Learning Commons for Families

Collection of Learning Commons information and resources to assist families and teachers.

Curriculum Options

Get started with selecting curricular resources, see our recommendations for educational apps and external resources, see our curriculum correlations, and learn how to donate used materials to the Learning Commons.

Curriculum Options

Getting Started With Selecting Curriculum

Curriculum Options and Picks

The Curriculum Options page on our website offers carefully vetted suggestions for each core subject by grade level, meeting the needs of most typical home-educating students.

To quickly find our "Picks" (recommended resources that cover key standards without overwhelming you with too many choices), simply filter the Curriculum Options by GRADE and select ONLY the feature “HCOS Pick.”

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Detailed information regarding our curriculum picks can be found in the SOPHIE chapter, Curriculum Picks

Purchasing information can be found on our Resource Vendor Directory page.

Curriculum Selection Tools and Tips Webinar

This webinar provides an overview of the curriculum selection process and references many curriculum options that may work for your situation.

Slide deck: bit.ly/Curriculum-Selection-25

Curriculum Consultations

If you need assistance selecting curriculum, please be in touch with your support teacher. Our Curriculum & Resources Consultant, Rachael Rennie, is also available for consultations with HCOS-enrolled or registered families via her online calendar.

Curriculum Options

Educational Apps for Tablets & Phones

This page contains free and paid app suggestions in a variety of subject areas and grade levels. 

HCOS + Flex Apps

These are the app versions of tools and platforms available to enrolled students through HCOS + Flex. Please search SOPHIE to learn more about accessing the Resources and visit the Learning Commons website to find passwords for our Subscriptions.

Resources

Name

Description

Links

Canva for Education

Graphic design

Apple App Store

Google Play

Google Workspace

Calendar, Docs, Drive, Gmail

Apple App Store

Google Play

Grammarly

Writing and proofreading

Apple App Store

Google Play

Read&Write

Reading and assistive technology

Apple App Store

Chrome Webstore

Subscriptions

Name

Description

Links

BrainPOP and BrainPOP Jr

Movies and quizzes from the BrainPOP website

BrainPOP Apps

(Apple App Store and Google Play)

Matific

Skill-building numeracy games

Apple App Store

Google Play

Reading Eggs

Skill-based literacy games

Apple App Store

Google Play

RightNow Media

Bible study video resources

Apple App Store

Google Play

Sora

eBooks and audiobooks library

Apple App Store

Google Play

Tynker

Coding-based math games

Apple App Store

Google Play

Parents are encouraged to do their own research on these recommended apps to determine alignment with family values and learning goals. Reviews can be found on the links for the Apple App and Google Play Stores or by searching apps on Common Sense Education.

Arts Education

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Adult Colouring Book

Digital colouring book

Free

Apple App Store

DMD Panorama

Photo and video 3D camera app

$12.99 (Apple)

Free (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

GarageBand

Music recording and editing app

Free

Apple App Store

iMovie

Movie editing app

Free

Apple App Store

Lapse It

Time-lapse and stop motion video creator

Free

Apple App Store

Paper

Digital sketchbook

Free

Apple App Store

PicCollage EDU

Photo editor and collage creator

$2.99

Apple App Store

Pixlr

Photo Editor

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Procreate

Digital art creator and editor

$17.99

Apple App Store


Stop Motion Studio

Stop motion video creator

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Assistive Technology

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Articulation Essentials 2.0

Speech therapy support

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Articulation Station

Speech therapy support

Free

Apple App Store

Audio Notebook

Voice recorder

Free

Apple App Store

Mod Math

Adaptive math notation

Free

Apple App Store

SnapType

Worksheet digitization and editing

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Christian Studies

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Bible App for Kids

Interactive Bible stories for children

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

BibleProject

Interactive Bible resources and classes

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Keys for Kids Ministries

Daily devotionals

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Superbook Kids Bible

Interactive Bible stories and resources

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

YouVersion Bible

Digital Bible resource

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Executive Functioning and Organization

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Be Focused (Apple)

Focus To-Do (Google)

Time management support

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

CamScanner

Document scanner

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Evernote

Notes and task organizer

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Genius Scan

Document scanner

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Noteability

Notes organizer

Free

Apple App Store

Time Timer

Visual time management

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Vantage

Scheduling and calendar tool

Free

Apple App Store

Learning Support and Inclusive Education

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Blending Sounds 1

Skill-building phonics games

$19.99

Apple App Store

Brain Works

Sensory breaks

$11.99

Apple App Store

Choiceworks Calendar

Visual calendar and time management

$17.99

Apple App Store

Conversation Builder Teen

Skill-building conversation tools

$39.99

Apple App Store

Exploring Emotions

Social emotional learning

$9.99 (Apple)

$12.99 (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

First Then Visual Schedule

Visual calendar and time management

$19.99

Apple App Store

Keedogo Plus

Simplified keyboard layout

$3.99

Apple App Store

Letter Sounds 1

Skill-building letter sounds games

$19.99

Apple App Store

School of Multi-Step Directions

Auditory comprehension and listening skills

$24.99

Apple App Store

Sight Words 1

Skill-building sight words games

$19.99

Apple App Store

The Sounding Out Machine

Assistive reading tools

$3.99

Apple App Store

The Zones of Regulation

Social emotional learning

$7.99

Apple App Store

Google Play

Literacy

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Book Creator

eBooks creator

$3.99

Apple App Store

IXL 

Skill-building literacy games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

LetterSchool

Handwriting skills

$12.99 (Apple)

Free (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

Me: A Kid’s Story

Digital diary creator

$4.99

Apple App Store

Storybird

eBooks creator

Free

Apple App Store

Strip Designer

eComics creator

$4.99

Apple App Store

Tell About This

Photo prompt caption creator

$3.99

Apple App Store

Text Twist

Letter games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Numeracy

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Doctor Lowhigh

Ordering values

$0.99

Apple App Store

Equilibrians

Balancing equations

$2.99 (Apple)

Free (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

Euclidean Lands 

Puzzle-based math games

$6.99

Apple App Store

IXL 

Skill-building numeracy games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

King of Math

Skill-building numeracy games

Free (Apple)

$4.09 (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

King of Math 2

Skill-building numeracy games

$3.99 (Apple)

$4.09 (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

Lightbot

Coding-based math games

Free

Apple App Store

Math Slide

Multiplication and division

Free

Apple App Store

Monument Valley

Geometry-based math games

$4.99 (Apple)

$6.99 (Google)

Apple App Store

Google Play

Odd Bot Out

Puzzle-based math games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Prodigy

Puzzle-based math games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

ReflexMath

Skill-building numeracy games

Free

Apple App Store

ScratchJr

Coding-based math games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

SET Pro HD

Puzzle-based math games

$6.99

Apple App Store

Swift Playgrounds

Coding-based math games

Free

Apple App Store

Science

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Biodigital Human

3D anatomy virtual model

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Frog Dissection

Virtual dissection lab

$4.99

Apple App Store

IXL 

Skill-building science games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

NASA Visualization Explorer

Space research and exploration

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

The Explorer’s Library by Tinybop

Skill-building science games

$2.99-$4.99

Tinybop Apps

(Apple Play Store)

Social Studies

Name

Description

Cost

Links

Agents of Discovery

Exploration-based social studies games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

GeoGuessr

Map-based social studies games

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Google Earth

Map Exploration

Free

Apple App Store

Google Play

Curriculum Options

External Online Resources

Overview

We’ve curated dozens of educational resources available for free online. These sites offer valuable and engaging articles, instructional videos, interactive games, and much more to supplement learning at home.  

Benefits

Parents, students, and teachers can access a wealth of information and interactive learning experiences for research and inquiry, as well as to supplement coursework, deepen understanding, and foster further exploration.

Using External Resources

Many of these resources are available without an account. Sometimes, parents must set up a free account to use the resource. 

Parents should preview resources to ensure suitability for their students.

Accessing External Resources

Kindergarten - Grade 5

Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies: Design Thinking and Making
Curiosity Machine Design challenges across various subject areas
Design Squad Global

Compete to create solutions to engineering challenges

Instructables

Learn how to make anything, one step at a time.

Little Inventors

Design challenges and resources that encourage children to think up and draw great invention ideas.

Makers Empire 3D design tool to create, download, and print original or community-based objects
The Tech at Home STEM and design challenge activities for K-12 learners
The Young Inventors Challenges designed to demonstrate how inventions can improve people’s lives
Tinkercad

Three workspaces where students can design: 3D Design, Codeblocks, and Circuits

Arts Education
Art For Kids Hub

Online YouTube videos teaching young children to draw

8notes.com

Sheet music and resources for musicians, including tuners, chord charts, and lessons

Blob Opera

Create your opera-inspired song; no music skills required

GarageBand

Music creation studio with a complete sound library

Institute for Arts Integration and STEAM Arts-integrated online learning experiences for students that include videos and lesson plans
MetKids

Whimsical, kid-friendly intro to the wide art world with videos and interactive activities

PBS Learning Media’s Arts Education

Resources, videos, and interactive lessons in dance, music, theatre, and visual arts

TedEd Visual Arts Instructional videos with comprehension and guided discussion questions
Bible/Christian Studies
Elevate Kids Kid-friendly, age-appropriate, and Bible-based videos to show your child how to become the leader that God designed him or her to be.
Kids Corner Audio adventures, Bible stories and activities for kids
Kids of Integrity Downloadable lesson plans that help parents instill Christ-honouring character traits in their kids.
Kids World Online easy-to-read Bible lessons.
Mini Bible Lessons Short, self-guided lessons on topics of interest to teens
Open Network Engaging video dramas and Bible-based topics complete with leader guides and activities.
SundaySchoolZone.com FREE printable children’s Bible activities for use with kids at home, church, and school, as well as resources for teaching children the Bible.
Unlocked A daily audio devotional for teens.
VEGGIE TALES Christian lessions and Bible stories from beloved veggie friends. God made you special, and He loves you very much!
Career Education
Bankaroo A virtual bank for kids where you can teach them about the value of money in a safe environment
EVERFI

Standards-aligned, research-based digital lessons to teach students to thrive in an ever-changing world.

SignalHill

Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students

Thrively

Guides students through a student-centred journey to discover their strengths, increase their self-awareness, set goals and track progress, build skills, and learn real-world problem-solving

Communication & Collaboration
Lino

A sticky-note tool to organize and collect information and can be shared with parents and teachers

Screencastify

Empowering students to demonstrate and share their learning

Seesaw Students share their learning with others through digital portfolios
Wakelet Save, organize, and share any content from across the web
Computer Science
Code.org Hundreds of computer science activities and tutorials
Codeable Crafts Animate stories with accessible drawing tools and coding blocks
CS First Makes coding easy to teach and fun to use
Scratch Code, share, and remix stories, games, and animations
ScratchJr As above, for ages 5-7
Digital Literacy and Wellness
Be Internet Awesome To make the most of the Internet, kids need to be prepared to make smart decisions. Be Internet Awesome empowers kids with tools and education to confidently and safely explore, grow, and play online.
Common Sense Media  All students need digital citizenship skills to participate fully in their communities and make smart choices online and in life. Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship.
LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD A Guide for Students, Schools and Families - LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD
Media Smarts MediaSmarts has been developing digital media literacy programs and resources for Canadian homes, schools and communities since 1996. Our work falls into three main areas: education, public awareness, and research and policy.
Protect Kids Online ProtectKidsOnline.ca is designed to assist parents/guardians in protecting their children on the Internet and reducing their risk of victimization.
Well Being BC

Well-Being BC was created for all schools, as part of a school-based

mental health initiative to support three pillars of Well-Being: SOCIAL EMOTIONAL
LEARNING. MENTAL HEALTH LITERACY. TRAUMA-INFORMED APPROACHES.

