Online Activities for Kids during Covid

Parent Q&A

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  • Greetings! I have an almost 4 year old who I planned to take Capoeira with before everything went awry. How can I incorporate capoeira music, instruments etc. into our lives until we can get to a class after everything clears up and social distancing isn't necessary. I believe he can benefit from the discipline, strength and comeraderie that Capoeira embody.

    My kid practices capoeira with Professor Malandro, who runs the Filhos de Bimba School. Before the pandemic he taught at Emeryville Parks and Rec. 

    http://capoeirabayarea.com/ 

    Professor Malandro is patient, kind, and firm. The school teaches the music, history and present of capoeira, and its values, like strength, control, discipline and community. He offers Zoom class, sometimes with visits from his teachers in Salvador. 

    My 9yo currently attend a kids' class biweekly with masks and distance at Bushrod Park in North Oakland. It's mostly older kids right now but you should inquire about the online schedule and get on the email list. I feel lucky and grateful to have found Professor Malandro and Filhos de Bimba... 

    My 9 year old has been with Profesor Malandro for a couple of years.  We started with live instruction as an after school class on his school campus.  We then went on  to classes at the Emeryville Senior Center with older kids as well as occasionally tried a class with adults.  When the pandemic hit, Malandro’s dedication to capoeira brought us Zoom classes that included participants from all over the world including from his own mestre in Brazil who was actually the son of Mestre Bimba (founder of modern capoeira).  Later in the pandemic he took the children’s classes live outdoors to Bushrod Park with masks on.  Malandro’s relationship to capoeira goes DEEP and it is a part of who he is as a human being.  It is so much more to him than a hobby or a teaching job and this shows in every detail he brings to his classes and his dedication to enrich others lives with capoeira even with the pandemic going on.

    He now expanded to livestreaming and creating videos on Twitch.  I highly recommend subscribing to his Twitch account, MrMalandro81.  My son now regularly practices capoeira using his Twitch video classes which have the advantage of being available 24 hours a day and he can go back and rewind parts that are more difficult (not to mention zero chance of COVID19).

    Despite his passion/dedication for capoeira, he has always been great at connecting with kids in a positive way with patience during his classes.  He motivates his kids to improve their capoeira skills by inspiration and dedication rather than by displaying frustration.  I feel so lucky that my son has him as a mentor in his life.

  • We're not feeling comfortable enough to send our son to daycare yet, but we'd like to add some structure to his days. Wondering if anyone has done any toddler classes that you think are worth signing up for. Would love to hear about any type of class - music, sports, art, etc. Zoom is always challenging for this age but I'm running out of ideas, and I think our kid could use a break from his mom all the time too!

    Jon's School of Music has zoom classes, and my son (2.5) has loved them and been super engaged for the whole 30-40 minutes (not the case with other zoom things we tried). I think he's considering adding outdoor classes as well. 

    We've been doing classes with Jon's School of Music, and my daughter has loved them. He's really silly and engaging with the kids, and has a storyline that keeps them paying attention (they have to watch out for Darth Flubber, who is trying to defeat them 😁). He has classes for toddlers up through young elementary school, and the classes are designed to teach the kids beginning music theory about rhythms, scales, keyboard skills (for the older kids) and playing together as a group. For the online classes you just use whatever instruments you might have lying around the house (we use a little drum and xylophone). I think he's exploring doing in-person physically distant classes soon. You can find his contact information and more info on the classes at jsom.com.

    My kid (2.5) hates zoom. The only thing he’s willingly participated in via zoom was the parent-child dance class at Shawl-Anderson. Fun and low-key “dances” like “prance across the room” or “dance close to the computer and then far away.” 

    Jon Merker's School of Music has both online Zoom classes and may soon be doing outdoor socially distanced classes. We have been doing the Zoom-based classes since the pandemic started with our toddler, and hands down, they have been our child's favorite activity the entire time. Jon has a rare talent for making the classes feel incredibly personal and keeping kids engaged, while also teaching them important core concepts in music theory. The most important aspect of the class for us is that our son *loves* his time with Jon. He loves the personal connection, and the fact that there's an adult in his life who is capable of being as silly as he wants to be. We're devoted followers of Jon's School of Music, both the in-person classes and the Zoom-based ones. I can't recommend another teacher of any topic for kids more highly.

