learning Guidance from California School Library Association (CSLA) Teacher Librarians

We believe: Learning takes time. We recommend being open-minded and flexible. We emphasize developing and maintaining a supportive community. We believe that instruction can be synchronous as well as asynchronous. We believe that students need time every day to read both for understanding new content as well as self-selected reading for personalized learning.

Steps to successfully implement distance learning:

1. Check with your school district for guidelines and expectations
2. Utilize and connect with your Teacher Librarian for support:
   • Promoting reading literacy in all formats and forms including but not limited to e-books, audiobooks, read alouds, library card support
   • Collaborating with curriculum development, inquiry, formative and summative assessment
   • Implementing instructional lessons across the curriculum
   • Providing Professional Development
   • Curating digital resources in multiple formats to target diverse student needs
   • Providing online opportunities, training, and support for students to use digital library resources for research, individual exploration, independent reading and personalized learning including CA Library Database support
   • Providing one to one support and training for implementation of technology
   • Building relationships and learning communities
   • Teaching and implementing Information literacy skills and research integration
   • Integrating digital citizenship lessons to keep our students safe online
   • Transitioning face to face lessons to distance learning
   • Implementing tools and pedagogy to increase student engagement
   • Supporting ELL and Special Needs teachers and students with resources and guidance supporting IEP and 504 needs
   • Supporting synchronous and asynchronous instruction
   • Supporting SEL
   • Supporting MTSS practices and needs
3. For specific information about online digital resources for the classroom contact your school or district librarian, your county office of education librarian or contact the School Library Technology Consultant as the California Department of Education
4. CA State Library Database is California’s online content project for kindergarten through grade twelve. It provides no cost access to Encyclopedia Britannica, ProQuest, and TeachingBooks.net, a collection of book guides and lessons.

Check with CSLA for additional resources and assistance. Email assist@csla.net

• The Orange County Office of Education has curated resources for instructional continuity.
  
  
• The San Diego County Office of Education provides a list of distance learning resources by content area.
  
  
• Free Access to University of California A-G Online High School on its web page.Courses (PDF; Updated 01-Apr-2020)
  

Content Enrichment and Extension

This section includes links to state and local systems, agencies, and organizations that provide opportunities to enhance distance learning. This collection includes content, resources, and tools that teachers and parents can use to enrich curriculum and promote student engagement.

Digital Resources by Content Area

Arts Education

Online resources to support remote arts education instruction.

During the pandemic, some in-person activities associated with performing arts courses (dance, music, and theatre), such as groups practicing and performing, may sometimes not be possible. Despite this, instruction can continue to focus on the 2019 California Arts Standards associated with the artistic processes of creating, responding, and connecting, and students can continue to practice for performances during independent applied learning time. Educators may also consider how to approach rehearsal and performances through shared technology platforms and other innovative approaches. On April 14, 2021, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued new guidance including industry-specific guidance for Outdoor Seated Live Events and Performances (PDF) and Indoor Seated Live Events and Performances (PDF). These documents include guidance for rehearsals which may also be useful for schools and districts. Please note that CDPH guidance is subject to change as conditions evolve.

General Arts Education Resources

• For users of Apple products, Apple’s K-12 Teacher Resources includes Everyone Can Create with free project guides that help teach students to develop and communicate their ideas through drawing, photography, video, and music.
  
• The Arts Media and Entertainment (AME) Distance Learning Task Force has compiled distance learning collections for the industry sector pathways Design, Visual and Commercial Arts, Performing Arts, Production and Managerial Arts, and Game Design and all 11 sub-pathways in the AME industry sector.
• The California Department of Education, the California County Superintendents Education Services Association (CCSESA) and The California Arts Project (TCAP) have collaborated to produce an Arts Standards Webinar Series which may be useful to arts educators to build understanding of the 2019 California Arts Standards as they plan standards-based distance learning lessons.
  
• The CCSESA Arts Initiative produced Creativity at the Core, Professional Learning Modules , 21 Professional learning modules for arts educators on various topics. Module 2 is Distance Learning Through the Arts: Equal Access for All.
  