English Language Arts
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) Draft an entire novel in just one month in motivational virtual spaces.
Quill Free writing and grammar activities and tools.
ReadWorks Differentiated reading passages designed to improve comprehension.
StoryJumper An easy way for students to write, narrate, and illustrate their stories.  Find informative, expository, collaborative, narrative, and creative writing project ideas, suggestions on topics to write about and digital storytelling ideas. Your students can then use our tools to create and narrate a book, print it on-demand, and publish a book they can hold and hear.
Storyline Online

Read-along books are brought to life through video narrations by actors and authors. Each title is paired with a supplemental curriculum, designed by a certified elementary educator, to support English-language learners in building comprehension, as well as verbal and written communication skills. 

Whooo’s Reading A website with a clear mission: to help students think more critically about whatever they read through open-ended rather than multiple-choice reading quizzes.
Indigenous Education
Canada’s Original Place Names Indigenous Peoples named many places in present-day Canada.
Great Bear Sea

Environmental Science lesson plans K-12. 

Indigenous Education Resource Inventory

Resources from the BC Ministry of Education.

Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada  Four books: Truth and Reconciliation, First Nations, Inuit, Metis
Indigenous Voices  How to Talk about Indigenous People, a video.
SignalHill Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students
Mathematics
Didax Virtual manipulatives and downloadable activities for PreK – Grade 12.
Khan Academy Provides interactive lessons and instructional videos; students practice at their own pace, first filling in gaps in their understanding and then accelerating their learning.
Legends of Learning Provides an engaging educational experience for at-home learning. Kids will love the educational games on the platform, and parents will love the data that comes out as they automatically progress.
MathAntics FREE math videos and additional subscription-based content!
Math Learning Centre  easy-to-use math apps for web browsers, Apple devices or Chromebooks.
Math Snacks Educational animations, games, and interactive tools that help learners in grades 3 – 8 better understand math concepts.
Zearn An online math curriculum with supplemental skills practice activities for K – 5. Parents and teachers must set up their own accounts and assign lessons to their students.
Multi-Subject
CK-12 Free Math, Science, Social Studies, English and more courses for grades 1-12.
Collabrify Productivity Tool Suite Educational productivity Apps. In real-time, two or more students, each on their own computing device, co-constructing text documents, drawings & animations, KWL charts, and spreadsheets.
Easy Peasy All-In-One Homeschool A free online Christian homeschool curriculum.
Khan Academy Kids A free, award-winning app for children ages 2 – 7 that engages kids in core subjects like early literacy, reading, writing, language, and math, while encouraging creativity and building social-emotional skills.
Learning Hero Roadmap An interactive guide with videos/tools to help parents support grade-level math and reading as well as social-emotional development. Informed by what parents need, developed by leading content experts.
Newsela Great nonfiction articles with 5 options for levelled reading.
NOVA Compelling videos, simulations, teacher guides, and other activities.
PBS Kids A wealth of educational content and valuable learning resources covering various topics.

PBS LearningMedia

 

PreK-12 digital media service. Search and browse thousands of learning materials, including videos, interactive lesson plans, media galleries, and more.
Quarto Classroom A free video library on YouTube of Quarto’s creators using their books as teaching tools in educational spaces.
Smithsonian Learning Lab an interactive platform for discovering millions of authentic digital resources, creating content with online tools, and sharing in the Smithsonian’s expansive community of knowledge and learning.

TED-Ed

 

supports kids’ sense of wonder with outstanding short video lessons.
The Archievery A free and safe online learning platform created by AT&T to provide K-12 students with engaging and entertaining videos paired with educational activities. English language arts, social-emotional learning, technology and engineering, digital arts, math, science, and digital literacy
Wonderopolis short, interesting informational texts. Each text has vocabulary practice, a comprehension quiz, and activities for further learning. The Immersive Reader tool increases text accessibility with read-aloud, picture dictionary, translation, and more.
Physical and Health Education
GoNoodle Movement and mindfulness videos created by child development experts.
KidsHealth Easy-to-follow articles, slideshows, videos, and health tools designed to help kids and teens learn, grow, and be their best.
PBS Learning Media’s Health & PysEd Resources that provide essential lessons on physical, mental, and emotional health.
SignalHill  Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students
Science
100 Fun Science Experiments / Fair Projects Amazing collection of science experiments and science fair projects that you can try with your kids and students at home or school.
Climate Kids  This kid-friendly, expert site by Nasa explores key climate issues through videos, games and activities.
Google Earth  Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
Inquiry in Action  K-5 science lessons about physical science and chemistry in everyday life
Legends of Learning Provides an engaging educational experience for at-home learning. Kids will love the educational games on the platform, and parents will love the data that comes out as they automatically progress.
Nasa STEM @ Home  Videos, interactive multimedia, hands-on activities and more categorized by grade range.
National Geographic Kids  Stunning photos, in-depth stories of Earth’s peoples and wildlife, and a large collection of multimedia resources that teach students about animals, habitats, countries, and cultures.
Ocean School National Film Board of Canada. It’s bilingual, free and has aboriginal content! A YouTube channel and an app on iOS. It uses video, virtual reality, interactive and 360-degree video, augmented reality, newsreels, toolkits and assessments. Brings powerful storytelling techniques, immersive technologies and interactive media to your home. Explore the ocean with documentary footage of real scientists, 360 videos, AR, and VR.
Science Buddies  K-12 STEM resources, including 160+ hands-on STEM activities and videos. Our activities cover different STEM concepts, can be done in an hour or less, and use materials easily found at home.
Smithsonian Science Education Center  Curriculum & resources searchable by type, grade and topic.
The San Diego Zoo  An interactive site featuring videos, games and activities.
Second Language
The ASL App  Learn American Sign Language right from your phone.
ASL Kids  ASL learning app for Beginners & Kids.
Boukili  Help your students and children love reading in French.
Curious Learning  Apps for learning to read in 48 languages.
Duolingo  A science-based language education platform that has organically become the most popular way to learn languages online.
Fingerspelling  Learn the ABCs in ASL with machine learning.
HandsOnASL  Learn to fingerspell with sign language.
Oh Noah!  Offers students a multi-pronged approach to learning Spanish vocabulary. With its funny, story-based interface, kids are encouraged to take an easygoing, just-try-it approach to learning languages.
OnlineFreeSpanish  Dozens of games, colouring pages, and interactive activities by level can be accessed anytime on tablets or desktops.
Sign School Learn American Sign Language
Social Studies
Canada’s Museum of History  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canada’s War Museum  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canadian Museum For Human Rights  Join our guides on video tours of the Museum’s galleries and architecture. Check out Museum exhibits and stories about human rights defenders and history. Discover our many special online experiences.
DOGO News  A diverse, kid-friendly news site enriched by visual and bilingual elements. Articles are separated into various subjects and reading levels.
Google Earth  Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
Historica Canada  Programs you can use to explore, learn and reflect on our history and what it means to be Canadian
National Geographic Kids  Stunning photos, in-depth stories of Earth’s peoples and wildlife, and a large collection of multimedia resources that teach students about animals, habitats, countries, and cultures.
Our Country, Our Parliament   Learn about the Canadian Parliament through a downloadable book and interactive resources.
Parliament: An Overview  Learn about the Parliament of Canada
Smithsonian’s History Explorer  Lessons, activities, interactives, engaging media and more. Resources can be filtered by grade range, resource type, historical era and cross-curricular connections.
Teachers Zone Canadian History In Your Classroom
Time for Kids  A digital news magazine for kids with age-appropriate stories kids are excited about and information just for kids that explains the world around them.
Touchable Earth  Experience the world in the first person and access 25 communities worldwide.
STEAM
100+ STEM and STEAM Resources Livebinder  has a variety of tools, videos and resources for you to browse.
Crayola STEAM Lesson plans Put the art into your STEM and make it STEAM with these creative ideas.
Design Squad Global  Interactive learning fun. 
Engineer Girl Engineer Girl shares positive role models and what they do. 
Get Caught Engineering STEM for Kids
Going from STEM to STEAM A prezi sharing STEAM creatively.
Government of Canada lesson Plans  STEAM resources
How to Smile  A site that houses wonderful math and science activities.
Let’s Talk Science STEAM at Home
NASA Middle grades STEM lesson plans  Free webinars for students!
PBS STEM Resource  A phenomenal site with lessons for K-12 in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math as well as professional development for teachers.
Planting T’s  A website dedicated to promoting design thinking in K-12 education.
SF MoMA Teacher Resources  This section of the San Francisco MoMA site for teachers is a goldmine of articles you can select and read with students, video interviews, project ideas and an entire section dedicated to STEAM.
STEAM Education Lessons  Provide several high-quality STEAM lessons that you can browse through.The STEAM Academy is a terrific site for advocating and sharing authentic STEAM projects and efforts.
STEAM Starters: Tinkering for Early Learners  A new collection of online learning modules offering starting points, practical resources, and reflection tools to introduce tinkering into your early childhood classroom or care setting. Explore lessons by subject.
Teach Engineering  The engineering design process emphasizes open-ended problem-solving and encourages students to learn from failure. This process nurtures students’ abilities to create innovative solutions to challenges in any subject! Fully aligned to engineering and STEM standards.  
Teachers Pay Teachers  for design thinking worksheets and find art lessons here.
We are Teachers 10 Innovative Projects that Take Learning from STEM to STEAM
Working in Scratch: Putting STEAM into Cross-Curricular Collaboration   A prezi that gives practical applications for using the computer program SCRATCH in the arts classrooms.
Virtual Field Trips and Tours
British Natural History Museum  Virtual Museum: 14 ways to explore from home
Canadian Farm Food Virtual Tours  Learn how things are made and how animals are raised.
Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips  Promising amazing places and remarkable experiences, Discovery Education has many different cost-free tours available.
Great Lakes Virtual Field Trip  Learn about the science, diversity, and ecology of these large freshwater lakes.
Hall of North American Mammals (Grades 3-5)  Explore habitat dioramas to learn how animals must be adapted to an environment in order to survive in it.
Inside STIRLING CASTLE walking tour  Join us for a stroll through Scottish history, inside the incredible walls of Stirling Castle! (YouTube)
Royal Tyrrell Museum Park  Visit Canada’s only museum dedicated exclusively to the study of ancient life from home.
Slime in Space  This video field trip shows how slime acts in space. Watch astronauts play ping pong with it!
Smithsonian: National Museum of Natural History  Virtual Tours

Stirling Castle - Scotland 4K Virtual Walking Tour

See Scotland's Sterling Sastle Museum. (YouTube)
The Butterfly Conservatory (Grades K-2)  Observe butterflies and compare their patterns.
The National Aquarium  Explore one of the best aquariums in the country in this interactive self-guided tour.

The Perfect Walk
See historic sites, museums and more with me as I explore different places around the world. (YouTube)
Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China Virtually explore the great wall of China. 