    You can contact Jon directly to enroll: http://www.jsom.com/jon-s-school-of-music-1

    Our daughter has been taking zoom music classes through Jon Merker-- he was doing live classes out of the Totland clubhouse and we loved doing them there as well-- and he's now offering classes via zoom. My 4 year old looks forward to her weekly class and loves Jon and the music skills he has been teaching over the last few months. Jon is super engaging and silly for the kids and really pushes them to participate and have fun while learning how to count to a beat, be loud and soft, and gain confidence. We look forward to taking these classes again in person (one day soon!??!) but in the meantime we have really enjoyed them on Zoom. I believe all the info is on his site-- email him for more info too he's super responsive: http://www.jsom.com/

    We love Jon Merker’s online music classes. Both of my kids participate and they have a great time while learning the basics of rhythm, notes and recognizing patterns in music, also team work. We highly recommend his classes. Here’s his email: jon765432 [at] gmail.com

    Our 3.5 year-old has been attending Jon's School of Music (http://www.jsom.com) on Zoom and loving it. It helps that he'd been to a few classes IRL pre-COVID but should be good for new attendees too. Jon is loud, silly and engaging even over the computer and all the kids are totally focused on him. It's the one time we are able to leave our kid in front of a Zoom meeting and have him fully absorbed. Ability to hit a drum approximately on cue is the only requirement, though there is some musical instruction slipped in without the kids realizing. Our younger kid (1.5) has taken part too and also had fun. 

    Yes!  Jon's music class is online and it's amazing.  Jon usually runs his classes out of Totland but with COVID he has moved to an online format that works very well.  I am pasting below the info for May because it was easy to find.  I am guessing it'll be the same for July.  I HIGHLY recommend!

    May 4 - May 31 OnlineI'm offering 2 different kinds of classes right now, with separate fee and attendance structures: Smaller Interactive Classes for 3 - 8 year olds:  and  Big Gigantic Classes for 1 - 6 year olds ...

    You should check out Jon's School of Music (www.jsom.com)! Our son has been attending his live classes since he was 18 months and three years later, he still enjoys music class every week. Jon switched to online classes two months ago, there's a ton of options regarding age/days/time so I'm sure you'll find something that'll match your schedule and needs. Jon's so nice, you can send him an email about trying out a class, he usually responds very quickly. His classes are really fun and our son knows ton of music stuff now too (forte/piano/different instruments). Hope this helps!

    Check out Jon’s School of Music. It’s been a savior during quarantine. Our 3 yo has been doing his online classes several times a week and I swear it’s engaging like nothing else we’ve tried. For a solid 40 mins! The kids love Jon. I love that it shifts the kiddo restless energy, offers learning and silliness and I can get some things done. It’s well priced. If you email him I think you can check out a class for free.

    jon765432 [at] gmail.com

    http://www.jsom.com/

     

    YES!  We highly recommend Jon's School of Music!! Jon's school is normally located in the sweet building covered with a mural inside of Totland playground.  Since COVID he's moved to on-line and by far it's been the best and most successful zoom experience my boys have had. (We tried a few different on-line things, and this is the only one we have stuck with.)  Jon is totally zany in a way that is super entertaining for the littles and it really transmits well and keeps kids attention on-line. And he's developed a brilliant method for teaching music theory and instrumentation that he weaves through his classes in age appropriate ways (his classes are divided in different age groups).  He gets kids drumming, dancing, improvising...and they have a blast. After the class I've noticed my boys tend to pick up their play instruments or sit down at the piano to experiment and even pick out the simple ditties they learn in his class..I can see it's giving them a true musical foundation. 

    We love music classes at Jon's school of Music: jsom.com

    Jon normally teaches music at the little indoor space on the totland playground, and has successfully moved his classes online. Our 3 year-old is really into them, and very engaged (she tried other zoom classes that she couldn't stick with). Our 1 year-old has been listening in and having tons of fun too, also learning the music games (at her own rhythm).