• Educators may wish to contact the CCSESA Regional Arts Leads and the TCAP Regional Site for their county to find out about additional supports for distance learning that may be available in their region.
• The DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative offers a Distance Learning Resource Database which is organized for searching for lessons by elementary, middle, and high school. It includes online and printable visual and performing arts and humanities learning resources for students, teachers, and families.
  
• Classroom Resources from The Kennedy Center include “a robust collection of hundreds of digital learning resources: lessons, articles, performance guides, how-tos and much more.” The free resources include a range of different approaches to arts integration. While all of the digital resources here can be useful for remote arts learning, there is also a page dedicated specifically to Arts Education at Home.
  
• The National Endowment for the Arts web page Resources to Help Ensure Accessibility of Your Virtual Events for People with Disabilities includes guidance for online learning events.
  
• PBS Learning Media provides resources and activities for dance , media arts , music , theatre , and visual arts .
  
• TedEd has a curated collection of lessons and videos arts educators in all disciplines may find useful to supplement and illustrate concepts when designing standards-based distance learning experiences.

Dance Education

• The Dance Studies Association provides resources for moving dance-based pedagogy online. It is designed for university level educators, but the resources may be helpful to secondary level dance educators.
  
• The KQED If Cities Could Dance project captures the diversity of culture and genre in California and across the nation by exploring dance from various communities. Teachers may wish to link their lessons to specific videos such as Dear Dancer , East Bay Hip Hop , or Memphis Jookin which may be especially useful for teaching the Responding and Connecting arts standards .
  
• Luna Dance Institute offers free online resources for dance educators including free phone consultations and a practitioner exchange series, Teaching Dance from a Distance.
  
• The National Dance Education Organization provides free access to their On-Demand Webinar Recordings related to teaching dance online.

Media Arts Education

• Adobe Education Exchange offers Adobe Distance Learning Resources for educators and students who use Adobe tools in their media arts classes with free lessons, projects, and activities for primary, middle, or secondary school students and teachers.
  
• The University of Notre Dame Remix page supports students to learn, explore, and build multimedia (image, audio, video, data) projects. The tutorials, assignments and projects can support high school students as they master the Producing media arts standards as well as educators who wish to build their own understanding of media arts.
  
• The Education Development Center, Inc., an international, nonprofit organization website Digital Media Arts offers free Career Technical Education curriculum for high school students that can be used to provide distance learning in media arts. The website includes overviews and tutorials.
  
• Kahn Academy offers several storytelling lessons such as Pixar in a Box, and Imagineering in a Box, thanks to a collaboration with Disney, where students can learn about and practice media arts production.

Music Education

• The California Music Educators Association provides a resource list with links to support music education through distance learning. The list includes lesson plans and ideas and learning videos.
  
• The Library of Congress Citizen DJ Project invites the public to make hip hop music using the free-to-use audio and video from historic speeches, songs, and films in their collections. These materials can be used by educators when teaching the Creating standards in music .
• The National Association for Music Education received a grant from the Library of Congress to create Teaching with Primary Sources Curriculum Units . Several of these have been adapted for distance learning. There is also a page with links to free past and upcoming webinars related to transitioning to online teaching.
  
• Teach Rock has created a customized lesson plan collection for distance learning with free activity- and project-based lessons that are formatted for teachers to deliver directly to students.

Theatre Education

• The Association for Theatre in Higher Education offers Resources for Teaching Online . This extensive list, which is located at the bottom of the page, includes many open-access resources and may be helpful for secondary theatre teachers as they plan distance learning curriculum.
  
• Educational Theatre Association offers guidance for creating online learning , which includes “Top Tips from the Field,” guidance for Zoom users, and other resources for creating online learning.
  
• London’s National Theatre Learning at Home web page pulls back the curtain for students to view short videos of “How We Made It” and has activities for “How You Can Make It” at home. There are also short basic videos about different jobs such as “What is a Playwrite?” and “What is a Composer?”

Visual Arts Education

• Google Arts & Culture is a single portal through which to explore and interact with hundreds of museums and works of art. It can be accessed in a browser or downloaded as an app.
  