External Free Resources Gr. 6-9

Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies: Design Thinking and Making
Code.org Hundreds of computer science activities and tutorials.
CodeCombat CodeCombat is a knight and dungeon adventure-based game that allows teens to master “the lost magic of programming” to save their world. JavaScript, Python, coding fundamentals, critical thinking.
CS First A  free computer science curriculum that makes coding easy to teach and fun to learn.
Curiosity Machine Kids engage in design challenges across various subject areas.
Design Squad Global Students compete to create the most novel solutions to engineering challenges. Includes games, lesson plans, and video demonstrations of the brainstorming and prototyping processes that go into the design.
Google Applied Digital Skills Practical lessons teach critical computer skills.
Instructables Learning how to make anything is easy, one step at a time. From the stovetop to the workshop, you will surely be inspired by the awesome projects shared daily.
Kano Code & Make Art The Kano app empowers anyone to make, learn, and play with technology. Learn to code art, games, music, and more.
Makers Empire A  3D design tool enabling students to create, download, and print original or community-based objects. Download for iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, Windows and Chromebook.
OK Go Sandbox Creative music video-inspired STEAM design challenges.
Scratch A creative coding platform that allows children of all ages to code, share, and remix their own stories, games, and animations.
Spark 101 STEM video challenges that engage students in real-world problem-solving.
Swift Playgrounds

Swift Playgrounds is geared towards kids who want to get started creating iOS APPS (MAC & iPad)

The Tech at Home STEM and Design Challenge activities for K-12 learners.
Technovation Girls Curriculum A hands-on coding and entrepreneurship curriculum for teams of teens to develop a mobile app to address a real-world problem in their communities.
Tinkercad A  tool that supports design thinking and maker education. Tinkercad offers three different workspaces where students can design: 3D Design, Codeblocks, and Circuits.
Arts Education
8notes.com

Sheet music and resources for musicians, including tuners, chord charts, and lessons.

Blob Opera Create your own opera-inspired song with Blob Opera; no music skills are required!
Flat User-friendly music composition software that gives you all the tools you need to make your own sheet music. You can write, listen, share and discover music scores.
Institute for Arts Integration Arts-integrated online learning experiences for students that include videos and lesson plans
Google Arts & Culture

An excellent curation of art and culture and interactive activities that invite exploration.

National Gallery of Art

From Byzantine altarpieces to pop art, learn about the collection’s paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, photographs, and other works.  

PBS Learning Media- Arts

Resources, videos, and interactive lessons in dance, music, theatre, and visual arts.

TedEd Visual Arts Instructional videos with comprehension questions, additional resources, and guided discussion questions.
Yo Kidz  YouTube channel featuring dozens of drawing tutorials.
Bible/Chrstian Studies
Elevate Kids Kid-friendly, age-appropriate, and Bible-based videos to show your child how to become the leader that God designed him or her to be.
Kids Corner Audio adventures, Bible stories and activities for kids
Kids of Integrity Downloadable lesson plans that help parents instill Christ-honouring character traits in their kids.
Kids World Online easy-to-read Bible lessons.
Mini Bible Lessons Short, self-guided lessons on topics of interest to teens
Open Network Engaging video dramas and Bible-based topics complete with leader guides and activities.
SundaySchoolZone.com FREE printable children’s Bible activities for use with kids at home, church, and school, as well as resources for teaching children the Bible.
Unlocked A daily audio devotional for teens.
VEGGIE TALES Christian lessions and Bible stories from beloved veggie friends. God made you special, and He loves you very much!
Career Education
EngineerGirl Information and tools that encourage girls to explore engineering.
EVERFI

Standards-aligned, research-based digital lessons to teach students to thrive in an ever-changing world.

Thrively

Guides students through a student-centred journey to discover their strengths, increase their self-awareness, set goals and track progress, build skills, and learn real-world problem-solving

Read to Lead Award-winning learning games teach literacy and leadership in an immersive virtual workplace. Students are the boss, make big decisions, and gain critical skills along the way!
SignalHill

Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students

Communication & Collaboration
Lino

A sticky-note tool to organize and collect information and can be shared with parents and teachers

Screencastify

Empowering students to demonstrate and share their learning

Seesaw Students share their learning with others through digital portfolios
Wakelet Save, organize, and share any content from across the web
Computer Science
Code.org Hundreds of computer science activities and tutorials
Codeable Crafts Animate stories with accessible drawing tools and coding blocks
CS First Makes coding easy to teach and fun to use
Scratch Code, share, and remix stories, games, and animations
Digital Literacy and Wellness
Be Internet Awesome To make the most of the Internet, kids need to be prepared to make smart decisions. Be Internet Awesome empowers kids with tools and education to confidently and safely explore, grow, and play online.
Protect Kids Online ProtectKidsOnline.ca is designed to assist parents/guardians in protecting their children on the Internet and reducing their risk of victimization.
Common Sense Media  All students need digital citizenship skills to participate fully in their communities and make smart choices online and in life. Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship.
Media Smarts MediaSmarts has been developing digital media literacy programs and resources for Canadian homes, schools and communities since 1996. Our work falls into three main areas: education, public awareness, and research and policy.
LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD A Guide for Students, Schools and Families - LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD
Well Being BC

Well-Being BC was created for all schools, as part of a school-based

mental health initiative to support three pillars of Well-Being: SOCIAL EMOTIONAL
LEARNING. MENTAL HEALTH LITERACY. TRAUMA-INFORMED APPROACHES.

English Language Arts
826 Digital Resources to ignite a love of writing. Browse, enjoy, and apply various teaching tools and student writing examples.
Bartleby Literature guides for classic novels and some other free resources.
LitCharts A literary resource of over 1600 study guides and teaching materials for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, literary devices, Shakespeare, and more. Most of the content is free and accessible to all.
myShakespeare  Media-rich, full-text editions of Shakespeare’s plays with interactive content and study tools.
National Novel Writing Month A fun, empowering approach to creative writing. The challenge: draft an entire novel in just one month.
Poets.org Hundreds of essays and interviews, audio clips, biographies of more than 500 poets and over 2000 poems. 
Poetry Writing Analysis Guide In-depth overview organized into topics, each with its own summaries, helpful links for further study and key terms. 
Quill Free tools to make your students better writers. Quill provides elementary, middle, and high school students with free writing and grammar activities.
Read to Lead Award-winning learning games teach literacy and leadership in an immersive virtual workplace. Students are the boss, make big decisions, and gain critical skills along the way!
ReadWorks 1000’s of nonfiction & fiction differentiated reading passages with curriculum and supports designed to improve comprehension.
Scrible Edu A robust research & writing platform. Google & Microsoft integrated. Students curate, annotate, cite, organize & collaborate on articles.
Storybird A social storytelling site that helps kids create and publish storybooks; boosts writing skills with 700+ challenges.
Whooo’s Reading A reading website with a clear mission: to help students think more critically about whatever they read through open-ended rather than multiple-choice reading quizzes.
Indigenous Education
Canada’s Original Place Names Indigenous Peoples named many places in present-day Canada. Before the arrival of Europeans, Indigenous Peoples gave names to the land to identify places they knew and with which they had strong spiritual connections. Discover Canada’s original place names and their Indigenous origins.
Great Bear Sea Environmental Science lesson plans K-12
How to talk about Indigenous people Ever wonder how to use the proper terms when referring to Indigenous Peoples?  Inuk journalist Ossie Michelin has a friendly how-to guide.
Indigenous Education Resource Inventory Incorporate Indigenous knowledge and perspectives into B.C. classrooms. The inventory includes guides, books e-books, articles, websites, videos, and other materials. 
Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada

Four books: Truth and Reconciliation, First Nations, Inuit, Metis

Mathematics
Banzai An award-winning financial education program that helps your students budget wisely. Money management is taught in three interactive courses, each including tests, quizzes and an interactive library.
Didax Virtual manipulatives and downloadable activities for PreK – Grade 12.
GeoGebra

Dynamic mathematics software with an easy-to-use interface that combines geometry, algebra, spreadsheets, graphing, statistics and calculus in one easy-to-use package.

Khan Academy Provides interactive lessons and instructional videos; students practice at their own pace, first filling in gaps in their understanding and then accelerating their learning.
Legends of Learning

Kids will love the educational games on the platform, and parents will love the data that comes out as they automatically progress.

MasterMath

Middle School Online Math (Free Video Math Lessons, Worksheets and Quizzes)

MathAntics FREE math videos and additional subscription-based content!
MathGames Online math games, quiz questions and skills practice.
Mathigon

An online textbook for middle and high school mathematics. The unique content format makes learning interactive, and a virtual tutor gives personalized help.

Math Playground! Math games (Listings for K-Gr.6)
Math Snacks Educational animations, games, and interactive tools that help learners understand math concepts.
The Get It Guide Math resource for middle school students.The student or parent simply has to identify the topic they are working on from the textbook and find the matching tutorial, video or worksheet from the math topics tab on the website.
Virtual Nerd Real math help. Over 1,500 video lessons covering Middle Grades Math through Algebra 2.
XtraMath

A math facts fluency program that helps students master addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts.

Multi-Subject
Actively Learn A digital reading platform for students on various topics; includes illustrations, driving questions and comprehension questions to keep students engaged.
Arca Discover BC’s Digital Treasures
CK-12 Free Math, Science, Social Studies, English and more courses for grades 1-12.
Easy Peasy All-In-One Homeschool A free online Christian homeschool curriculum.
Esri GeoInquiries Interactive maps make learning come alive in mainstream subjects—like environmental science, math, history, and literature—and beyond.
Games for Change A website of curated digital and offline games resources that invite students to engage with contemporary social justice issues.
Khan Academy Interactive lessons and instructional videos; students practice at their own pace, first filling in gaps in their understanding and then accelerating their learning.
Learning Hero Roadmap  An interactive guide with videos/tools to help parents support grade-level math, reading, and social-emotional development.
Newsela Great nonfiction articles with five options for levelled reading.
NOVA Compelling videos, simulations, teacher guides, and other activities.
PBS LearningMedia  PreK-12 digital media service. Search and browse thousands of learning materials to enrich instruction, including videos, interactive lesson plans, media galleries, and more.
Quarto Classroom

A free video library on YouTube of Quarto’s creators using their books as teaching tools in educational spaces.

