Get us in your inbox

homeschool
Photograph: Shutterstock

The best online classes for kids

Check out these amazing online classes for kids! They will entertain, educate and occupy your little ones.

Written by
Oliver Strand
Advertising

The truth is that not all online classes are created equal: Learning from home can be as fun as it is educational if you know where to look.

Our curated list of the best online classes for kids includes amazing sites such as the Smithsonian's Learning Lab, TED Ed, Kahn Academy and Learn at Home from Scholastic. It also has performing arts programs from the New Victory Theater and Tada! Original Youth Theater, plus activities from the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Children's Museum of Manhattan and more.

Looking for more online resources? We have more than 36 comprehensive guides of fun things to do at home. From the best virtual storytimes, to the best board games, to the 50 best animated movies to watch as a family, we're here to help you enjoy your time in. 

Be sure to catch our weekly storytimes with the New York Public Library—Monday through Friday at 10am. 

Online Classes for Kids

ABCMouse.com is essentially elementary school right in your living room. The site's 9,000+ activities and full curriculum—math, science, reading and art—keeps students engaged, and their good grades are proof. Subscriptions are $9.95 per month and new users are entitled to receive the first month for free. Ages 2–8. 

The Khan Academy is one of the most comprehensive educational resources in the world, with free online courses that address essentially every topic a student could encounter from Pre-K to 12th grade. Choose from interactive math tutors to video lectures that make history come alive. Ages 3-18.

Advertising

In a world where everything is going digital, kids can stay on top of their game thanks to CodeWizardsHQ. Live online classes teach students how to code and feel confident in a virtual environment. Ages 8–18.

Advertising

This language school has a special slate of offerings just for kids and teens. Whether you're looking for school help or a personalized program, teachers will tailor a lesson plan just for your kid. In addition to their locations around the country, they also offer a virtual program so your young one can brush up their language skills from home. Tutoring (1-2 kids) or pod learning (3-6 kids) are both available. Prices start at $14/hour per student! Ages 4–18.

FUN@HOME from BreakoutEDU is a collection of educational digital games that are perfect for when school is canceled. The K-12 activities seamlessly incoroprate comprehension, math and science in interactive videos. Ages 3-18.

Advertising
  • Things to do
  • Classes and workshops

Scholastic created Learn at Home, an online curriculum for students in grades Pre-K to 6—and made it free for all to use. A five-day program of lessons will be posted every week starting Monday, March 16. There are texts to read, videos to watch, questions to answer and interactive activities. Why not reach out to other families who are also following Scholastc's Learn at Home, and let the kids video chat about the day's lessons? No registration is required, although you might need to sign up for a free trial of one of the book readers depending on the course. Ages 3-13.

Advertising

10. Duolingo

Spanish, French, Arabic, Greek—those are several of the options Duolingo provides for little linguists. Through a series of challenges, kids 10 and up work to earn points and increase their skill levels, as they would in a typical game, only with Duolingo, they're learning a new language in the process. The newly launched app, Duolingo ABC focuses on a younger set (ages 3–6) who are just uncovering the basics of reading and writing. 

Advertising

Looking to provoke creative thinking? Then fire up TED Ed, which is aimed at students of all ages. These short videos are just as thought-provoking and counterintuitive as the full-grown TED, with added interactive features such as quizzes, further readings and discussion boards.

BrainPOP is a part of the curriculum of many schools, and it's easy to see why: The instruction is clear, but the interactive activities are so much fun your kid won't know that learning is the point. BrainPOP is also available in Spanish and FrenchAges 3-18.

Advertising

These free at-home games from School of Wonder let children take an adventure and use their imaginations and creativity to solve challenges. The first Wonder Mission is a road trip across America that's full of mystery and discover–and that takes 6 hours to complete. Ages 4-10.

Advertising

Sawyer, the Brooklyn-based resource for kiddo enrichment is also a marketplace for online classes. Check out their expanding offerings from local businesses. All ages.

Advertising

17. Wix Education

Wix, the DIY website platform, now has Wix Education, a comprehensive tutorial on how to build your own website with family-friendly instruction—because we all know that the kids are better at the internet than you are. Wix Education is free and requires an adult to register; pricing varies for building and hosting the website.

Advertising
Advertising

Suited to younger learners in Pre-K through 3rd Grade, Starfall has countless activities that promote reading skills and mathematical literacy. You can access some of the offerings for free, or you can get a membership and take advantage of the full range of lessons. Ages 3-8.

  • Things to do
  • City Life

The New York Public Library now offers free one-on-one virtual tutoring in a partnership with Brainfuse, the online teaching resource. All you need to access a session is a library card.

The free after-school homework help for K-12 students is available for a wide range of subjects, from mathematics and reading, to Spanish and Mandarin, to essay workshops. You can also access videos, activities, writing labs, and other programs 24 hours a day, as well as tutoring via chat from 2–11pm seven days a week in both English and Spanish.

Advertising
  • Things to do
  • City Life

Members of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums are taking their elephants, cheetahs, sharks and other magnificent beasts online! Simply go to the AZA's Zoo and Aquarium Videos and Activities page and you will get a calendar with links to hundreds of events going on at zoos and aquariums all around the United States and Canada. 

Now you can watch zookeeper talks, catch storytime with animals, go on tours and take part in animal meet-and-greets with just a couple of clicks. It's like having all the creatures of the world in your living room!

  • Things to do
  • City Life

Just because you're staying in doesn't mean an end to storytime! From the Brooklyn Public Library taking its readings to Facebook, to live demonstrations by famous picture-book authors, to a large selection of many of the greatest actors of our time reading some of the best books for kids, to powerful personalities (Michelle Obama! Dolly Parton! Julie Andrews!)you can have an amazing storytime for kids right at home.

Advertising
  • Kids

Any parent will tell you: Kids need to keep active! That holds true even when you're staying indoors. These online fitness classes will get the kiddos moving, and they're so much fun you might just join in! After the heart rates drop, why not check out these virtual zoos and aquariums, or J.K. Rowling's new online Harry Potter experience? From virtual storyimes to online kids' museums, there's so much you can do with a couple of clicks of a mouse.

  • Things to do
  • Classes and workshops

Turn your living room into your own personal performing arts studio with New Victory Arts Break, a free online series from the New Victory Theater. Each week explores a particular art form, with daily activities that lets you bring performance into your homeschool learning through a series of videos and instructions. These demonstrations by New Victory Teaching Artists is more than fun for the family—it's a part of an effort to keep the city's artists employed. From clowning to magic tricks to juggling, these activities are just what we need at a time like this. Ages 4-10.

Advertising
  • Theatre
  • Children's

Learn a new musical number every week with Sing and Dance at Home with Tada! Check out the website of Tada! Original Youth Theater to find lyrics, plus videos with warmups, instruction and step-by-step choreography. Soon your little broadway stars will be putting on a show for you at home!

Recommended
    You may also like
      Advertising