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History pairs essays and works of art with chronologies , telling the story of art and global culture through the Museum’s collection, while #Metkids provides an interactive timeline appropriate for elementary.
  
• MOMA Learning from the Museum of Modern Art provides free distance learning resources and interactives that allow students and teachers to explore different eras, movements, and concepts in art history.
  
• The National Art Education Association provides a Remote Learning Toolkit which includes tips for teaching visual arts and design in a distance learning environment, and links to distance learning resources organized by elementary, middle, and secondary.
  

English Language Arts

Online resources to support remote English Language Arts/literacy and reading instruction, including lesson ideas and mobile apps for students and teachers.

• Curriculum Associates Free Downloadable Reading Packets Printable at-home activity packs that are designed to provide students with valuable self-directed exercises and practice during extended absences from school. Each pack is designed to reinforce key concepts for a given grade. i-Ready’s engaging online lessons can support at-home learning.
• Myon a student-centered, personalized literacy environment that gives students access to more than 6,000 enhanced digital books.
• Starfall Reading a free public service to teach children to read. It includes language arts and mathematics for preschool, kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and third grade. Starfall emphasizes phonemic awareness, systematic sequential phonics, and common sight words in conjunction with audiovisual interactivity.
• Core Knowledge provides open access to an exemplary curriculum for preschool through eighth grade.
• Open Culture allows visitors to download hundreds of free audio books, mostly classics, to your MP3 player or computer. Below, you'll find great works of fiction , poetry , and non-fiction , by such authors as Twain, Tolstoy, Hemingway, Orwell, Vonnegut, Nietzsche, Austen, Shakespeare, Asimov, HG Wells & more.
• Librivox - Free Public Domain Audiobooks features recordings of books in the public domain read by volunteers from around the world.
• CommonLit - Free reading passages in all literacy and nonfiction genres for grades 3-12.
• ReadWriteThink Free Mobile Apps helps students engage in literacy learning using tablet devices. No internet connection is required once the apps are downloaded. Offers resources for grade levels K-12.
• ReadWorks , driven by cognitive science research, ReadWorks aims to create world-class content, teacher guidance, and integrated tools that improve teacher effectiveness and student achievement. They leverage cognitive-science research to create high-impact instructional materials and tools that are designed for immediate use within the practical realities of current U.S. classrooms.

Health – Comprehensive Sexual Health Education: The California Healthy Youth Act

Because the California Healthy Youth Act (CHYA) requires instruction to develop student's knowledge and skills, online instruction has not been previously considered for this type of instruction. In response to the closure of schools, every effort is being made by the CHYA curriculum providers to make instruction as interactive as possible. If your school district has purchased a CHYA compliant curriculum, please contact the publisher now for new online resources.

General guidelines for comprehensive sexual health education during distance learning:

• Be mindful of the surroundings in which comprehensive sexual health education will take place in the home
• If possible, watch privately or with a trusted adult
• If possible, use headphones and be discrete with the laptop screen

Free Resources:

Education Ttraining Resources . This resource will help with the transition from in-person teaching and training to online design and delivery. Additional resources are embedded.
Education Training Resource Lessons . These lessons from Health Smart for K-12 focus on hand washing, hygiene and general health. There are multiple lessons for each grade level.
Be Real. Be Ready . San Francisco Unified School District’s comprehensive relationship and sexuality education curriculum designed for high school students. It is medically accurate; skills based; and LGBTQ inclusive that meets both the California Healthy Youth Act and the California State Health Education Content Standards.
For all other guidance regarding the California Healthy Youth Act, please see the California Department of Education website.

History and Social Science

Digital and online resources for teachers to develop lessons, locate primary and secondary source materials, and connect students with resources for research and inquiry-based lessons.