Smithsonian Learning Lab An interactive platform for discovering millions of authentic digital resources, creating content with online tools, and sharing in the Smithsonian’s expansive community of knowledge and learning.
Smithsonian: TweenTribune & TT Junior A trustworthy tween news site searchable by grade, topic, and Lexile level for Grades K – 12.
TED-Ed Supports kids’ sense of wonder with outstanding short video lessons
The Archievery A free and safe online learning platform created by AT&T to provide K-12 students with engaging and entertaining videos paired with educational activities. English language arts, social-emotional learning, technology and engineering, digital arts, math, science, and digital literacy
Wonderopolis Each text has vocabulary practice, a comprehension quiz, and activities for further learning. The Immersive Reader tool increases text accessibility with read-aloud, picture dictionary, translation, and more.
YouTube Learning Playlists and channels organized by subject area.
Physical and Health Education
KidsHealth Easy-to-follow articles, slideshows, videos, and health tools designed to help kids and teens learn, grow, and be their best.
PBS Learning Media’s Health & PE Resources that provide essential lessons on physical, mental, and emotional health.
TED-Ed Useful instructional videos with comprehension questions, additional resources, and guided discussion questions for Physical Fitness and Health.
Science
100 Fun Science Experiments / Fair Projects Amazing collection of science experiments and science fair projects that you can try with your kids and students at home or school.
Alchemie’s Animator An app which allows users to build and share molecular animations to understand chemical concepts.  Look for other apps by Alchemie Solutions, Inc. on Google Play and the App Store.
Google Earth  Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
High-Adventure Science Each module includes interactive computer-based systems, models and real-world data on unanswered questions scientists face today. Students explore evidence and discuss the issues of certainty and uncertainty, with the models and data.
HMXEarthScience A collection of the best resources available to help teachers and students explore, learn, and review the scientific fields of astronomy, meteorology, and geology.
Learn Genetics Multimedia tools to teach and understand complex biology topics.
Legends of Learning Provides an engaging educational experience for at-home learning. Kids will love the educational games on the platform. The data is generated automatically with progress.
Nasa - STEM@Home Videos, interactive multimedia, hands-on activities and more categorized by grade range.
National Geographic Education A top geography resource site providing global exploration opportunities.
NOVA Labs A digital platform that engages teens and lifelong learners in games and interactives that foster authentic scientific exploration. Conduct investigations by visualizing, analyzing, and sharing the same data that scientists use.
Ocean School By the National Film Board of Canada. It’s bilingual, free and has Aboriginal content! A YouTube channel and an app on iOS. It uses video, virtual reality, interactive and 360-degree video, augmented reality, newsreels, toolkits and assessments.
PhET Interactive Simulations Provides fun, free, interactive, research-based science and mathematics simulations.
Science Buddies K-12 STEM resources, including 160+ hands-on STEM activities and videos. Our activities cover different STEM concepts, can be done in an hour or less, and use materials easily found at home.
Smithsonian Science Education Center Curriculum & resources searchable by type, grade and topic.
STEM Resource Finder Engage your students with scientifically accurate virtual labs and hands-on digital tools. Make the invisible visible and explorable to bring out the inner scientist in everyone.
Xplorlabs An educational platform designed to encourage students to “solve through science.” Includes interactive videos, instructional experiences, hands-on activities and creative challenges.
Second Language
The ASL App  Learn American Sign Language right from your phone.
ASL Kids  ASL learning app for Beginners & Kids.
Boukili  Help your students and children love reading in French.
Duolingo  A science-based language education platform that has organically become the most popular way to learn languages online.
Fingerspelling  Learn the ABCs in ASL with machine learning.
Games for Language Online learning courses & games for a variety of languages.
HandsOnASL  Learn to fingerspell with sign language.
OnlineFreeSpanish  Dozens of games, colouring pages, and interactive activities by level can be accessed anytime on tablets or desktops.
Sign School Learn American Sign Language
Social Studies
Ancient History Encyclopedia A vast collection of interesting articles and a Media Library with 12,360 images, videos, and 3D models.
Canada’s History Lesson plans that are searchable by grade level, and more.
Canada’s Museum of History  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canada’s War Museum  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canadian Museum For Human Rights  Join our guides on video tours of the Museum’s galleries and architecture. Check out Museum exhibits and stories about human rights defenders and history. Discover our many special online experiences.
Chronas: Enter History Chronas is a history map application with over 50 million data points showing world history as it ecolves through time. 
Digital Public Library of America An organized digital library features useful primary resources, including Canadian documents.
DocsTeach

Access to thousands of primary sources — letters, photographs, speeches, posters, maps, videos, and other document types; includes ready-to-use document-based activities.

EDSITEment

An extensive humanities resource offering a deep well of great content with lesson plans, teacher’s guides and student activities.

Google Arts & Culture An excellent curation of art and culture and interactive activities inviting exploration.
Google Earth  Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
Historica Canada  Programs you can use to explore, learn and reflect on our history and what it means to be Canadian
Learn About Parliament Take a virtual tour, learn how Parliament works, and access instructional resources to help teach this topic. Links to other information on the Senate, House of Commons, etc., can also be found on this site.
National Geographic Education

A top geography resource site providing global exploration opportunities.


Our Country, Our Parliament Learn about the Canadian Parliament through a downloadable book and interactive resources.
Parliament: An Overview  Learn about the Parliament of Canada
Smithsonian’s History Explorer  Lessons, activities, interactives, engaging media and more. Resources can be filtered by grade range, resource type, historical era and cross-curricular connections.
Settera More than 400 free map quiz games in 39 languages
Teachers Zone Canadian History In Your Classroom
Time for Kids  A digital news magazine for kids with age-appropriate stories kids are excited about and information just for kids that explains the world around them.
Touchable Earth  Experience the world in the first person and access 25 communities worldwide.
STEAM
100+ STEM and STEAM Resources Livebinder  has a variety of tools, videos and resources for you to browse.
Design Squad Global  Interactive learning fun. 
Engineer Girl Engineer Girl shares positive role models and what they do. 
Get Caught Engineering STEM for Kids
Going from STEM to STEAM A prezi sharing STEAM creatively.
Government of Canada lesson Plans  STEAM resources
How to Smile  A site that houses wonderful math and science activities.
Let’s Talk Science STEAM at Home
NASA Middle grades STEM lesson plans  Free webinars for students!
PBS STEM Resource  A phenomenal site with lessons for K-12 in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math as well as professional development for teachers.
Planting T’s  A website dedicated to promoting design thinking in K-12 education.
SF MoMA Teacher Resources  This section of the San Francisco MoMA site for teachers is a goldmine of articles you can select and read with students, video interviews, project ideas and an entire section dedicated to STEAM.
STEAM Education Lessons  Provide several high-quality STEAM lessons that you can browse through.The STEAM Academy is a terrific site for advocating and sharing authentic STEAM projects and efforts.
Teach Engineering  The engineering design process emphasizes open-ended problem-solving and encourages students to learn from failure. This process nurtures students’ abilities to create innovative solutions to challenges in any subject! Fully aligned to engineering and STEM standards.  
Teachers Pay Teachers  for design thinking worksheets and find art lessons here.
We are Teachers 10 Innovative Projects that Take Learning from STEM to STEAM
Working in Scratch: Putting STEAM into Cross-Curricular Collaboration   A prezi that gives practical applications for using the computer program SCRATCH in the arts classrooms.
Virtual Field Trips & Tours
Parliament: The Virtual Experience Virtual tour of the Parliment of Canada
British Natural History Museum  Virtual Museum: 14 ways to explore from home
Canadian Farm Food Virtual Tours  Learn how things are made and how animals are raised.
Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips  Promising amazing places and remarkable experiences, Discovery Education has many different cost-free tours available.
Ellis Island National Monument Tour Virtually explore Ellis Island.
Great Lakes Virtual Field Trip  Learn about the science, diversity, and ecology of these large freshwater lakes.
Hall of Planet Earth (Grades 6-8)

Explore how plate tectonics explains specific Earth formations.

Inside STIRLING CASTLE walking tour  Join us for a stroll through Scottish history, inside the incredible walls of Stirling Castle! (YouTube)
Lincoln Memorial

Tour the memorial to this highly regarded President who presided during the Civil War.

London National Gallery

The Virtual Gallery - Wherever you are in the world, you can experience the Gallery

Natural History Museum 

13 ways to explore from home
Delve into the Museum from home with a virtual self-guided tour of the galleries, an interactive experience about Hope the blue whale and audio guides narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Royal Tyrrell Museum Park  Visit Canada’s only museum dedicated exclusively to the study of ancient life from home.
Slime in Space  This video field trip shows how slime acts in space. Watch astronauts play ping pong with it!
Smithsonian: National Museum of Natural History  Virtual Tours

Stirling Castle - Scotland 4K Virtual Walking Tour

See Scotland's Sterling Sastle Museum. (YouTube)
The National Aquarium  Explore one of the best aquariums in the country in this interactive self-guided tour.

The Perfect Walk
See historic sites, museums and more with me as I explore different places around the world. (YouTube)
The Sistine Chapel Leonardo Da Vinci’s masterpiece cannot be photographed, but you may take a virtual tour here.
The Giant’s Causeway Virtual Tour

A unique rock formation found in Ireland. This 360° experience is controlled by you.

The Largest Cave in the World

A wondrous cave in Vietnam that includes almost anything you can imagine!

The Manhattan Project Field Trip

WWII Atomic Bombs: Learn about how the most powerful weapon in the world was made and the history behind it.

The United States Constitution Museum Learn about what is considered the most important document the USA has ever written.
Virtual Planetarium View the night sky from a planetarium and learn about the stars, constellations, planets and more.
Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China Virtually explore the great wall of China. 

External Free Resources Gr. 10-12

Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies: Design Thinking and Making
Autodesk Design Academy Professional online STEM courses.  Learn the skills you need to succeed tomorrow.
Fortnite Creative: Unreal Engine Create a private island and build game creations tool and Twinmotion free visualization software.
Google Applied Digital Skills Practical lessons teach critical computer skills.
Instructables  Makes it easy to learn how to make anything, one step at a time.
mBlock5.0 A block-based coding platform based on Scratch and Python. It supports Makeblock robotics,  Arduino, micro:bit, etc.
Mouse Open Projects

Creative STEM, computer science and technology activities for students in grades 5-12.

Roblox Education

Online tutorials and lesson plans teaching coding, design thinking and entrepreneurship. Our Team Create feature allows students to remotely collaborate on projects together.

RoboBlockly

An online environment for learning math, coding, robotics, and Arduino, with over 1000 learning activities for a range of student levels, using both virtual and hardware robots.

Scratch A creative coding platform that allows children of all ages to code, share, and remix their own stories, games, and animations.
The Tech at Home STEM and Design Challenge activities for K-12 learners.
Technovation Girls Curriculum A hands-on coding and entrepreneurship curriculum for teams of teens to develop a mobile app to address a real-world problem in their communities.
Tinkercad A  tool that supports design thinking and maker education. Tinkercad offers three different workspaces where students can design: 3D Design, Codeblocks, and Circuits.
Arts Education
8notes.com

Sheet music and resources for musicians, including tuners, chord charts, and lessons.

Blob Opera Create your own opera-inspired song with Blob Opera; no music skills are required!
Flat User-friendly music composition software that gives you all the tools you need to make your own sheet music. You can write, listen, share and discover music scores.
Institute for Arts Integration Arts-integrated online learning experiences for students that include videos and lesson plans
Google Arts & Culture

An excellent curation of art and culture and interactive activities that invite exploration.

National Gallery of Art

From Byzantine altarpieces to pop art, learn about the collection’s paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, photographs, and other works.  

PBS Learning Media- Arts

Resources, videos, and interactive lessons in dance, music, theatre, and visual arts.

TedEd Visual Arts Instructional videos with comprehension questions, additional resources, and guided discussion questions.
Bible/Christian Studies
Mini Bible Lessons Short, self-guided lessons on topics of interest to teens
Open Network Engaging video dramas and Bible-based topics complete with leader guides and activities.
Unlocked A daily audio devotional for teens.
Career Education
DegreeHub

Find the right university and major for you, powered by AI. Take the free 10-minute quiz to unlock your custom recommendations.

EngineerGirl Information and tools that encourage girls to explore engineering.
EVERFI

Standards-aligned, research-based digital lessons to teach students to thrive in an ever-changing world.

