April 17, 2020
Tristar Reads, our annual summer reading program, doesn’t begin until May, but as most students are at home in this season, we want to offer various resources and activities for parents and kids to stay engaged in reading and learning. Dive into the many different ways your child can learn in this season and join us for a few fun challenges along the way.
Sign up for Tristar Reads 2020 here.
During these uncertain times, we want to be a resource for parents and students as we navigate together what learning from home looks like and the various resources that are available for families. Each week, we’ll feature our top 5 learning links to help guide learning and fun in your home.
Top 5 learning links of the week:
ABCya provides over 400 educational games and activities online for students grades PreK – 6+ and is designed by parents and educators. With numerous types of games for kids to play, you can be sure that students will stay engaged and learn while they’re having fun. Get started here.
Great Hooked On Phonics uses fun, tested methods to teach reading skills to students ages 3-8 years old or those reading between a Pre-K and 2nd-grade level. Learning begins by watching a short video, conducting various interactive games, and reading engaging stories to give kids a chance to practice what they’ve learned. Each session takes 20 minutes or less and they are offering a 30 day trial for $1. Try it here.
The National Constitution Center is providing free lectures and civil dialogue sessions on the Constitution and constitutional issues with students. These classes are available for students from middle school through college-level with additional professional development courses for teachers. Tune into these free sessions and learn more about our Constitution here.
The Tumble Book Library is a curated database of children’s e-books, available by subscription to Elementary Schools and Public Libraries around the world. The database is divided by grade and provides students with fun reading books, educational material, audiobooks, and classic texts – just to name a few. Get access to helpful database here.
Mo Willems teamed up with The Kennedy Center to provide 15 lunch doodle lessons that are available on YouTube. Mo encourages doodlers to post their art on social media using #MoLunchDoodles and at the end students are able to watch a “graduation ceremony” with a special prize from Mo for completing every lesson. Get involved here.
As our schools, economy, and life in general moves at a rapidly different pace than one month ago, TSS is keeping our finger on the pulse of education-related COVID-19 changes and want to keep you as up-to-date as possible.
This week, Governor Bill Lee extended his stay-at-home order, which requires Tennesseans to remain home unless they are carrying out essential activities and non-essential businesses to stay closed. This order is in effect until April 30, 2020. All non-emergency dental and non-essential medical procedures are postponed until April 30 as well.
As of this Wednesday, Governor Bill Lee has called on Tennessee schools to remain closed through the end of the school year. Tennessee Department of Education Penny Schwinn is working to create a COVI-19 Child Wellbeing Task Force to address the implications of students losing time in the classroom as well as providing support and opportunities for students during this time. To receive further guidance from the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE), check out their toolkit for families here. Additionally, the governor has launched 15 drive-through testing sites for COVID-19 this weekend, April 18-19 and the weekend of May 2-3, regardless of symptoms you may be experiencing. If you feel sick and want to get tested, the option is available.
Your voice is critical. Please take our Educational Impact Survey today and give us your input on how COVID-19 is affecting your student and/or community. Our aim is to use your feedback to respond with relevant information as well as to inform our policy work with legislators to ensure Tennesseans have what they need to succeed during this time.
Please feel free to send this to your friends and family and we hope to be a valuable resource to you and your community.
With Tristar Reads less than a month away from kick-off, we’re excited to welcome our friends from the Tennessee General Assembly to read books aloud from their Facebook page. We’re excited to begin our summer reading scholarship program by inviting others to read with us! Get the details below:
Monday, April 27: Rep. Vincent Dixie is reading at 10 AM.
Rep. Chris Hurt is reading at 1 PM.
Tuesday, April 28: Rep. Kirk Haston is reading at 10 AM.
Wednesday, April 29: Rep. Rick Tillis is reading at 10 AM.
Thursday, April 30: Rep. Scott Cepicky is reading at 10 AM.
Friday, May 1: Rep. London Lamar is reading at 10 AM.
Our annual summer reading scholarship program, Tristar Reads, begins May 1st so now is the time to get registered. Anyone who signs up during the month of April will be in the running to win FREE BOOKS sent to their home. Feel free to forward this email around and get registered today here!
Tristar Reads is designed to encourage students K-12 to read at least 20 minutes a day during the summer months. The program runs from May 1 – September 1, 2020, and will award the reader who logs the most amount of minutes in elementary, middle, and high school with a $1,000 scholarship! Sign up here.