• Teaching Tolerance provides free resources to educators—teachers, administrators, counselors and other practitioners—who work with children from kindergarten through high school. Educators use our materials to supplement the curriculum, to inform their practices, and to create civil and inclusive school communities where children are respected, valued and welcome participants.
• The Library of Congress offers classroom materials and professional development to help teachers effectively use primary sources from the Library's vast digital collections in their teaching.
• The Stanford History Education Group is an award-winning research and development group that seeks to improve education by conducting research, working with school districts, and reaching directly into classrooms with free materials for teachers and students. Their current work focuses on how young people evaluate online content. Their Civic Online Reasoning curriculum to help students develop the skills needed to navigate our current digital landscape.
• The Smithsonian
  • Smithsonian Education offers a wealth of resources and digital tools support inquiry-based learning and active engagement to spark creativity and curiosity.
  • The Smithsonian Learning Lab allows you to create personal collections and individualized educational experiences.
  • The digital Game Center of the Smithsonian Science Education Center offers fun experiences for the young STEM learner.
  • Smithsonian's History Explorer offers hundreds of free, innovative resources for learning about American history.
• Many museums, cultural sites, and historical sites offer virtual tours and livestreaming. Here are a few, but an internet search will reveal many others:
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art
  • Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
  • California Missions
  • Library of Congress
  • Metropolitan Opera
• Take a virtual tour of a California state park .Thanks to a partnership between California State Parks and Google Maps, you can now visit many of our beautiful parks right from your computer, tablet or smart phone. A total of 110 state park destinations have been filmed using Google Trekker, a backpack-mounted camera that provides 360 degree footage.
• The Zinn Education Project promotes and supports the teaching of people’s history in classrooms across the country. They aim to equip students with the analytical tools to make sense of and improve the world today. Their website offers free, downloadable lessons and articles organized by theme , time period , and grade level. The teaching materials emphasize the role of working people, women, people of color, and organized social movements in shaping history.
• World History For Us All is a national collaboration of K-12 teachers, collegiate instructors, and educational technology specialists. This is a great site for middle and high school teachers to locate powerful, innovative model curriculum. World History for Us All helps students understand the past by connecting specific subject matter to larger historical patterns, and draws on up-to-date historical research.
• Teaching California offers free online instructional materials to support the California History-Social Science Framework, with an emphasis on primary sources.
• The Content, Literacy, Inquiry, and Citizenship (CLIC) Project offers resources for educators to take an inquiry-based approach to learning about various topics including Armenian Genocide, the Bracero Program, Environmental Literacy, and approaches to civic learning (Check with regional leads for additional resources available for online learning).
• California History-Social Science Project provides professional learning and free resources such as The History Blueprint and The Source. See links to regional sites for additional information and support.
• BBC Bitesize History Bitesize is the BBC's free online study support resource for school-age students in the United Kingdom. It is designed to aid students in both schoolwork and, for older students, exams.
• CrashCourse History Channel on YouTube Crash Course believes that high quality educational videos should be available to everyone for free. The Crash Course team has produced more than 15 courses to date, and these videos accompany high school and college level classes ranging from the humanities to the sciences. Crash Course transforms the traditional textbook model by presenting information in a fast-paced format, enhancing the learning experience. With hundreds of millions of views on our YouTube channel, Crash Course has a worldwide audience in and out of classrooms. While the show is an immensely helpful tool for students and teachers, it also has a large viewership of casual learners who seek out online educational content independently. It has changed attitudes towards education by creating a community of learners who are looking for more than just help passing a test.
• Oyez is a resource for teaching Supreme Court Cases that includes the case history, relevant precedent, arguments, and the Supreme Court Decision and applicable dissents.
• The National Archives features a website that is easy to navigate and includes lots of teacher resources. They feature a daily historical document relating to an event from that day in history. The online catalog can be searched using keywords, and 100 "milestone" documents are identified as significant to American history.
• National Archives: Elementary School Distance Learning Programs Free, interactive programs that feature primary sources from the Distance Learning Programs. Each program aligns with National Social Studies Standards and Common Core State Standards. It also provides teacher guides with pre- and post-program lessons.
• DocsTeach is full of activities for educators. The documents are organized by different periods in American history. If you're teaching "Civil War and Reconstruction" or "Revolution and the New Nation," just click on the topic to find hundreds of primary source documents. DocsTeach provides audio, video, charts, graphs, maps and more.
• Spartacus Educational is a resource for global history. It contains free encyclopedia entries that directly connect to primary source documents, making it a useful tool for educators looking to give students a starting point in their research.
• Fordham University is another resource for global history. It organizes primary sources into periods of American history, from the "Reformation" to "Post-World War II Religious Thought." Teachers can find full texts available from Fordham or similar institutions appropriate for the middle school and high school classroom.
• Broken down by time period then listed in alphabetical order, the Avalon Project at Yale University offers primary sources for global history teachers. This database starts with ancient and medieval documents and moves into present times. In addition to categories that address specific historical periods, the Avalon Project includes links to human rights documents as part of Project Diana .
• USHistory.org Free Online Textbooks provides high school courses for students, teachers, home-schoolers, and history lovers.
• Google and Life Magazine have a search engine that lets users search millions of images from the Life Magazine Photo Archive. Users can type in key terms to guide their searches, look through images organized by decade (1860s through 1970s), or significant people, places, events or sports topics.