SignalHill

Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students

Thrively

Guides students through a student-centred journey to discover their strengths, increase their self-awareness, set goals and track progress, build skills, and learn real-world problem-solving

Communication & Collaboration
Lino

A sticky-note tool to organize and collect information and can be shared with parents and teachers

Screencastify

Empowering students to demonstrate and share their learning

Seesaw Students share their learning with others through digital portfolios
Wakelet Save, organize, and share any content from across the web
Computer Science
Code.org Hundreds of computer science activities and tutorials
Codeable Crafts Animate stories with accessible drawing tools and coding blocks
CS First Makes coding easy to teach and fun to use
Scratch Code, share, and remix stories, games, and animations
Digital Literacy and Wellness
Be Internet Awesome To make the most of the Internet, kids need to be prepared to make smart decisions. Be Internet Awesome empowers kids with tools and education to confidently and safely explore, grow, and play online.
Common Sense Media  All students need digital citizenship skills to participate fully in their communities and make smart choices online and in life. Everything You Need to Teach Digital Citizenship.
LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD A Guide for Students, Schools and Families - LIVING WELL IN A DIGITAL WORLD
Media Smarts MediaSmarts has been developing digital media literacy programs and resources for Canadian homes, schools and communities since 1996. Our work falls into three main areas: education, public awareness, and research and policy.
Protect Kids Online ProtectKidsOnline.ca is designed to assist parents/guardians in protecting their children on the Internet and reducing their risk of victimization.
Well Being BC

Well-Being BC was created for all schools, as part of a school-based

mental health initiative to support three pillars of Well-Being: SOCIAL EMOTIONAL
LEARNING. MENTAL HEALTH LITERACY. TRAUMA-INFORMED APPROACHES.

English Language Arts
826 Digital  A Good Time to Write: Remote Learning Kit Engage young writers of any age at home with this collection of 826 Digital writing prompts and activities.
Lit Guides by bartleby Offers literature guides for classic novels and some other free resources.
LitCharts A literary resource of over 1600 study guides and teaching materials for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, literary devices, Shakespeare, and more. Most of the content is free and accessible to all.

myShakespeare

Media-rich, full-text editions of Shakespeare’s plays with interactive content and study tools.
National Novel Writing Month A fun, empowering approach to creative writing. The challenge: draft an entire novel in just one month.
Natural Reader A professional text to speech program that converts any written text into spoken words.
Poets.org Hundreds of essays and interviews, audio clips, biographies of more than 500 poets and over 2000 poems. 
Poetry Writing Analysis Guide In-depth overview organized into topics, each with its own summaries, helpful links for further study and key terms. 
Quill Free tools to make your students better writers. Quill provides elementary, middle, and high school students with free writing and grammar activities.
ReadWorks 1000’s of nonfiction & fiction differentiated reading passages with curriculum and supports designed to improve comprehension.
Scrible Edu A robust research & writing platform. Google & Microsoft integrated. Students curate, annotate, cite, organize & collaborate on articles.
Storybird A social storytelling site that helps kids create and publish storybooks; boosts writing skills with 700+ challenges.
Indigenous Education
Canada’s Original Place Names Indigenous Peoples named many places in present-day Canada.
Great Bear Sea

Environmental Science lesson plans K-12. 

Indigenous Education Resource Inventory

Resources from the BC Ministry of Education.

Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada  Four books: Truth and Reconciliation, First Nations, Inuit, Metis
Indigenous Voices  How to Talk about Indigenous People, a video.
SignalHill Life-building teaching tools to help you inspire and equip your K-12 students
Mathematics
Didax Virtual manipulatives and downloadable activities for PreK – Grade 12.
GeoGebra

Dynamic mathematics software with an easy-to-use interface that combines geometry, algebra, spreadsheets, graphing, statistics and calculus in one easy-to-use package.

Khan Academy Provides interactive lessons and instructional videos; students practice at their own pace, first filling in gaps in their understanding and then accelerating their learning.
MasterMath

Middle School Online Math (Free Video Math Lessons, Worksheets and Quizzes)

Mathigon An online textbook for middle and high school mathematics. The unique content format makes learning interactive, and a virtual tutor gives personalized help.
PBS Learning Media Mathematics

Interactive games, animations and engaging media resources.

Virtual Nerd: Real Math Help

Over 1,500 video lessons covering Middle Grades Math through Algebra 2.

Multi-Subject
Actively Learn A digital reading platform for students on various topics; includes illustrations, driving questions and comprehension questions to keep students engaged.
Arca Discover BC’s Digital Treasures
CK-12 Free Math, Science, Social Studies, English and more courses for grades 1-12.
Easy Peasy All-In-One Homeschool A free online Christian homeschool curriculum.
Esri GeoInquiries Interactive maps make learning come alive in mainstream subjects—like environmental science, math, history, and literature—and beyond.
Games for Change A website of curated digital and offline games resources that invite students to engage with contemporary social justice issues.
Khan Academy Interactive lessons and instructional videos; students practice at their own pace, first filling in gaps in their understanding and then accelerating their learning.
Learning Hero Roadmap  An interactive guide with videos/tools to help parents support grade-level math, reading, and social-emotional development.
Newsela Great nonfiction articles with five options for levelled reading.
NOVA Compelling videos, simulations, teacher guides, and other activities.
PBS LearningMedia  PreK-12 digital media service. Search and browse thousands of learning materials to enrich instruction, including videos, interactive lesson plans, media galleries, and more.
Quarto Classroom

A free video library on YouTube of Quarto’s creators using their books as teaching tools in educational spaces.

Smithsonian Learning Lab An interactive platform for discovering millions of authentic digital resources, creating content with online tools, and sharing in the Smithsonian’s expansive community of knowledge and learning.
Smithsonian: TweenTribune & TT Junior A trustworthy tween news site searchable by grade, topic, and Lexile level for Grades K – 12.
The Archievery A free and safe online learning platform created by AT&T to provide K-12 students with engaging and entertaining videos paired with educational activities. English language arts, social-emotional learning, technology and engineering, digital arts, math, science, and digital literacy
TED-Ed Supports kids’ sense of wonder with outstanding short video lessons
Wonderopolis Each text has vocabulary practice, a comprehension quiz, and activities for further learning. The Immersive Reader tool increases text accessibility with read-aloud, picture dictionary, translation, and more.
YouTube Learning Playlists and channels organized by subject area.
Physical and Health Education
KidsHealth Easy-to-follow articles, slideshows, videos, and health tools designed to help kids and teens learn, grow, and be their best.
PBS Learning Media’s Health & PE Resources that provide essential lessons on physical, mental, and emotional health.
TED-Ed Useful instructional videos with comprehension questions, additional resources, and guided discussion questions for Physical Fitness and Health.
Science
100 Fun Science Experiments / Fair Projects Amazing collection of science experiments and science fair projects that you can try with your kids and students at home or school.
Alchemie’s Animator An app which allows users to build and share molecular animations to understand chemical concepts.  Look for other apps by Alchemie Solutions, Inc. on Google Play and the App Store.
Google Earth Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
High-Adventure Science Each module includes interactive computer-based systems, models and real-world data on unanswered questions scientists face today. Students explore evidence and discuss the issues of certainty and uncertainty, with the models and data.
HMXEarthScience A collection of the best resources available to help teachers and students explore, learn, and review the scientific fields of astronomy, meteorology, and geology.
Learn Genetics Multimedia tools to teach and understand complex biology topics.
Legends of Learning Provides an engaging educational experience for at-home learning. Kids will love the educational games on the platform. The data is generated automatically with progress.
Nasa - STEM@Home Videos, interactive multimedia, hands-on activities and more categorized by grade range.
National Geographic Education A top geography resource site providing global exploration opportunities.
NOVA Labs A digital platform that engages teens and lifelong learners in games and interactives that foster authentic scientific exploration. Conduct investigations by visualizing, analyzing, and sharing the same data that scientists use.
Ocean School By the National Film Board of Canada. It’s bilingual, free and has Aboriginal content! A YouTube channel and an app on iOS. It uses video, virtual reality, interactive and 360-degree video, augmented reality, newsreels, toolkits and assessments.
PhET Interactive Simulations Provides fun, free, interactive, research-based science and mathematics simulations.
Science Buddies K-12 STEM resources, including 160+ hands-on STEM activities and videos. Our activities cover different STEM concepts, can be done in an hour or less, and use materials easily found at home.
Smithsonian Science Education Center Curriculum & resources searchable by type, grade and topic.
STEM Resource Finder Engage your students with scientifically accurate virtual labs and hands-on digital tools. Make the invisible visible and explorable to bring out the inner scientist in everyone.
Xplorlabs An educational platform designed to encourage students to “solve through science.” Includes interactive videos, instructional experiences, hands-on activities and creative challenges.
Second Language
The ASL App  Learn American Sign Language right from your phone.
ASL Kids  ASL learning app for Beginners & Kids.
Boukili  Help your students and children love reading in French.
Duolingo  A science-based language education platform that has organically become the most popular way to learn languages online.
Fingerspelling  Learn the ABCs in ASL with machine learning.
Games for Language Online learning courses & games for a variety of languages.
HandsOnASL  Learn to fingerspell with sign language.
OnlineFreeSpanish  Dozens of games, colouring pages, and interactive activities by level can be accessed anytime on tablets or desktops.
Sign School Learn American Sign Language
Social Studies
Ancient History Encyclopedia A vast collection of interesting articles and a Media Library with 12,360 images, videos, and 3D models.
Canada’s History Lesson plans that are searchable by grade level, and more.
Canada’s Museum of History  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canada’s War Museum  Videos, activities and online resources.
Canadian Museum For Human Rights  Join our guides on video tours of the Museum’s galleries and architecture. Check out Museum exhibits and stories about human rights defenders and history. Discover our many special online experiences.
Chronas: Enter History Chronas is a history map application with over 50 million data points showing world history as it ecolves through time. 
Digital Public Library of America An organized digital library features useful primary resources, including Canadian documents.
DocsTeach

Access to thousands of primary sources — letters, photographs, speeches, posters, maps, videos, and other document types; includes ready-to-use document-based activities.

EDSITEment

An extensive humanities resource offering a deep well of great content with lesson plans, teacher’s guides and student activities.

Google Arts & Culture An excellent curation of art and culture and interactive activities inviting exploration.
Google Earth  Search for specific locations or quickly manually manoeuvre across the globe, zooming in to show detail to the level of parked cars and even pedestrians. Many world areas can be viewed in 3D, allowing students to see cities, the countryside, and famous landmarks in three dimensions.
Historica Canada  Programs you can use to explore, learn and reflect on our history and what it means to be Canadian
Learn About Parliament Take a virtual tour, learn how Parliament works, and access instructional resources to help teach this topic. Links to other information on the Senate, House of Commons, etc., can also be found on this site.
National Geographic Education

A top geography resource site providing global exploration opportunities.


