Duke TIP Resources for Families
As the U.S. copes with its first major pandemic in over 100 years, we’ve heard from many families seeking guidance on how best to support their students or asking for ideas on enrichment activities their students can enjoy while they are practicing social distancing and/or staying home from school. This article is the first in a series of posts designed to inform parents and students on their options. Please check back soon for more advice and recommended activities. Today’s post focuses primarily on Duke TIP activities you can access online.
Containing the spread of COVID-19 is serious business, but a little shared fun can go a long way toward alleviating anxiety your student may be experiencing about the situation. Even better, this fun can be academically enriching. If you or your TIPster are experiencing cabin fever during this time of social isolation and family togetherness, here are several free Duke TIP resources you may want to take advantage of:
GRADES 4–6
- Steer your TIPster toward TIP’s 4th-6th Grade Book Club. This popular online activity provides younger TIP students with fun English/Language Arts content as well as curated interdisciplinary activities and opportunities to connect with other TIPsters in a moderated online environment. We’re currently reading The Remarkable Inventions of Walter Mortinson. Students can access our Book Club site by visiting https://tip.duke.edu/programs/4th-6th-grade-talent-search/student-benefits then clicking on the “Current Students: Log In to Your Benefits” option.
- You can also access prior Book Club Content via our Teachers Workshop blog for educators. Downloadable materials from 16 previous 4-6th Grade Book Club selections as well as Book Club and Book Talk ideas for older students are provided for free. Doing these activities together as a family can be a great way to connect while helping your student develop their critical thinking skills.
- It’s not too late for your TIPster to enter our annual Illustration Contest. Each year, Duke TIP 4th–6th Grade Talent Search participants are invited to create and submit an original two-dimensional artwork that illustrates a scene from the winning Writing Contest story in that student’s grade level. We’ve posted the Writing Contest winners for this year and are now accepting Illustration Contest entries through April 15, 2020. Winners receive cash prizes and have their entries published on Duke TIP’s main website. For complete rules, please visit https://tip.duke.edu/programs/4th-6th-grade-talent-search/writing-and-illustration-contest.
OLDER STUDENTS
Although designed for teachers of gifted and talented students, TIP’s Teachers Workshop also has a wealth of resources that parents at home with their children or older students could use during this time. Some of these resources include:
- TIP’s Curriculum Vault: access the full content of nine of TIP’s independent-learning courses, covering topics from English/Language Arts to Cryptology to Architecture to Epidemiology. Each course, designed for independent study supervised by a mentor, contains hundreds of web pages of content, including assignments, rubrics, and guides for setting up learning contracts and schedules with students. Many of the courses also contain instructional multimedia.
- Lesson Blueprints: discover stand-alone lesson plans across a range of disciplinary topics.
- Visit the other sections of Teachers Workshop, such as The Craft of Curriculum and The Art of Instruction for more great ideas across a range of topics.
BONUS LINKS: GET THE FACTS
With all of the misinformation about COVID-19 going around, it can be hard to know who to believe. If you’re seeking health-related information, we recommend two reputable sources: the CDC (Center for Disease Control, the federal government’s leading health protection agency), and WHO (the World Health Organization, which is an agency of the United Nations concerned with global public health). Here are a few useful links to get you started:
COVID-19 Information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Managing Anxiety & Stress (CDC)
World Health Organization: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak
You may also want to check out this video of a recorded live session conducted by Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte featuring a panel of experts who discuss all things related to coronavirus and children: https://www.facebook.com/126653317345564/videos/216471552833130/
Finally, if you have any questions about the impact of COVID-19 on Duke TIP’s activities, please visit https://tip.duke.edu/covid19 for daily updates.
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