    Jon is great with little kids. He's fun and silly, infinitely patient, and able to build up their knowledge of music at the exact right pace for them - slowly, with tons of repetitions of fun games. He's super creative, making up good ways to remember for example notes, rhythms, what fortissimo or accelerando means, etc. He makes them laugh and want to stay. It's also a fairly active class, with movement and participation.

    I highly recommend - I wish it was in person again, but as long as we're stuck with zoom, we're really glad we have Jon's school of Music!

    We LOVE Jon's Music class -- http://www.jsom.com/jon-s-school-of-music-1 -- pre-pandemic we would go to totland and have in person classes, where kids play all kinds of instruments, learn basics of rhythm and melody, and are part of Jon's "Super friends band." Now in the pandemic, we have zoom meetings a few times a week. It's the only thing meeting online that will keep my 3yo engaged and laughing. 

    Can highly recommend Jon's School of Music (http://www.jsom.com/). Online classes most days of the week for kids between 1.5 - 6 years old. Jon is very entertaining and keeps the kids engaged during the whole class. Our 4 year old daughter loves it! 

    Jon at Jon's School of Music has managed to put together an extremely engaging version of his Big Gigantic Music Classes.  Zoom for young kids is hard, but he's figured out an approach that works.  

    My 2 year old has been with Jon since she was 15 month. She always looking forward to the classes even after we transitioned to the online format. Jon works really hard to interact with every kids individually through zoom and has a keen way to keep them engaged. My daughter sings songs plays trick she learned from Jon's music class all the time. 

  • Hello Community,

    Can anyone recommend places where high schoolers can take online (ie video-taught) classes this summer?  We're looking specifically for art or other non-academic, creative, fun classes, but curious about all places offering virtual classes.

    Thanks.

    If you have a child interested in learning coding, I recommend the Coder School in Berkeley. My 11 year old son did their  Python Start Up Camp on-line during spring break and loved it. The camp was from 9:30-2:30 with and hour lunch break. It was well run and he learned a lot.  We are going to sign up for more camps this summer.

    https://www.thecoderschool.com/locations/berkeley/

    A lot of the local camps, classes, and tutors/teachers are offering online classes. Recent posts on BPN include art, musical instruments, philosophy, circus arts, coding, creative writing, meditation, languages, singing, theater, and more! Check out these lists on the BPN website (can also be found on the BPN home page) :

    Another resource for online classes is Outschool.com. You can search for classes for certain ages or specific topics. My kids have been using it regularly over the last few months.

  • In early December we cancelled all but two of our kids' after-school activities  as we wanted to change up the activities a bit and take a break for a couple of months and enroll in different ones in late Jan.  We then got busy and did not get around to re-enrolling in activities.  Now it is April and the pandemic is happening.  On the bright side I don't have the usual number of after school activity vendors to pay since my kids were no longer enrolled (we are still paying the two activities we kept to support them and getting limited services online though as those are sports it is not the same), but the kids are also bored as remote learning only takes up half the day and both parents are still working from home.  My kids are early elementary school aged.  Do you like your kids' online/virtual activities and think they are worth it even though they are done remotely, and if so what are they?  Or does it makes sense to not enroll in anything new now and wait to enroll in new activities in the fall when hopefully the shelter in place is lifted and the activities are back to being done in person?   

    Classroom Matters, an excellent place which offers classes, workshops, and one-on-one learning support, has just pivoted to on-line supports and learning. I have always been super-impressed with them and their community supports, and know so many parents who sing their praises on the quality of support their kids get from them. A number of things they're offering are free, and they also offer need-based scholarships. Check their website for courses they've got up now.

    I highly recommend Yama Kids Yoga. Beth is fantastic and offers all age groups. She has gone virtual and when this is over you can easily switch to in person. She is fun and silly and a really good instructor. 

    I’m a board member with the Homeschool Assocation of CA. We have our top 5 tips for crisis schooling to share and we have a living document that gets added to daily where we are keeping track of the mostly free online resources being offered to families at home now by individuals, vendors, institutions, and companies.

