Question: You’ve read in previous posts to this news page how spending time outdoors & exercising keeps both body and mind vital and in shape. What else can we do at home to enrich our knowledge, acquire new skills and refresh that which we may have forgotten?
Answer: LEARN.
BestrentNJ.com Woodbridge based tenants at Fox Hill Run, Forest View, Evergreen East, Evergreen Forest and Cloverleaf Gardens can check out these online resources (some free, some for kids) available to reinvigorate the curious mind, the transitioning career and the creative spark within.
KIDS:
SCRATCH: With Scratch, you program your own interactive stories, games, and animations — and share your creations with others in the online community. Scratch helps young people learn to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively — essential skills for life in the 21st century. Scratch is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab and is provided free of charge.
TKSST: “The Kid Should See This” website offers an unprecedented collection of 4,500+ kid-friendly videos, curated for teachers and parents who want to share smarter, more meaningful media in the classroom and at home and it’s free for everyone. Enjoy around 10 to 15 newly-added videos every week, browse the collections, and search topics in the archives. While TKSST is curated by an adult, input from her 9 & 12-year-old’s helps influence her choices.
ENGINEERING: The SmallPiece Trust sponsors the Engineering@Home project which is a weekly free program for kids every Wednesday on Youtube and is for all ages. You’ll find many of the items you’ve put into the recycling bin useful for the budding engineers in your household to design, build and test. They began the project in early April so you’ve got a few projects already featured to start with. A wonderful hands-on approach that will engage your children in the fun of learning and creating.
EXPLORATION OF THE DAY: There is much joy to be found in the simple, the mundane, and the everyday. We just have to look a bit harder than we have been. EXPLORATION OF THE DAY provides a space for viewers to experiment, to contemplate, to pause and to gather their senses. I found the site to be as much for adults as it is for youngsters. Keri Smith, author and creative consultant and the sites creator writes that, “paying attention is an act of rebellion during a time when distraction is at an all time high…Let us become artists of the everyday and in doing so may we experience a lightness of spirit and a respite from our real world struggles.”
ADULTS:
DUOLINGO: Jamie Lee Curtis’ particular preference for guys who spoke Russian in the blockbuster comedy, “A Fish Called Wanda,” inspired me to take on a new language! LOL! Seriously though, enter Duolingo, where learning a new language is fun and quite addictive and I’ll be chatting Russian in no time. Research done recently concluded that 34 hours of learning a language on Duolingo (FREE) was equal to a whole university semester ($$$!). The Duolingo lessons adapt to your learning style and the exercises are tailored to help you learn and review vocabulary effectively. What’s also great is that the lessons are based on gamification so it’s always a fun experience. You can also find an IOS App on the App Store and an App for Android on Google Play.
COURSERA: The acknowledged trailblazers in the online education space, Coursera’s offerings range from learning the latest skills, preparing for a career to earning a certificate degree from more than 200 of the world’s leading universities. Their 2019 survey found that 87% of people learning for professional development reported career benefits like getting a promotion, a raise, or starting a new career. With backing from venture capital elite and participation from universities like Stanford and University of Pennsylvania, Coursera offers everyone an alternative to on-campus learning at a significant cost saving. Free courses too! Click here to review their offerings of a number of free courses worth your perusal.
ADOBE: In their free Tutorial Resource Guide, Adobe – a global leader in the world of digital photography and photo editing – guides you with educational and tutorial content based on how much time you have to spend to learn. Whether you have only two minutes for a taste or two hours for a deep dive, you’ll find what you’re looking for from creating the perfect colors in your photos using Lightroom to creating the ultimate industrial indoor portrait, the sky’s the limit when the creators of Photoshop show you the path to photographic excellence.
MASTERCLASS: If you could learn filmmaking from Martin Scorsese, magic from Penn & Teller, performance from Usher, violin from Itzchak Perlman, comedy from Steve Martin, documentary filmmaking from Ken Burns, tennis from Serena Williams and chess from Garry Kasparov, you’d be enriched beyond your expectations. For $15 a month billed annually you’ll glean insights from the acknowledged masters of their fields in the following categories; Sports & Games, Business, Politics & Society, Writing, Design, Photography, Fashion, Music & Entertainment, Lifestyle, Film & TV, Science & Technology and the Culinary Arts. You won’t find a more stellar cast of mentors than the ones found here.
Find that comfy home to learn and live in using our Apartment Locator at BestrentNJ.com where New Jerseys most respected residential communities await your arrival.