Mathematics

Online and digital resources for math instruction, assessment, and independent practice, including tutorials and videos.

• Curriculum Associates Free Downloadable Math Packets Printable at-home activity packs designed to provide students with valuable self-directed exercises and practice during extended absences from school. Each pack is designed to reinforce key concepts for a given grade.
• PhET Simulations support math and science learning.
• Zearn is offering their entire K-5 curriculum - including 400 hours of digital lessons with on-screen teachers and supportive remediation.
• Eureka Math offers its curriculum as PDF downloads for free, non-commercial use. The curriculum is accompanied by a selection of instructional materials and support resources for teachers at no additional cost.
• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics provides access quality standards-based resources for teaching and learning mathematics, including interactive tools for students and instructional support for teachers. Lessons and activities on Illuminations align with NCTM's Principles and Standards for School Mathematics and the Common Core State Standards.
• Illustrated Mathematics Free Educational Resources and Videos
• California Partnership for Math and Science Education (CAPMSE) K-8 Math and Science Repository
  The Repository is a resource for educators to design meaningful instruction in remote, hybrid, or in-person environments. The Repository offers ready-to-use lessons, a distance learning framework, non-digital supports for students, supports for leveraging technology, guidance on how to use Universal Design for Learning in conjustion with the lessons, SEL supports, and English learner supports.

Physical Education

Resources to promote and maintain physical education curricula in distance-learning environments. Many of these resources are designed for students who are homeschooled but could be used or adapted for use in a distance-learning environment.

• Shape America provides tips for creating distance learning that include resources to promote and track physical activity.
• Six Apps to Kickstart Your PE Classroom and Keep Kids Motivated lists apps students can use at home to track and plan fitness.
• PE Central’s Web Sites for Kids provides links to resources to support remote and home instruction for physical education.
• The article Online Physical Education for Homeschoolers provides guidance and resources for teaching P.E. remotely and at home.
• PBS Learning provides resources for Health and Physical Education.

Science

Online and digital resources for science instruction, including tutorials, videos, and online labs.

• PhET Simulations support math and science learning.
• Legends of Learning provides educational games for grades 3–8. These resources have been made available for free due to school closures.
• National Science Teaching Association contains resources from NSTA to help you support your child's learning in science at home and at school.
• California Science Teachers Association Resources is a collection of resources for educators curated by CSTA.
• MysteryScience has made their resources free in response to the Coronavirus.
• NASA Education Resources (searchable by topic) provides informative educational materials that engage student interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
• Teach Engineering - This collection aligns with state and/or national science, mathematics and technology educational standards, and uses engineering as the vehicle to integrate science and mathematics concepts for K-12 students.
• US Department of Energy Education Resources is a partnership between the US Department of Energy partnered with the National Energy Education Development Project (NEED) to create free energy education resources for classroom and educational use.
• The Physics Classroom is a collection of online tutorials, concept builders, and interactive lessons for students.
• Edutopia: Ten Websites for Science Teachers offers summaries and links to ten websites covering topics such as the process of science, field research journals, evolution, PhET simulations, Earth exploration, EdHead interactives, plants, chemistry, scientists, and more.
• California Academy of Sciences Educator Resources provides lesson plans, science videos, and distance learning programs.
• Bill Nye The Science Guy offers a collection of episode guides and videos as well as directions for home demos that can be found under the “Learn” section and cover topics such as life science, physical science, and planetary science.
• Discovery Education is an online K-12 learning platform. It provides multimedia, virtual activities and hands-on labs with model lessons in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.
  
