Most parents in our community agree that they can be better parents with support. So we have compiled tips & resources to assist our children & families as we navigate this time.

Family Fun:

• iMom's 12 Indoor Activities for Kids
• iMom's 20 Ideas for a Family Fun Night
• 8 Tips for Staying Active During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Health & Well-Being Resources
• 30 Fun Things to Do With Your Child/Teen
• 40+ Best Indoor Activities for Busy Toddlers
• Toddler & Preschool Ideas
• KiwiCo - Quick & Easy at home projects curated for kids 2 and up
• 80+ FREE Science Activities to Entertain Your Kiddos
• 100+ Things To Do While You're Stuck At Home
• COVID-19 Time Capsule Pages
• Fun At-Home Activities to Save Money

Summer Camps:

• Polk County Summer Camp Guide
• Highlands County Summer Camp Guide
• Highlands YMCA Summer Camp Flyer

Community Resources:

• Aunt Bertha - Connect with local resources in your area assisting with all kinds of needs from food, shelter and a variety of other needs.
• United Way's 2-1-1 - Get connected. Get help. United Way's 2-1-1 program is a vital service that connects hundreds of central Florida residents to help every year.
• Advent Health Resources for Polk, Hardee, & Highlands counties 
• Resources for Families of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Summer BreakSpot - locations are a place for kids and teens 18 and under to come and enjoy free meals while school is out.
• LVIM Mobile Food Pantry - Lakeland Volunteers in Medicine is providing a FREE box of fresh food to anyone in need. (First come, first served)
• United Way End Hunger Food Distribution Schedule
• United Way School Closure Day Camp - While school is out, camp is in! Daily camps, for ages 5-9, provide a safe & educational place for elementary age children during the coronavirus closure for Polk County Schools. 
• Polk County Public Schools - Distance learning & internet access information.
• Polk County Resources
• Polk County Rental Assistance
• Polk County Food Pantries
• Hardee & Highlands County Food Pantries

Jobs:

• Career Source - Polk

600 N Broadway Ave Ste A, Bartow, FL 33830

863-508-1600

• Career Source - Hardee & Highlands

5901 US Hwy 27 S Ste 1, Sebring, FL 33870

863-385-3672

Just for Parents:

• COVID-19 Parent Guide - Here is a Parent/Caregiver Guide to help families cope with the Coronavirus.
• COVID-19 Support At-Home Children - PDF full of additional resources for parents that are supporting at-home children.
• 5 Ways to Make the Most of Social Distancing
• 5 Tips for Working from Home with Kids
• How to Balance Children's Screentime during the Pandemic
• iMom's Coronavirus Bag of Tricks - Variety of tricks to help you be productive, to find wisdom & encouragement, and to have fun & fight anxiety.
• How to Master Working from Home - While Under Quarantine With Kids
• 10 Mental Health Tips for Coronavirus Social Distancing
• Take Care of Your Emotional Health
• 9 Steps to Stress Free Parenting
• How to Prepare Your Household
• Choosing an Appropriate Child Care Provider
• Keep Your Child Safe from Household Cleaners & Chemicals
• Resilience: How to Overcome Fear During COVID-19
• Resilience: COVID-19 ABC's
• Resilience: COVID-19 10 Protective Factors
• APSAC Online Safety for Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Online Learning for Kids:

Let's Read

• Books by Mail - Even with our libraries closed, library materials are still available for request and delivery to your home through Books by Mail (BMail). All you need is a library card to access and order your titles (books, magazines, audio book and movies) through their online catalog. Note: Be sure to select "BMail" as your pick-up location.
• OverDrive - Digital eBooks, audiobooks and movies available on your mobile device.
• Hoopla - Download digital audiobooks and stream movies, television and music for free.
• Beyond the Stacks Newsletter - Findthe latest newsletter focused on remote learning resources.
• Celebrities Read Books - This YouTube Channel has celebrities that read aloud to kids & we love it!
• "Wrinkles Doesn't Like Social Distancing; And I Don't Blame Him" - A Children's Book to Help Understand Social Distancing

Animals

• SwitchZoo - Play games and learn all about animals
• San Diego Zoo - this website is just for kids with amazing videos, activities, and games. Enjoy the tour!
• National Geographic - Geography and animals
• Alaskan Wildlife Cams

Tours

• Road Trip from Home - *Recommended by a local family* Here are over 30 Virtual Field Trips that you can take around the world!
• Virtual Field Trips - Here are 20 Virtual Field Trips that you can take with your kids in the comfort of your own home.
• U.S. National Park Virtual Tours - Google now lets you explore U.S. National Parks via 360-degree virtual tours.
• The Louvre - Travel to Paris, France to see amazing works of art at The Louvre.
• The Great Wall of China - This Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China is beautiful and makes history come to life.
• British Museum - this iconic museum located in the heart of London allows virtual visitors to tour the Great Court and discover the ancient Rosetta Stone and Egyptian mummies.
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) - Webinars to from Hurricane Hunters & other experts.

Creative Arts

• Lunch Doodles - Mo Willems' new Lunch Doodles series is awesome for elementary age, anyone who loves drawing, or anyone who could use a soothing voice and some doodling ideas for 20 minutes.
• All Kids Network - Crafts, activities, mazes, dot to dot, etc.

Academic

• Family Fundamentals - This resource is designed for children 0-5 years old. Each weekday at 3PM, Family Fundamentals share videos & tips on Facebook.
• COVID-19 Activity Book
• Moby Max - Find and fix learning gaps
• Have Fun Teach - Download worksheets, activities, songs & videos for ages Preschool through 5th Grade.
• Science Mom - Live Science Shows that feature a science lesson, math activities, interactive games and stories.
• Scholastic - "Learn From Home" with exciting articles, stories, videos and fun learning challenges for Pre-K to Grade 6+.
• Fun Brain - Math and Reading Games
• Starfall - Phonics skills
• Seussville - Read, play games, and hang out with Dr. Seuss
• 123 Homeschool 4 Me - 300,000+ FREE printable worksheets from toddlers to teens
• Mathscore - Math practice from counting to algebra and geometry
• Storyline Online - Fave kids books read by famous people
• High School Chemistry
• Math and Reading Games
• PBS Learning - PreK-12 digital media service with more than 30,000 learning materials