Our Country, Our Parliament Learn about the Canadian Parliament through a downloadable book and interactive resources.
Parliament: An Overview  Learn about the Parliament of Canada
Smithsonian’s History Explorer  Lessons, activities, interactives, engaging media and more. Resources can be filtered by grade range, resource type, historical era and cross-curricular connections.
Teachers Zone Canadian History In Your Classroom
Touchable Earth  Experience the world in the first person and access 25 communities worldwide.
Settera More than 400 free map quiz games in 39 languages
World History Encyclopedia A vast collection of interesting articles and a Media Library with 12,360 images, videos, and 3D models.
World101 From the Council on Foreign Relations, World1010 offers a growing library of multimedia resources that explain international affairs and foreign policy issues for students through entertaining and interactive storytelling.
STEAM
100+ STEM and STEAM Resources Livebinder  has a variety of tools, videos and resources for you to browse.
Design Squad Global  Interactive learning fun. 
Going from STEM to STEAM A prezi sharing STEAM creatively.
Government of Canada lesson Plans  STEAM resources
How to Smile  A site that houses wonderful math and science activities.
Let’s Talk Science STEAM at Home
NASA Middle grades STEM lesson plans  Free webinars for students!
PBS STEM Resource  A phenomenal site with lessons for K-12 in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math as well as professional development for teachers.
Planting T’s  A website dedicated to promoting design thinking in K-12 education.
SF MoMA Teacher Resources  This section of the San Francisco MoMA site for teachers is a goldmine of articles you can select and read with students, video interviews, project ideas and an entire section dedicated to STEAM.
STEAM Education Lessons  Provide several high-quality STEAM lessons that you can browse through.The STEAM Academy is a terrific site for advocating and sharing authentic STEAM projects and efforts.
Teach Engineering  The engineering design process emphasizes open-ended problem-solving and encourages students to learn from failure. This process nurtures students’ abilities to create innovative solutions to challenges in any subject! Fully aligned to engineering and STEM standards.  
Teachers Pay Teachers  for design thinking worksheets and find art lessons here.
We are Teachers 10 Innovative Projects that Take Learning from STEM to STEAM
Working in Scratch: Putting STEAM into Cross-Curricular Collaboration   A prezi that gives practical applications for using the computer program SCRATCH in the arts classrooms.
Virtual Field Trips & Tours
British Natural History Museum  Virtual Museum: 14 ways to explore from home
Canadian Farm Food Virtual Tours  Learn how things are made and how animals are raised.
Discovery Education Virtual Field Trips  Promising amazing places and remarkable experiences, Discovery Education has many different cost-free tours available.
Ellis Island National Monument Tour Virtually explore Ellis Island.
Great Lakes Virtual Field Trip  Learn about the science, diversity, and ecology of these large freshwater lakes.
Hall of Planet Earth (Grades 6-8)

Explore how plate tectonics explains specific Earth formations.

Inside STIRLING CASTLE walking tour  Join us for a stroll through Scottish history, inside the incredible walls of Stirling Castle! (YouTube)
Lincoln Memorial

Tour the memorial to this highly regarded President who presided during the Civil War.

London National Gallery

The Virtual Gallery - Wherever you are in the world, you can experience the Gallery

Natural History Museum 

13 ways to explore from home
Delve into the Museum from home with a virtual self-guided tour of the galleries, an interactive experience about Hope the blue whale and audio guides narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

Parliament: The Virtual Experience Virtual tour of the Parliment of Canada
Royal Tyrrell Museum Park  Visit Canada’s only museum dedicated exclusively to the study of ancient life from home.
Slime in Space  This video field trip shows how slime acts in space. Watch astronauts play ping pong with it!

Stirling Castle - Scotland 4K Virtual Walking Tour

See Scotland's Sterling Sastle Museum. (YouTube)
Smithsonian: National Museum of Natural History  Virtual Tours
The Giant’s Causeway Virtual Tour

A unique rock formation found in Ireland. This 360° experience is controlled by you.

The Largest Cave in the World

A wondrous cave in Vietnam that includes almost anything you can imagine!

The Manhattan Project Field Trip

WWII Atomic Bombs: Learn about how the most powerful weapon in the world was made and the history behind it.

The Sistine Chapel Leonardo Da Vinci’s masterpiece cannot be photographed, but you may take a virtual tour here.
The National Aquarium  Explore one of the best aquariums in the country in this interactive self-guided tour.
Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China Virtually explore the great wall of China. 

The Perfect Walk
See historic sites, museums and more with me as I explore different places around the world. (YouTube)
The United States Constitution Museum Learn about what is considered the most important document the USA has ever written.
Virtual Planetarium View the night sky from a planetarium and learn about the stars, constellations, planets and more.

Curriculum Options

Curriculum Correlations

Math

Math Curriculum Comparison Chart

This quick reference chart compares various math curricula regarding instructor involvement, learning style, academic challenge, price, etc.

Math Correlations

Math Supplementation Suggestions Using Subscriptions

If preferred, the information below is also available on one page.

Math Subscription Supplementation Suggestions by Grade

K 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
BC Exambank link link link link link link link link link link
BrainPOP link link link link link link link link link link
Gizmos n/a n/a

n/a

link link link link link link link
Math Multiple Grade Subscription Supplementation Suggestions

Science and Social Studies

Science

Curriculum Correlations Packs

Social Studies

Curriculum Correlations Packs

Diana Waring Romans, Reformers, and Revolutionaries

World Empires, World Missions, World Wars

Curriculum Options

Curriculum Donations

The Learning Commons welcomes donations of gently used curriculum (e.g., no rips or marks on pages) that are not older than 7 years. Novels, DVDs, and CDs are only accepted if they are part of a curriculum package. When we receive curriculum donations, we post them in our Used Bookstore for other families to purchase at a discounted rate.

Please email Library Administrator Shandra Wiebe for more information: swiebe@onlineschool.ca

Search Portal

Instructions on how to access and use the Learning Commons Search Portal.

Search Portal

Getting Started

The Search Portal is the place to access Learning Commons resources such as physical books and kits, eBooks, audiobooks, databases, curricula, hands-on resources, supplemental packs, and inclusive education support materials.

Physical resources are shipped directly to your home if you live outside the Kelowna area (e.g., Lake Country to West Kelowna). 

What is Available to Me?


HCOS Enrolled and Flex

HCOS Registered

Books, eBooks, audiobooks

Digital Unit Study Kits

Inclusive Education General Collection books

Curriculum

Grades 10-12 Extended Loan General Collection Textbooks

Robots

ADST/Steam Resources* 

Supplemental Packs

Inclusive Education Support Material

Individualized Course Extended Loan Textbooks

Susan Barton Material

Microscopes

Physical Unit Study Kits

*ADST/Steam resources include hands-on items such as Keva planks, K’nex, Lego, Coding kits, Snap Circuits and Cubelets.

How to Log In

Parents

Parents use their Encom username and password to access the Search Portal, Sora, and Subscription passwords. To book physical books and curriculum for a student, log in to the Search Portal under your parent account, not the student account.

If you do not know your Encom password, you can reset it here. If you don’t remember your username, it is usually FirstnameLastname. 

Changing your password in Encom will also change your password for the Learning Commons Search Portal, so please keep track of your login information. It takes up to 24 hours for the credentials to update.

Students

Students use their Encom username and password to access Sora eBooks and Subscription passwords. They cannot book physical items from the Search Portal, but they can view them. Bookings must be made on the parent account. If you do not know your Encom password, you can reset it here.

Loan Periods & Shipping

Enrolled Families

Enrolled families receive six free shipments (three round trips) per school year (August 1 to June 18). There is a maximum of 40 items per shipment, including the following limits:

Item Circ Type Loan Limit Loan Period
CD/DVD/CD-Rom 8 13 Week(s)
Curriculum 40 13 Week(s)
Kits 6 13 Week(s)
MakerEd Family 4 13 Week(s)
Mini Kits 2 13 Week(s)
NonFiction/Fiction 40 13 Week(s)
Reader Pen C Pen 2 8 Month(s)
S-KIT 10 13 Week(s)
Inclusive Education 10 13 Week(s)
Inclusive Ed Packs 10 13 Week(s)
Susan Barton 4 8 Month(s)
Textbooks 6 8 Month(s)
Thumb Drive 1 13 Week(s)
Registered Families

Registered families receive four free shipments (two round trips) per school year (August 1 to June 18).There is a maximum of 40 items per shipment. That includes a limit of 8 Audiovisual resources (CDs, CD-Roms, DVDs), and a limit of 6 textbooks.

Fines

Fines are charged for lost or damaged items. Overdue fines are charged for kits. The fine can be paid with student funding or invoiced via PayPal. 

Avoid fines by:

Items borrowed from HCOS should not be shared with other families not registered or enrolled with HCOS. These materials are specifically for HCOS families. You are responsible for the replacement costs of all items signed out under your account, regardless of how they are lost or damaged, except for courier issues.

Search Portal

How to Search

Learn how to search for course materials, extended loan textbooks, maker education, physical unit study kits and more!

This video is a visual walkthrough of using the search features in the Search Portal. You can use the timestamps to navigate to specific topics. Alternatively, if you prefer, there are written instructions with screenshots below the video.

Searching for Resources

You will see how many results were returned once you enter a term in the search bar. Use the “Refine Your Search” options in the left column to limit your results by Material Type, Audience, Author, and Series.

Searching by Topics to find Textbooks, Unit Study Kits and other Resources

Topics are sorted by subject and grade, making it easy to find relevant materials. 

Course materials and Textbooks

Click on the applicable topic.

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Unit Study Kits

These kits can be found in the main Topics list and within each grade level.

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Registered Families can only access the Digital Unit Study Kit Guides online.

Search Portal

Booking Items

This video is a visual walkthrough of how to book items in the Search Portal. You can use the timestamps to navigate to specific topics. Alternatively, if you prefer, there are written instructions with screenshots below the video.

Booking Resources

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You can view due dates, renew, change dates or cancel items online.  Please cancel items if your plans change so other families can use the materials.

Booking Multiple Items for One Date

Add an item to My Lists by clicking the Save to My Lists button. A pop-up will ask you to create a New Favorite Title. Use dates of shipments or subjects as titles. You can search multiple subjects and add resources to your lists by creating different Titles.

Once you have added all the books to your lists, click the My Lists icon in the menu. You will see all of your lists in the left column.

Use the List view icon in the top right corner and book all items for the same date by clicking the “Book Items” button at the top right of the page. If you are in grid view, click the checkboxes for each item you want to book, then click Book Items. Choose a date on the calendar and click Book Items. A pop-up will confirm your bookings.


Viewing Due Dates and Renewing Items

View all of your Bookings for the Year, Cancel or Change Booking Date

Hover over “My Account,” then “My Borrowing,” and then select “Future Booking.” 

future bookings.jpg


In the list view you will see:

  1. The booking loan period with Shipping to and from days,"   
  2. The Cancel button - click to cancel your booking
  3. Edit Booking button - click to change your date

If you are in Grid View, hover over the item record, and the "Cancel" and "Edit" buttons will appear.

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Search Portal

Shipping Procedures

Change of Address 

If you plan to move or have moved, please update your address in Encom and email Kelly Wiebe at kelly.wiebe@onlineschool.ca with the new address so information can be updated.

If you do not update the Learning Commons with a change of address and a shipment is sent to the wrong address, you will be charged for shipping fees and any lost items.

Shipping Outside of Canada

The Learning Commons does not ship physical items outside of Canada due to shipping costs, limitations of loan periods, and higher risk of damaged and lost items. Families who are travelling can access our online resources.

Receiving Packages

Returning Items

If you live outside the courier service area, we will ship by Canada Post and provide prepaid shipping labels for returns.

Arrange a courier pick up or prepaid return by connecting with Kelly Wiebe: 778-721-8309  kelly.wiebe@onlineschool.ca or Jen  jennifer.mcnamara@onlineschool.ca

Please follow all instructions included in your shipment.  Every shipment is different. Proper packaging will reduce damage to books and other items.