    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gQfLcFwZI7Q-RwCdt_t6Eymk-8ZcL4tpjcUoxBGA5sY

    Top 5 tips for Quarantine Homeschooling 

    1. Don’t attempt to replicate school at home

      1. The world is normally our classroom, this is different

      2. Let go of expectations, you don’t have 30 students, you are a facilitator of learning and your child’s parent, not a traditional “teacher”

      3. It’s going to be messy, and that’s ok

      4. Don’t worry about being “behind”, everyone’s in the same boat

    2. Be gentle with yourself, your child, your partner, and your coworkers

      1. We are in an unprecedented situation and everyone, including your children, is under stress

      2. Both parents should share child care and homeschooling to support each other

    3. Ask your children what they’d like to learn

      1. Trying doing “real life” (cooking, chores, gardening, sewing, fixing things, etc.)

      2. Also, read, play, invent, make, build, sing, dance, experiment, have fun!

      3. This document has loads of resources for those who are suddenly homeschooling

    4. Learning doesn’t only happen with a book at a desk

      1. Try something different, your kids will learn no matter what you end up doing

      2. Self-directed learning is the best kind, what is your child passionate about?

    5. Be flexible

      1. Share child duties so each parent has focused work time

      2. Use the internet or games as a tool, but don’t feel guilty if you need to rely on them at times to get things done

      3. Academics and learning doesn’t have to take place only during regular school hours

    Hi!
    I am getting so many mailings about kid activities although my kid is grown up.
    Check out science museums, such as chabot in Oakland, or Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, Scotland or the computer history museum in mountain view.
    You can now look at programs all over the world.
    Art museums also have things and if you can afford to pay for some of these, it's win win. Many are free but would appreciate donations. I have heard of online karate as well, drama classes (high school, Berkeley rep), etc. There are also Barre and other dance classes being offered by some places.

    Studio Naga (a martial arts studio) did a quick pivot from live to virtual the day Shelter In Place was called.  Since then they've kept to their schedule for kids classes 3 times a week as well as adding kids/family meditation classes every weekday morning.  The classes begin with the whole group warming up together, then put in smaller groups so the kids can get more focused attention from a black belt.  Class ends back in big group to talk/feel sense of community.

    Kids love it and remains a part of their routine.  Also, kids who've moved away have come back to class to feel sense of community and to do something they haven't had a chance to do in awhile.  Also, there have been new enrollees to keep their kids active and engaged throughout the week.  As one of the instructors, I love it because it provides a principal from this art -- to put service in front of ego -- and as an instructor, enjoy leading the meditations as teach one of the kids classes.

    Feel free to connect with Louise Rafkin of Studio Naga to get more information.  www.StudioNaga.com and 510.652.6242.

    A good mom friend who is an art therapist in New York has created a FREE art activities website, https://www.artherenow.net/ which is intended primarily for kids ages 5-11, although it can be fun outside of this age group (including parents!).  There is no financial incentive for my friend; she just did this to help out.  Enjoy!

  • Online Piano Instruction

    Mar 28, 2020

    Do you have a recommendation for a piano instructor who could teach by Zoom or some online format? Teaching 2 girls, ages 5 and 8. The piano teacher can reside anywhere, really. But should be fun, creative, patient, engaging. Or could you advise where I might search for an online piano teacher? Thank you!

    My seven year old daughter is continuing her piano lessons on Facetime with her teacher Nava Dunkleman.  You can find her here: BayAreaMusicalMentors.com.  We feel lucky to have found such a good fit for our family.  Nava is gentle, patient and fun.  She was coming to our house, but remote lessons are working well too.  My daughter, who was ready to quit the piano entirely, now practices without my reminding!

    Ronna Honigman, she is a great teacher! I don't know if she has space for new students, her email address is 88keysforkids [at] gmail.com. She's been teaching my son since 2011 @ her studio in El Cerrito and now online due to the Shelter in place order. 

    Our seven-year-old daughter takes piano with Ayden Graham - aydengraham [at] gmail.com.  Our usual lessons are after school on campus at St. Paul's Episcopal School in Oakland, but he has moved to teaching via Zoom and it has gone well for us.    I've been listening in on lessons and he is very patient and teaching her more than I remember learning when I was that age.

    Highly recommend Jamie Younger, (408) 564-2719.  She's based in San Francisco but travels to the East Bay a few days a week to teach piano lessons in her students' homes.  She has been fantastic with our 7 year old.  Since the shutdown she's transitioned to online piano lessons with Zoom or Facetime, and I know she's looking for a few new families.

