The Discovery Network provides some great educational programs like the ever popular Mythbusters, plus TV channels such as Science and Animal Planet, etc – many of which are staples for a curious homeschooling family. But did you know they also have a complete website for education as well?
Discovery Education offers fantastic resources for teachers, families, and students. Some of them are only available to school districts through a membership program, but despite that, it still has many things to take advantage of.
Virtual Field Trips – Throughout the year, the website holds a free to participate virtual trip to various places. Some of the ones I saw featured this past year included a trip to an egg farm, exploring the science of soil, and a working copper mine. These usually involve interviews and interactions with people who work in the field, a tour of the place, questions and answers, and more. Plus they usually have additional resources for teachers and families. They can be a lot of fun. All you have to do is sign up to participate!
Virtual Learning Experiences – Similar to the field trips, these are basically virtual unit studies with educational tools, videos, and more. Some examples of what is available in the archives include studying the Holocaust in Poland and learning about economics.
Lesson Plans – For students ranging from K – 12 you will find lesson plans to help you bring learning to life. Subjects covered are Science, Technology, Math, Social Studies and Language Arts. They are detailed lessons that include a list of materials needed, step-by-step instructions, adaptions and extensions, discussion questions, additional resources, and more.
There’s more than all this to dig into, too:
- Worksheets to go
- Puzzlemaker
- WebMath
- Connections to other sites like Siemens Science Day site with over 130 hands-on science activities
- The Motivation Station
- …. and more.
This is a terrific resource to keep on hand for expanding your learning experiences.
There is a Canadian edition of the website as well.
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