Returning Multiple Boxes/Packages

Local Patrons 

Patrons living in Kelowna, Lake Country, and West Kelowna need to pick up their items from the Learning Commons. Since no shipping time is involved, please get in touch with Library Administrator Shandra Wiebe (swiebe@onlineschool.ca) to have items booked for a shorter period. 

Learning Commons Hours and Location


Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Sora is a digital reading platform for families to access eBooks, audiobooks and Read-Along books for education and enjoyment.

Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Intro to SORA Recording

Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Logging In

Step 1: Go to https://soraapp.com/library/heritageca and click on "Heritage Christian Online School."

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Step 2: Click "Sign in using Heritage Christian Online School."

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Step 3: Sign in with your Encom account.

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Sora is also available as an app from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Book Formats

There are three main book formats in Sora: eBooks, audiobooks, and read-along books.

eBooks

eBooks have text and images, but no audio.

View the eBook Reader Tutorial for more information about navigating this type of book in Sora.

Audiobooks

Audiobooks are fully audio files. They have a cover image for the book, but no text or images. The headphones symbol image.png beneath the cover image indicates audiobook availability. 

View the Audiobook Reader Tutorial for more information about navigating this type of book in Sora.

Read-Along Books

Read-along books have text, images, and audio. Some titles will highlight the text as the audio plays. In Sora, read-along books are available in both fiction and non-fiction genres.

Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Profiles & Badges

Users can set up their Sora profile to add personalization and collect badge rewards.

Go to https://soraapp.com/profile. At the top left-hand corner, click "Edit profile" to add your nickname and change your image.


Sora allows students to earn achievement badges as they learn about and use the program. Scroll down to view badges on your profile page.

Badges that have been earned will show a coloured image of the badge. When the badge is earned, there will be a pop-up on the screen showing the badge and congratulating the student. 

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Badges that still need to be earned will tell the badge's name in bold and how to earn the badge beneath the name and the empty badge placeholder. Can you collect them all? 

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Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Assistive Technology

Different fonts and formatting styles are available to meet many reading needs. 

OpenDyslexic

OpenDyslexic is a font created by Abbie Gonzalez and made available for public use. Its goal is to help dyslexic readers overcome some of the most common stumbling blocks. The benefits of using OpenDyslexic include:

There are two steps to turn on OpenDyslexic in your browser or app:

Step 1: Click on the hamburger menu (three lines) to open the dropdown menu.

Step 2: Use the "Dyslexic Font" toggle switch to turn this feature on and off.

High Contrast

High contrast mode reverses the colours of background and texts while adding yellow accents, creating a stark contrast that some users desire. 

There are two steps to turn on High Contrast Mode in your browser or app:

Step 1: Click on the hamburger menu (three lines) to open the dropdown menu.

Step 2: Use the "High Contrast Mode" toggle switch to turn this feature on and off.

Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Changing the Loan Period

The standard load period in Sora is 14 days, however, there are options for 7, 21, and 28 days. Some readers may benefit from longer loan periods for larger projects.

There are four steps to adjust the loan period in your browser or app:


Step 1: Click on the hamburger menu (three lines) to open the dropdown menu.


Step 2: Click on "All Settings."

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Step 3: Click on "Lending Periods."

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Step 4: Adjust the lending periods as desired, then click on "Done."

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Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Adding Public Library Accounts

You can use Sora to access eBooks, audiobooks, and read-along books through HCOS and your local public library.

There are two steps to add your local library to Sora in your browser or app:


Step 1: Click on the hamburger menu (three lines) to open the dropdown menu.


Step 2: Click on the "+Add library" button, then search for your local library and sign in using the information found on your library card.

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Sora eBooks & Audiobooks

Troubleshooting & Support in Sora

Discovering Reading and Learning Success (November 2023)

Sora: A Treasure of Digital Resources & Curriculum (October 20, 2021)

Slide deck: bit.ly/HCOS-Sora

Subscriptions


Information about Subscriptions available to Enrolled, Flex, and Registered students through the Learning Commons. Questions can be sent to our Subscriptions Facilitator, Margaret Basaraba, through Live Chat on regular school days from 9 am. to 3 pm. Live Chat is located in the bottom right-hand corner of our website.

Subscriptions

Getting Started

Subscriptions cover a wide range of valuable content in various subject areas and grade levels. All subscriptions are available for Enrolled and Flex families. If you are a Registered family, please select the bar below the video to discover which subscriptions are available to you.

This short video will help you get started with Subscriptions on the Learning Commons website.

What is Available to Me?

Enrolled and Flex Registered
4Canoes
Axis
BC ExamBank
BrainPOP, BrainPOP Jr. 
BrainPOP Français, BrainPOP Español
BrainPOP Science
Canadian Reader
Currents4Kids, News4Youth
Discovery Education
Enchanted Learning
EVERFI
Explora Canada (Canadian Reference Centre)
Flipster Magazines
Focused Education (BC Digital Classroom)
Gale Cengage Learning
Gizmos
HearBuilder
KnowBC
Learn360
Live It Earth
Matific
myBlueprint
Mystery Science
National Film Board
National Geographic Kids
PebbleGo & PebbleGo Next
ProQuest (Historical BC Newspapers)
Read&Write
Reading Eggs, Eggspress & Fast Phonics
RightNow Media
Teaching Books
Touch-Type Read and Spell
Twig Science
Twig Science Reporter
Tynker
What in the World? Level 1 & 2
World Book Online
World Watch News

Finding Links, Usernames, & Passwords

On the Website

Navigate to the Learning Commons Website Subscriptions page.

Log in with your Encom credentials at the top of the next page.

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Select the "Info" button on any Subscription tile.

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Read the information and select the "Log in" button to log in.

On the Search Portal

Navigate to the Search Portal and select the Subs/Password tab. Log in with your Encom username and password. You will see a list of subscriptions and find links, usernames and passwords.

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The list is organized alphabetically from A-Z. You can toggle to Z-A by selecting "Name."

Subscription Passwords are updated annually in July, with some being updated throughout the year. If your password stops working, please check back on the Learning Commons website for up-to-date passwords.

Using Subscriptions

Indigenous Peoples' Resources
4Canoes

These digital magazines offer a series of authentic information vetted by the indigenous communities about which they were written.

Content in Each Issue

Each edition follows a common theme and features:

  • The history of the culture, pre- and post-contact
  • Compelling and beautiful pictorials that draw students into the stories and place of the featured community
  • The story of the vessel and/or other modes of transportation used by the featured Peoples
  • Art and Food
  • Kids’ Zone
  • Resources for everyone, including kids, parents and educators  (Gr. K-12, the reading level would be a middle school)
  • Stories by and of the featured People in each edition
  • Extraordinary pictures of the lives, land and waters of the featured Peoples
Discovery Education

Indigenous Peoples of Canada 

Choose the grade on the screen, showing under the text above, K-5, 6-8 or 9-12.

GALE CENGAGE Learning

Choose “Canada in Context,” “and then search “First People,” “First Nations,” or “Aboriginal.”

KNOWBC.com

Log in at KNOW BC and choose a book or encyclopedia from the menus on the site to search for First Nations content.

The KNOWBC site has newly revised curriculum correlations, with links to content:

Learn360

Log in to Learn360 and search for First Peoples or First Nations topics.  A new site available in Learn360 is the Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada site.  Under advanced search (to the right of the main search bar), when you have chosen "video," you can filter.

Live It Earth

Navigate to the slideshow for an Indigenous perspective on any given topic.

Teaching Books

Search the word "Indigenous" to find many books and resources available on this site.

French Resources
Spanish Resources
Typing Resources
Touch-Type Read and Spell

A former teacher, Anne-Marie Semke, commented that her student with dyslexia did not progress while using All the Right Type (ATRT).  She purchased a subscription for TTRS and said, “It has been an excellent help with his dyslexia. I highly recommend it for students with special needs, as it is meaningfully and usefully different from a traditional learn-to-type program.”

For more information on TTRS, please refer to SOPHIE page Touch-Type Read and Spell. TTRS is a universal support and is available to all enrolled HCOS and Flex students, free of charge. Fill in the registration form. Margaret Basaraba will contact you when she receives the form.

EdClub

Free online TypingClub. Scroll down to find the "Learn More" button.

Type Racer

Type Racer allows students to type in competition with other students, all around the world.  

All the Right Type 4 Online

ATRT costs USD 40.00 for a year subscription with four users and a parent. Here is the link to the online version for home:  ATRT Online Home Version.  All the Right Type described.

TypeLit

TypeLit.io (free) allows you to type classic literature while you are reading it. TypeLit provides you with feedback about the accuracy and speed of your typing. Cost: USD 60.00/year. (Gr. 7-12)

Other Typing Programs
  1. TypingClub, (free) upgrade to Premium and view the site ad-free.
  2. Dance Mat Typing (free) from BBC, offers Levels 1 to 4. One parent said this is the most engaging one she has come across.  If you enjoy rock ‘n roll, you will enjoy the music in this site.  Explanatory guides for Dance Mat Typing.
  3. Teaching.com, which is free and is a gamified learning of typing. Typing.com blog.   
  4. 10 typing tools for students, both free and paid:  Typesy (their choice of the best), Typing.com (their choice for best budget), UltraKey 6 (best for beginners),  Typing Instructor Platinum (most entertaining), KayBlaze (best for professionals),  
Bible Memory Kids

BibleMemory.com has a complete Bible memory system that makes it easy for you to MEMORIZE, ORGANIZE, and REVIEW verses while typing.  You can even memorize and review verses while reading and studying your Bible, all in one app!  FREE

Using Subscriptions in the Summer

Enrolled, Flex, and Registered students who are re-enrolled for the next school year are welcome to continue using subscriptions through the summer, with the exception of Tynker(closed in July), News4Youth and Currents4Kids(closed in July and August), and EVERFI, which resets all the classrooms in June.

Troubleshooting

Subscriptions

4Canoes

4Canoes magazine (K-Grade 12) has articles vetted by the Indigenous communities about which they were written. The 4Canoes website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to 4Canoes.


Step 1: Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the 4Canoes icon.

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for 4Canoes from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Navigation & Use

A slider bar or forward arrow underneath the magazine allows you to move quickly from one place to another within the magazine. There is also an arrow in the magazine's middle, far-right, and far-left to turn page by page.

The "Recommended Resources" section at the end of some of the articles will enhance teaching.

The "Kids Fun Zone" has engaging activities for younger children. There are traditional interactive stories and activities to accompany them.

It is possible to purchase the print version of these magazines at a 30% discount from Goodminds.com using the code ERAC.

Subscriptions

Axis

Axis (Grades 5-12) is geared toward building lifelong faith by helping parents and caring adults talk with teens about topics they might not otherwise discuss. Their vision is to see all caring adults equipped with the conversation, discipleship, and cultural translation skills needed to reach the next generation for Christ. They began as a ministry offering resources to families and youth workers; several years ago, the ministry morphed into an online one and has since expanded. You will notice that this site does not tell you (or your teens) how to think. Instead, it gives up-to-date information and asks questions, which you may use to open discussion with your students or children.

Logging In 

Navigate to Axis and start exploring the resources. You do not need to set up an account to use this website.

Navigation & Use

Some of the information may be sensitive to students. Parents are encouraged to supervise their children while using this site and to engage in regular conversation to discuss topics.