    I recommend Kadie Kelly and Superpower of the Song for Piano lessons, we're doing zoom lessons now.  I'd also like to recommend a violin teacher who does kids and grown ups, violin and music theory.  Ilana the violin teacher: itzdat2002 [at] gmail.com and Kadie the piano teacher: kadiekelly [at] superpowerofthesong.com.  They are both great and teaching my kids.  Both are local for when things get back to normal.

    Look up Feisty Fingers. She's in Oakland but has started virtual lessons since the pandemic and would like to take on more students.

    Kristin Brooks-Davidman in Berkeley is doing video lessons  kdavidman [at] comcast.net

    My friend is a piano teacher at McAllister Music Studio based in San Francisco and they've converted all their lessons online. They do an amazing job with kids and adults alike. You can view more details about their school here: https://www.mcallistermusicstudiosf.com/

    Our wonderful piano teacher of over 8 years based out of Oakland, Dusan Chae, is providing online lessons.  Not only has Dusan helped our son lay a very solid foundation of piano techniques over the years, but he is now providing support and guidance as our 15 year old has begun to make his own arrangements of popular songs he likes from ear and get tremendous enjoyment from playing them.  This is the type of teacher who is a master of classic technique but open and broadminded enough to allow for the more spontaneous, "play it by the ear" type work that our child now deeply enjoys in this stage of his piano development.  Please contact Dusan at soundin2time [at] gmx.com

  • My son is in 2nd grade, loves chess, and would like to have virtual chess playdates with buddies from school. (possibly with facetime set up next to him so they can talk while playing.) When I google, I am overwhelmed by options and wonder if anyone has already figured out the best solution to this.  I'm not interested in him playing against a computer or playing strangers on the internet. It's not about learning chess. It's about having some social time with friends during this time away from school. Any recommendations? Thank you!

    We have been using Chess with Friends app since last week to play with family and friends.  There are ads to close but it works great otherwise and is free! We all had to download the app and make usernames but that was it.

    My daughter just started playing chess with a friend on the chess.com app. It’s great! They FaceTime at the same time using a separate device.

    My third grader uses ChessKid app on our iPAD. It seems to work fine. Would you like to join and play with us?

  • My kid is occupied pretty well with virtual school 5 days a week but I am going out of my mind with boredom and inactivity. Does anyone have any recommendations to share for Zoom group workouts for adults? (Yoga, weights, HIIT, stretching, etc.) I don't have a stationary bike and I'm not looking for youtube video workouts. I could really use some interaction with actual people, preferably through Zoom as that is the virtual software I'm most familiar with. Thank you!!

    My women's boot camp (Oakland Adventure Boot Camp) has started offering a Zoom class daily at 7:45AM. Email Anna Gunn for the details: oaklandbootcamp [at] mac.com 

    There are many sources for online yoga, some of which are recorded and some are in real-time through Zoom, which definitely gives more of a sense of a real class. Check out The Green Yogi (a fantastic local studio), which is offering real-time classes with a few of their best teachers (sliding scale for payment). There are tons of other sources too, some free, including many recorded classes on Twitch (search "quarantine yoga" to find some). I don't know about the other types of classes you mentioned but I'm sure there are many options available. Good luck!
     

    I just went on the YMCA website and they have loads of classes via Zoom.  You don't have to log in so I don't think you have to be a member.

    The Dailey Method is offering zoom Barre classes. It's not an ideal way to be introduced to their awesome classes, but hey, desperate times! Here is a link to their Berkeley schedule, which is where the Zoom class sign-ups are residing. (In normal times they have both a Berkeley and Piedmont studio.) Link: https://thedaileymethod.com/studios/berkeley/overview/

    Vita Oakland has amazing classes that have all moved to zoom: https://www.vitaoakland.com/schedule Its 15 bucks a class. I love the barre and TrillogyHITT/ classes. 

    Sweat, a local and independently owned and operated HIIT gym with locations in Albany and Oakland (https://www.sweatoften.com/) is offering a range of on-line classes, both scheduled and on-demand. They're fantastic!

