Educational resources for remote learning

Started by Oniya, November 13, 2020, 04:49:42 PM

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Oniya

Since a lot of us are dealing with either remote learning for ourselves or for little ones, this thread is being created to help people find helpful learning aids - or interesting academic topics.  When contributing to the thread, please use the following template:


[b]Link to resource:[/b] [url=put link here]Name of resource here[/url]
[b]Target age range:[/b] (elementary, high school, older learner, etc)
[b]Description:[/b] What is the resource for?
[b]Personal experience:[/b] If you have used the site, how would you describe its effectiveness, accessibility, etc.


Link to resource: Crash Course
Target age range: Middle-school and up, possibly advanced elementary
Description: Crash Course, run by John and Hank Green, provides bite-sized videos about numerous subjects in a friendly, easy-to-grasp environment, including sociology, world history, astronomy, US history and many others.
Personal experience: Most of my experience is Little Oni going through the entire history playlist on repeat.  The humor in those episodes made the topics easy to remember.  It's not 'in-depth', as is indicated in the title, but for a 'crash course', it delivers what's on the tin.
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Nachtmahr

What better time than now to distract oneself with learning? ;D For my first contribution, I will mainly be focusing on YouTube channels that I'm comfortable recommending.

Link to resource: Media Literacy and Game News
Target age range: High school and beyond.
Description: This particular video lays out a lot of key points regarding the concept of "media literacy" and the responsible consumption of news. It's rather long and filtered through the lens of a journalist/creator focused on the video game industry, but nonetheless relevant for all.
Personal experience: We live in an age where critical thinking and skepticism when engaging with media, be it social, news or other types, has never been more important. Therefore I think anyone ought to learn the basics of how to identify and shield oneself from misinformation and irresponsible journalism. I understand that the subject matter might be a turn-off for many, but thankfully the video has been split into segments, allowing one to skip to the relevant parts.

Link to resource: The Great War and World War Two
Target age range: High school and beyond.
Description: Hosted by the charismatic Indy Neidell, both channels present historically literate week-by-week accounts of each of their respective wars. Without over-dramatization and building on the foundation laid by acclaimed and respects expects in their fields, both channels deliver an in equal parts fascinating, heartbreaking and thrilling account of the conflicts that shaped our world as we see it today. Outside of the weekly episodic formula, one will find several special episodes dedicated to specific events or actors. These channels provide excellent free alternatives to the critically acclaimed documentaries that one might otherwise have to pay to access.
Personal experience: Having always had an interest in military history, I've found that both of these channels provide an engaging, thorough and accessible journey through what can only be described as the mother and father of all conflicts. I highly recommend them for anyone looking for a solid introduction to either or both conflicts, or the sociopolitical and cultural conditions that created the conditions in which they took place.

Link to resource: PBS Space Time
Target age range: High school and beyond.
Description: This channel covers all things related to space and time.
Personal experience: I will happily admit that I largely lack the fundamental understand of physics required to take full advantage of the topics discussed and explored in these videos, but I nonetheless find myself fascinated by them and love to try and keep up as best I can.

Link to resource: Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell
Target age range: All ages.
Description: Kurzgesagt specializes in adorably animated short introductions to a number of scientific and historical topics, including physics, philosophy, geography and more.
Personal experience: I've followed this channel ever since it started. I love them. Their videos serve as great introductions and the way they've been written and animated makes them suitable for everyone. They are neither patronizing nor overly complex. I firmly believe that anyone trying to teach their children anything about a topic covered by these guys will find their videos a useful supplement. Anyone looking to expand their own horizon or acquire an entry-level understand of said topics will likely also be able to find it on this channel.

Link to resource: Minutephysics
Target age range: High school and beyond.
Description: Very "short and sweet" introductions to various physics-related topics.
Personal experience: Once again, my I must confess that I'm virtually illiterate when it comes to physics. But it fascinates me nonetheless. On this channel, one can find engaging and entertaining introductions to a number of topics, coupled with a cute animation style that (hopefully) keeps one attentive.
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