Toronto, Sept. 14, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The start of the 2020-21 school year is unlike any other, with a host of challenges for students, educators and parents to navigate. To help ensure a positive back-to-school experience for everyone, TVO is providing new resources, tools and content across its digital learning, TVOkids and current affairs platforms. From a Dr. Cheddar special that encourages families to share their feelings about the new school routine, to curriculum aids for teachers, and games that help students learn coding—TVO is here to support Ontario students, educators and parents.
“At TVO, all of our children’s programming and digital learning resources are curriculum-aligned,” says Rashmi Swarup, vice president of digital learning at TVO. “This is why teachers, students and parents can rely on us to get off to a great start this school year, and to stay on course no matter what challenges come their way.”
Digital Learning
TVO Mathify (tvomathify.com/students)
TVO’s free, personalized on-line tutoring service for students in Grades 6-10, TVO Mathify is introducing tools to help teachers and students succeed in math, including:
- New Mathify promotional and instructional videos for educators.
- Mathify Question Bank – 200 questions for students to answer independently, or with the help of Mathify tutors. Educators can also access the questions and use the whiteboard as a classroom tool.
TVO in the Classroom (education.tvo.org)
Available through the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Virtual Learning Environment, TVO in the Classroom gives teachers access to TVO content that enhances in-class learning. The following new features have been introduced:
- Search feature that helps educators find resources quickly and easily.
- 80 new Grade 7 and 8 resources that support the following curriculum areas: health and physical education; history and geography; language; and science and technology.
- Featured resources, which will be regularly updated, such as a webinar on approaching math visually, the TVOkids Power Hour, and the Dairy Education Program.
TVO mPower (tvompower.com)
Through free online games that develop K-6 math skills in the classroom and at home, TVO mPower is supporting teachers and students with:
- Printable activity sheets in areas like financial literacy for Grades 1-6.
- Game enhancements that support new curriculum areas such as coding.
- A resource page (no login required) that offers pedagogical supports for educators on how to use mPower for cross-curricular purposes.
TVO ILC (ilc.org)
Ontario’s largest online high school, TVO ILC is meeting the needs of students by:
- Increasing service hours for administrative staff in order to enhance support.
- Launching a new, more user-friendly website.
- Offering FAQs to assist students with technical, academic and mental health support information.
TVOkids (tvokids.com)
Special Videos
To help children get ready to go back to school—in the classroom or online—TVOkids has produced topical videos, including:
Ask Dr. Ronnie
On September 10 at 4:30 p.m., the live broadcast premiere of That TVOkids Show featured Dr. Ronald Cohn, president and CEO of SickKids, who answered kids’ questions about going back to school during the pandemic. The episode will also be livestreamed on the TVOkids Facebook page and the That TVOkids Show YouTube channel.
Safety and Coding Playlists
For parents and teachers, TVOkids offers a new Coding Playlist that supports the new math curriculum. And kids will learn important information—in a super fun format—from the Go Back to School Safely with TVOkids YouTube playlist.
Current Affairs
The Agenda with Steve Paikin (www.tvo.org/theagenda)
In September, our flagship current affairs show will feature guests and topics related to back-to-school, including interviews with senior government officials and a special panel on children and youth mental health. All episodes are available any time at www.tvo.org/theagenda.
Ontario Hubs
Featured on TVO.org, our Ontario Hubs reporters are covering important back-to-school stories from across the province, including:
- How schools in Hamilton-Niagara are preparing to deal with pandemic-related mental-health challenges.
- Why several families in southwestern Ontario have chosen to homeschool their kids during COVID-19, and how they’re managing.
- How First Nations are coping with the unique challenges they face in getting their kids back to school.
Op-Eds on TVO.org
Our TVO.org contributors, including John Michael McGrath, will provide context and analysis to help parents and educators navigate back-to-school.
About TVO
Since 1970, TVO has existed to ignite the potential in everyone through the power of learning. Through impactful digital education products, in-depth current affairs, thought-provoking TVO Original documentaries, and award-winning TVOkids content, we prepare Ontarians for success in school and life. As we mark our 50th year, TVO’s ongoing evolution as a modern digital learning and media organization prepares us to serve Ontarians for generations to come. TVO is funded primarily by the Province of Ontario, and is a registered charity supported by thousands of sponsors and donors. For more information, visit www.tvo.org and tvokids.com.
Where to find TVO
| On air: Rogers Channels 2 (HD), 580 (HD) Bell TV Channel 265 Bell Fibe TV Channels 209 (SD), 1209 (HD) Shaw Direct Channel 155 (HD) | Online: tvo.org tvokids.com tvo.org/ilc | YouTube |