    My gym, Phasefit, is doing a live instagram workout every day except for Sundays. It is led by the instructors and has been a godsend for me in these trying times.

    I imagine you could try a few for free (just go to phasefit on instagram and ask to follow them) and if you love it maybe you could ask about some sort of payment.

    The live classes are at 8 AM Mon-Friday and 10 AM on Saturdays but they always keep them up (and have them on You Tube too) so if that time does not work you can still get it in that day.

    I am happy to share more if you have questions.

    Gretchen_Davidson [at] yahoo.com

    Tiffany Dacko runs HIIT/strength/resistance training workouts outside under normal circumstances and has taken them to zoom during this crisis. Her business it call Balanced Fitness For Moms and you can find her online and email her to be included. She has good energy and her humor brightens the day.

    Fitness Blender

    Fitness Marshall

    LA dancefit

    Core Pilates Sausalito is doing virtual workouts via Zoom, as is Shawl Anderson.

    Hi! I know some local yoga studios are offering yoga classes via Zoom right now. Check out Left Coast Yoga and Namaste

    The Berkeley studio of the Dailey Method is doing online classes on zoom. They are great! Highly recommend.

    The Dailey Method in Berkeley has a regular schedule of Zoom workouts right now. The information/sign up can be found on their website https://thedaileymethod.com/studios/berkeley/overview

    My Sunday dance class is now being conducted over zoom and it's super fun. If you go to Sexitude on Facebook, you'll find updates and links. We do a different routine every month - this month is Lady Gaga "Stupid Love." We start with stretching and warm up, then go through the choreography and do the full dance at the end. 

    Sweat Oakland is a local HIIT studio doing body weight classes via Zoom. Instructors and workouts are amazing!

    https://www.sweatoften.com/

    Square One Yoga in Emeryville, Temescal, El Cerrito has gone onto Zoom.  All the class schedules are listed under the Temescal location.

    It worked well for me this week.  

    Check out workouts from the Sweat studio (Oakland, Albany)-- they are all virtual now via Zoom! No equipment needed. Sign up for a specific class time, or get the workout emailed directly to you. I've been very satisfied with the workouts, and so happy the gym is able to offer this given the shelter in place order. Highly recommend! 

    https://www.sweatoften.com/

    I just joined 510Fit4Mom, which was formerly all in-person and is now online. They've got a full 2X day workout schedule of classes plus kid playgroups. Plus Monica who runs it is awesome. Plus right now it sliding scale. https://510.fit4mom.com/

    Mountain yoga in Montclair s streaming classes

    Also Hot Spot Yoga in Oakland

    In case you know or want to practice spanish, there is Budocursos.com ( based in Argentina ;) )

    In a way, we are lucky to be able to slow down for a little bit...enjoy if you can.

    The Dailey Method! They're offering at least three classes daily and instructors have been killing it.

    Emai:l berkeleyzumba [at] gmail.com.

    Bonnie is the teacher and she's doing Zoom Zumba classes three times a week. Her classes are fun and energetic, and I really like her selection of music. There probably isn't much instruction, but there is a lot of repetition, so it isn't that hard to follow. 

  • Online yoga for kids

    Mar 21, 2020

    Can anyone recommend online yoga classes for kids? (Other than Cosmic Kids Yoga.) Also open to live online classes, but they have to be in the afternoon. My kid is six. Thank you!

    Barefoot Yoga in Oakland is doing live kids and family classes--may be worth checking their schedule to see if a time works for you, and help support a local business in the process.

    Hi, Yama Kids Yoga is doing online classes and they have live classes in the afternoon.

    Yama Kids Yoga (physical location Elmwood, though obviously closed now) has online classes. Go to yamakidsyoga.com to sign up. We are trying an online class later today, so I can't speak to that aspect, but my son loved the in person classes we previously went to.

    Yama Kids Yoga 

    Beth Houghton the yoga teacher is very experienced with all ages of kids and has set up several online classes for each age group! She is offering a sliding scale at this time to accommodate differing situations. Visit yamakidsyoga.com for more info. My kid loves her and the classes 

    Vita Oakland just started doing kids yoga. https://www.vitaoakland.com/schedule I have not taken them as my kid is too young, but I hear they are great.