• Switcheroo Zoo helps kids learn about animals by playing games.
• Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation is hosting a Lunch Bites webinar series that aims to provide short sessions that provide tangible tools you can immediately use to provide online instruction.
• California Partnership for Math and Science Education (CAPMSE) K-8 Math and Science Repository
  The Repository is a resource for educators to design meaningful instruction in remote, hybrid, or in-person environments. The Repository offers ready-to-use lessons, a distance learning framework, non-digital supports for students, supports for leveraging technology, guidance on how to use Universal Design for Learning in conjustion with the lessons, SEL supports, and English learner supports.

World Languages

Online resources to support remote world languages instruction.

• The Occidental College World Language Project has created a series of web pages to meet the needs of world language teachers who now teach online and need diverse instructional technology tools. These tools, and corresponding guidance, are organized into five sections:
  • The Basics of Teaching Online
  • Web Conferencing Tools and Tutorials
  • Online Teaching in the Target Language
  • Target Language Teaching Online
  • Assessing Student Progress and Performance Online
• Resources in Response to Covid-19– The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)has posted a collection of webinars on topics specific to the transition to online/distance teaching. They are also making available free access to eight Virtual Learning Modules through June 30, 2020.
• PBS Learning Media provides resources and activities for
  • German, French, Japanese, Chinese, and Spanish

Writing

Online and digital resources to promote student engagement though creative writing and writing prompts. This list also includes resources for students working on sustained academic writing, including research.

• Scholastic Story Starters is a creative writing prompt generator for children in grades K-6.
• Independent Reading Response Ideas (PDF) is a 2-page document with Independent Reading Response Questions.
• The Learning Network (New York Times) Each week the Learning Network offers new ways for students to practice reading, writing, and thinking using Times journalism – at no charge. Daily writing prompts for students to respond to are provided, as well as other activities for students, as well as resources for teachers.
• StoryBird is a storytelling platform to help students develop their writing.
• Purdue Online Writing Lab provides guidance for students writing academic papers, including guides for formatting, citations, analysis, and revising work.

Career Technical Education

Online resources to support remote Career Technical Education (CTE) instruction.

• The Career and College Transition Division has collected links to distance learning resources that can assist educators with providing support with Career Technical Education (CTE) curriculum and lessons for teachers and administrators. For the latest information and resources regarding CTE from the California Department of Education, including distance learning, please visit the CTE Distance Learning Website.

Pre-K Learning, Games, and Activities

Free and open-source resources and guidance for fostering early childhood/pre-k learning at home.

• Crafting and Art Activities by Happy Hooligans is a popular Canadian blog that features crafts and activities for preschoolers.
• US Department of Education Early Childhood Learning Resources includes guidance for parents and families to help them support pre-k learning and development.
• PBS Kids Games provides fun, engaging games that foster learning, movement, social-emotional development, collaboration, and creativity.
• Stream Sesame Street
  • English
• PBS Learning for Preschoolers offers lessons, interactives, audio, and websites to foster preschool learning and development.
• TeacherVision provides free resources for pre-k in multiple subject areas and for many areas of interest, including art and music.

Current Events and News Outlets for Students

Digital and online resources that provide student-friendly access to current events. Some of these resources also provide reading guides, quizzes, and activities to support student learning.

