Last week, the BBC in the UK announced it would help students on its channels with a comprehensive educational offer during the nationwide lockdown. An offer that is literally setting a precedent. Because now there is such news also from Germany. When school would actually have started again on Monday, not only in Hesse, it means that many children will have to be taught at home at least until 31 January. This is where ARD and ZDF want to help by once again expanding their educational offerings. Children, teenagers and young adults will be provided with a wide range of multimedia offers, through which homeschooling can be helpfully supported. The offer can be found in the daily TV program as well as in the media library and in the online offer of the broadcasters. Here are some key highlights:
The education channel ARD-alpha broadcasts under the title "School at home" from Monday, 11 January 2021, always on weekdays between 9 and 12 o'clock different learning formats for all school types and subject groups.
Also on Monday, a revamped version of the YouTube education channel "alphaLernen" will launch with a comprehensive range of learning videos for all school types and grades.
The Hessischer Rundfunk is updating the Kinderfunkkolleg and now offers an online range of around 100 programmes on the main topics of music, mathematics, money and religion with up-to-date teaching suggestions for 3rd to 6th grade. you can find this offer HERE
The hr also offers another offer under the title "KnowledgePlus" for learning at home. Together with the network "Radio and School", the hr provides a wide range of self-learning materials for schoolchildren, teachers and parents. For example, there are worksheets on various topics and hr broadcasts prepared for the classroom: https://www.hr.de/wissen-plus/index.html
Numerous learning opportunities for children of all ages are bundled in the ARD Mediathek on the "School at Home" page. You can find these offers HERE
Also in the BR Mediathek you will find HERE under "School daheim" a wide range of learning content for students of all school types that has been built and continually expanded since the first lockdown in March 2020.
On WDR television between 11 and 29. January Mondays to Fridays "Planet Wissen" at 10:25, followed daily also by a "Die Sendung mit der Maus".
KiKA, the ARD-ZDF children's media offering for 3- to 13-year-olds, offers #ZeitFür, a special program on all KiKA platforms. You can find more info HERE
Abitur students* for the subject German will find in the SWR online offer "Sternchenthemen"in-depth information on reading textbook classics.
The daily updated offers of the educational television of the ARD you can find HERE
The overview page "Lernen, wenn die Schule zu ist" of ARD.de also bundles learning offers for children of all ages. In addition to offers from the ARD Mediathek, there are also others from KiKA and the state broadcasting stations.
Planet Schule offers suitable material on various subjects and topics. The offer is sorted according to age groups and includes films, multimedia elements and knowledge pools with ready-made worksheets that can also be used well in distance learning.
The offer School digital of the WDR offers innovative digital services of the ARD, which make learning an experience.
At ZDF, it's called Terra X plus School. This involves continuing the educational offering launched in November on the ZDF Mediathek and YouTube channel "Terra X plus". Each week, new three- to eight-minute explainer videos will be made available. This offer is supplemented in the ZDF Mediathek by documentaries, videos and articles sorted by school subjects.
Surely, all this is no substitute for real school lessons, but most definitely a helpful support for the often difficult homeschooling until safe face-to-face lessons are possible again.