• Newsela has made access to their full suite of products free for teachers through the end of this year to assist with their learning continuity plans. They are also offering frequent professional learning resources to help them develop their mastery of distance learning techniques. Newsela has also created this guide for planning for remote instruction.
• Edutopia: 6 Lesson Plans for Teaching Women's History Month (article with digital resources) George Lucas Educational Foundation offers free and easy-to-implement classroom resources to celebrate Women’s History Month in March.
• Common Sense Media: Best News Websites for Kids is great website for kids. The editors have made it easy with their hand-picked lists of fun, age-appropriate kids' sites and online games. It's a big world on the web, but with lists like theirs, it can be a worthwhile one for your kids.
• Edutopia suggests six online resources for primary sources which allow students to read closely, make inferences, cite evidence, analyze arguments and interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text.

Free Educational Resources for Distance Learning

We are providing a list of publishers offering free distance learning resources. At the links listed, users can learn about the specific resources available as publishers continue to expand their offerings. In this list below, educators and parents/guardians may discover the individual resources they want for a particular need.

Articles to Navigate Distance Learning

These articles that provide guidance on developing distance learning lessons and units as well as advice specifically related to moving to online instruction as a result of the coronavirus

• Focusing on the Three Rs this Summer Relationships, Routines, and Resiliency.
• Edutopia: OER (Open Education Resources) Roundup is an educators’ guide to open educational resources with information about online repositories, curriculum-sharing websites, and sources for lesson plans and activities.
• Edutopia: What Teachers in China Have Learned in the Past Month
• Edutopia: Free Is Good - Open Educational Resources
• Edutopia: Teaching with Web-Based Resources
• Edutopia: Harnessing the Power of YouTube in the Classroom
• The EduBlogger: Navigate from Kathleen Morris to find information on ways to structure daily instruction, ways video is incorporated throughout the day, timetables, and ways to plan an online lesson. It includes links to Tools for synchronous (live) video conferences, recording asynchronous videos and screencasts.
• The American Federation of Teachers’ offers a Checklist for Distance Learning Questions You Should Ask Now includes specific questions districts must ask themselves regarding how English language learners and students with disabilities will be supported.
  

Supporting Students with Disabilities in Distance Learning

Resources to help support students with disabilities complete tasks and assignments and adjust to new routines in the transition to distance learning.

• Top 12 Websites for Children With Learning Disabilities
• Can Do! Kids! provides resources for helping students focus on the skills and strengths they possess through guided self-assessments
• AdaptiveWorksheets allows parents and teachers to create their own worksheets or print existing worksheets but does have a collection of free resources.
• The Special Student Services Blog by Juanita Pritchard provides guidance for supporting students with significant cognitive disabilities who have been classified as moderate/severe/profound.

Virtual School Programs

It is a local governing board decision whether or not to award credit for courses completed outside of the district. A variety of courses are available online, including those that are grounded in the Common Core State Standards adopted by California and that meet A–G requirements.

Resources

• Free Access to University of California A-G Online High School Courses (PDF)
• Online Advanced Placement courses
• Online high school courses and materials for all core subjects
  
• Common Core-aligned high school mathematics assignments, by course and topic
• Stanford On-line Civic Reasoning Curriculum
• High School History Teaching Units and Materials
• National University Virtual High School: high school courses in all content areas free to all CA students, April – June, 2020
  • National University Virtual High School course list

Districts should conduct a careful analysis of these courses and consider awarding credit where appropriate.

Language Support

The English Learner Support Division has collected links to distance learning resources that can assist educators with providing language support to students and families. For the latest information from the California Department of Education regarding resources for English learner education, including distance learning, please visit the English Learner Updates Newsletters web page.

English Language Development Learning, Games, and Activities

Online resources to support remote English Language Development (ELD) instruction, including lesson ideas and mobile apps for students and teachers.

• COVID-19 Information: English Learners provides responses to frequently asked questions (FAQs), ELD resources, and multilingual resources to support English learners and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• BrainPOP ELL is BrainPOP’s English language instruction site for English Language Learners of all ages. The curriculum is comprised of short, animated movies as well as games, quizzes and interactive features. Users practice the four principle language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing.
• Colorín Colorado offers resources for families that can be used for distance learning with English learners. They also appear to be growing their collecting of resources in response to the COVID-19 school closures, so more resources for distance learning may be available in the future.
• CommonLit is a collection of reading passages in all literary and nonfiction genres for grades 3–12. Reading passages are available in Spanish.
• Duolingo is a free language acquisition tool that is extremely similar to Rosetta Stone.
• Education.com features digital resources, tools, and learning materials are developed by educational experts to incorporate leading pedagogical practices. They are useful in any type of teaching moment. They offer differentiated resources that can meet a wide range of educational needs and raise kids' confidence in learning.
• English Media Lab offers free English Exercises Online—English as a Second Language (ESL) Interactive Learning.
• Insert Leaning is a great way to annotate and scaffold content on webpages.
• International Children’s Digital Library offers a library for the world’s children.
• Khan Academy En Español offers Khan Academy’s repository of video resources in Spanish.
• Learning English is Voice of America’s multimedia source of news and information for millions of English learners worldwide.
• Listen and Write is a dictation and cloze creator.
• My Writing Coach offers writing lessons aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC) task types. Writing will cover main idea, inference, theme, full write opinion, as well as all eight ELPAC task types. There are video lessons and "write along lessons" where students write along with the instructor.
• National Geographic Kids is a children’s magazine that provides reading, games, videos and more.
• National Geographic Young Explorer offers science listen and read articles with highlighted text.
• Newsela allows teachers to assign articles related to social studies, science, or English language arts. Texts can be customized to fit the student’s reading level. Teachers can embed additional scaffolds to meet the needs of English learners. Aligned to the Common Core State Standards.
• Read Works allows teachers to assign articles related to social studies, science, or English language arts. Texts can be customized to fit the student’s reading level. Teachers can embed additional scaffolds to meet the needs of English learners.
• Scholastic Learn at Home offers day-by-day projects to keep kids reading, thinking, and growing. Every day includes four separate learning experiences, each built around a thrilling, meaningful story or video. Kids can do them on their own, with their families, or with their teachers. Just find your grade level and let the learning begin!
• Starfall emphasizes exploration, play, and positive reinforcement—encouraging children to become confident and intrinsically motivated. Starfall is an educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children and is especially effective for special education, homeschooling, and English language development (ELD), English Language Learners, and English as a Second Language. It is widely used in schools that serve children with special needs and learning difficulties.
• Storynory offers free audio stories. They are a podcast and a website with audio streaming.
• Tween Tribune is a collection of nonfiction articles and current events for kids, grades K–12.
• Tween Tribune Español is a collection of nonfiction articles and current events in Spanish for kids in grades K–12.
• USA Learns offers video lessons and thousands of activities focusing on English speaking, listening, vocabulary, pronunciation, reading, writing and grammar that helps older students and adults learn English.

Multilingual Resources (Updated 03-Apr-2020)

• COVID-19 Information: English Learners provides responses to FAQs, ELD resources, and multilingual resources that support English learners and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Babbel offers students free online foreign language course for three months.
• Biblioteca Virtual Infantil offers e-books in Spanish.
• BrainPop en Español The curriculum is comprised of short, animated movies as well as games, quizzes and interactive features in Spanish. Users practice the four principle language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing.
• Chalk Academy offers links to free children’s books read in a variety of languages including Spanish, Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Arabic, French, German and many other languages.
• Colorín Colorado offers resources for families that can be used for distance learning with English learners. They also appear to be growing their collecting of resources in response to the COVID-19 school closures, so more resources for distance learning may be available in the future.
• CommonLit is a collection of reading passages in all literary and nonfiction genres for grades 3–12. Reading passages are available in Spanish.
• Duolingo is a free language acquisition tool that is extremely similar to Rosetta Stone.
• Khan Academy En Español offers Khan Academy’s repository of video resources in Spanish.
• PBS Learning Media: Recursos de PreK–12 para Cierres de Emergencia offers resources by grade level, pre-kindergarten through grade 12, in Spanish. Resources cover a variety of subject areas in Spanish and would be appropriate for multilingual programs.
• Newsela en Español offers news in Spanish and includes different reading levels.
• Storybook Canada offers stories from the African Storybook available with text and audio in multiple languages.
• Tween Tribune Español is a collection of nonfiction articles and current events in Spanish for kids in grades K–12.