Explore resources by selecting the buttons in the top right menu on the home page. You can return to the home page by selecting the Axis logo in the top left corner.

Click below to learn more about the specific features offered by Axis.

The Culture Translator

The Culture Translator is a weekly email on what's trending in culture and how it affects your teen's world.

It will help you stay up-to-date on the music, movies, TV shows, and social media trends impacting your kid's world. This resource is set up to make it easier to start conversations about the issues that matter most to your kids and provide you with Christ-like responses. It doesn't seek to teach you what to think but rather how to think about these topics through the lens of Jesus. They pray that The Culture Translator will help develop empathy in your heart for all the challenges the next generation faces daily.

You can sign up for the weekly email or explore past editions at https://axis.org/resource-category/culture-translator/

Conversation Kits

Explore tough topics together through teen-friendly videos that break down barriers and offer keys for deeper conversations. Conversation Kits are recorded presentations meant to be watched with your teen to get them thinking about what truly matters. Find Conversation kits by clicking "Resources for Parents" at the top right of the page or by scrolling down the home page.

Parent Guides

Talking about issues like smartphones, eating disorders, Snapchat, video games, and sexting with teens can be scary and complicated. But it doesn't have to be! Parent Guides are downloadable PDFs with links to content that will help you understand what your teens face, how to have conversations about them, and how to Biblically disciple them into lifelong faith through it all. Find Parent Guides by selecting "Resources for Parents" from the top right of the page.

Podcasts

Dive in with parenting experts and take your conversations with your kids to the next level. The Axis Podcast Network provides a learning environment for you in a format that is easy to consume in your busy life. Each episode will invite you into the Axis parenting community and coach you through building stronger conversations with the kids and teens in your life. Find podcasts by selecting "Resources For Parents" at the top right of the home page.

Select any podcast title and find many more recent episodes under that title by scrolling down the page.

Subscriptions

BC ExamBank

BC ExamBank (K-Grade 12) allows students to write online practice exams in core subject areas. The site consists of practice exams that are aligned with British Columbia's curriculum. In ExamBank, completed tests are automatically marked to give students immediate feedback.  The tests are randomly generated from question banks so students can write tests multiple times for better preparation.

Logging In

There are four steps to log in to the BC ExamBank.


Step 1: Navigate to BC ExamBank. Do not log in at the top of the page. Select the grade you would like to practice.


Step 2: Select the subject area.


Step 3: Select the test that you wish to take.


Step 4: Enter the username and password for BC ExamBank from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Navigation & Use

Watch this short video to learn more about how students can use the BC ExamBank site.

If you cannot access tests when clicking the "Start test" button, you likely have a pop-up window blocker installed on your computer. Please add bc.exambank.com to your pop-up blocker's trusted sites list.

BC ExamBank immediately generates the answers for the student when the student selects "submit" at the end of the test. Test results explain how to find the correct answers. This gives a student a jump-start in understanding questions that they answered incorrectly.

Once a test is completed, students can send results to their support teacher by scrolling to the bottom of the page and filling out the following form.

Printing Exams

If you print copies of an exam, your use is limited to a period of 10 months from the date that the exam is printed. Enter the exam you wish to print. Click and drag to highlight the exam. Right-click on the text and select "print."

Subscriptions

BrainPOP

BrainPOP (K-Grade 8) is an educational platform with animated videos and engaging resources in various subject areas. There are three resources for different grade levels: 

BrainPOP Jr. (K-Grade 3) encourages young learners to ask questions and form their own ideas. Each curricular topic includes an animated movie, learning games, concept mapping, and interactive features that help extend key concepts and meet the needs of students with different learning styles. Text is read aloud to facilitate comprehension.

BrainPOP (Grades 4-6) topics include animated movies, concept mapping, learning games, playful assessments, and primary source activities. These engaging resources help build higher-order thinking, cognitive, and literacy skills while encouraging reflection and giving students multiple ways to share their learning. Following each movie clip, students can participate in quizzes, cartoons, and do-it-yourself experiments, and send their quiz results to their support teacher.

BrainPOP Français and BrainPOP Español (Grades 4-8) are intended for students who speak these languages fluently or are looking to reinforce language skills. These sites are not for French or Spanish language learners.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are two account options to sign in with BrainPOP. 

Shared Account

There are three steps to log in to the BrainPOP shared account.


Step 1: Navigate to BrainPOP and click the “Log In” button in the top right corner. 


Step 2: Enter the username and password for BrainPOP from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Step 3: Select “Keep using a shared account” at the bottom of the screen.

Student work is not saved when using the shared account.

Individual Student Account

There are six steps to log into the BrainPOP individual student account.


Step 1: Contact your support teacher and request a BrainPOP code.


Step 2: Navigate to BrainPOP and click "Enter Code" in the top right corner.


Step 3: Enter the code from your support teacher.


Step 4: Select “Create Account."


Step 5: Complete the fields, then select "Create account."


Step 6: Use the "Log in" button for all future visits.

Navigation & Use

Watch the video below for a quick overview of BrainPOP.

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Students can select a specific subject or “Today’s Topic.” 

Once a topic is selected, explore the available resources.

BrainPOP Español and BrainPOP Français are recommended for grades 4-8.  These are intended for students who speak these languages fluently or are looking to reinforce language skills. Bear in mind, they are not language-learning tools.BrainPOP Science is only available for students through the Individual Teacher-led Student Account, not the Shared Account. Please find the BrainPOP Science information on the SOPHIE BrainPOP Science page.

BrainPOP Educators

Parents and teachers can access BrainPOP Educators without logging into the site. The great variety of information to be found there is free to them. The link can be found by scrolling down on the home page:

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or in the navigation at the very bottom of the page:

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Subscriptions

BrainPOP Science

BrainPOP Science (Grades 6-8) empowers students to do, discuss, and analyze scientific ideas through inquiry-based investigations, virtual science and engineering experiments, and claim-evidence-reasoning processes.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are five steps to log in to BrainPOP Science.


Step 1: Contact your support teacher and request a BrainPOP code.


Step 2: Navigate to BrainPOP Science. Select the “Log in” button at the top right of the page, and select “I am a kid” from the drop-down menu. 


Step 3: Select “Have a class code?” in the bottom right of the screen.


Step 4: Enter the code from your support teacher.


Step 5: Select "Create Account" or "Log in"(if your teacher gave you a username and password), to access your classroom. 

Navigation & Use

Your support teacher will assign work for you to complete. Follow the instructions and complete the assignments.

Assignments will be cleared on July 1st. Please take screenshots of anything you'd like to save or recreate.

Subscriptions

Canadian Reader

The Canadian Reader (Grades 3-5) is a current events resource that combines current Canadian events and geography issues to encourage students to expand their knowledge of Canada while enhancing their ability to read and understand informational text. 

The magazine is published eight times a year from September to May. Each issue includes:

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Access to the Canadian Reader has changed. Contact your teacher to receive access to the Canadian Reader resources

Navigation & Use

Your support teacher will need to forward the documents to you.

Magazine Formats

Magazines are available in two formats: .pdf and .docx.

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Students' resource links that coordinate with the current magazines can be found here.


Subscriptions

Currents4Kids and News4Youth

These Canadian Social Studies Subscription resources (Grades 3-12) and learning tools feature weekly articles about important news stories and empower students to understand and explore current events around the world. 

Currents4Kids (Grades 3-7)

Currents4Kids is a Canadian Social Studies resource featuring weekly articles about important news stories. It empowers students to understand and explore current events worldwide. 

News4Youth (Grades 7-12)

News4Youth (Grades 7-12) is an online teaching resource that brings current world events alive! Students gain weekly access to articles carefully selected from credible news sites such as cbc.ca, which are non-sensational, significant within society, and relevant to students and the curriculum. 

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Contact your support teacher and request a Currents4Kids or a News4Youth account. Next, navigate to Currents4Kids or News4Youth and log in using the provided information.

Navigation & Use

Select "Home" from the blue bar to find the articles.

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Read below to learn more about the specific features offered by Currents4Kids.

Listen to the Article

Select the arrow beneath the photo caption to hear the pre-recorded articles read aloud. Select "slow," "normal," or "fast" to set the speed at which you hear the article.

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Find Definitions

To use the dictionary box located in the margin to the left of each article, type the word you’d like to look up in the box. Click ‘Go’.

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Take Quizzes

Each article has two quizzes. Both consist of five multiple-choice or true/false questions.  

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To complete the quizzes, select the ‘Quizzes’ tab underneath the article's title.
Students can respond to the questions individually and find their results after completing the quiz. Teachers will see all the questions and possible responses.

Find Helpful Tutorials

Scroll to the bottom of the Subscription page and select “help & tutorials.” Scroll down on the next page that loads to “#2 Using Articles.”

Subscriptions

Discovery Education

The Discovery Education online video library (K-Grade 12) contains over 5,000 full-length educational videos, including Canadian content correlated to the BC curriculum. Video clips and audio files are available in both English and French.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to the Discovery Education shared parent account.


Step 1: Navigate to Discovery Education and select "Student." (Be careful to log in to the Canadian site.ca.)

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for Discovery Education from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal. You may need to hand-type the username and password into Discovery Ed to log in. You do not need to set up an account to use this Subscription.

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Navigation & Use

Watch this short video to learn more about how students can use the Discovery Education site.


Subscriptions

Enchanted Learning

Enchanted Learning (K-Grade 5) provides crafts and activities to capture the imagination while maximizing creativity, learning, and enjoyment. Their mission is to produce the best educational material, emphasizing creativity and the pure enjoyment of learning.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to Enchanted Learning.


Step 1: Navigate to Enchanted Learning and select "Login."

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for Enchanted Learning from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

You may find that you are not logged in the first time you try. A second attempt will usually get you into Enchanted Learning.

Navigation & Use

Use the Site Index to view major topics(eg. astronomy, geography, K-3 Themes, printable books, Spanish, etc.).

Students may find it easier to explore the site using the Little Explorers Picture Dictionary. To find a topic, look it up in the dictionary and click on the picture to go to a page on that picture. For example, to find the topic “dinosaurs,” go to the D Page, scroll down until you find the entry for dinosaurs, and select the dinosaur.

Subscriptions

EVERFI

EVERFI (Gr. 2-12) covers digital citizenship, STEM, financial literacy, health education, and career readiness. Activities are short, relevant, and engaging.

Logging In

There are six steps to log into EVERFI.


Step 1: Email our Subscriptions Facilitator, Margaret Basaraba, for the EVERFI registration code.


Step 2: Navigate to EVERFI, then select the “Register” button next to “Don’t have an account?” 


Step 3: Select "Student."




Step 6: Complete the form to create your account. Remember your username and password so you can log in again.

Navigation & Use

Below are the subject areas and suggested grade levels for EVERFI courses. Students can use the "Listen" option, which allows them to hear text read aloud.

Compassion Project: Lower Elementary is the only course available for Gr. 2-3.

Financial Literacy
STEM
Physical and Health Education

Scholarships

FutureSmart Scholarships for $2000 and $5,000 529 College Savings Gift Cards will be awarded this spring to students who submit the entry form and complete at least 3 EVERFI lessons in one or more courses during the 2025-26 school year.

Deadlines to enter are January 13, 2025(Fall Semester) and June 9, 2025(Spring Semester). Winners will be notified soon thereafter. Find the scholarship application here

Subscriptions

Explora Canada

Explora Canada (Grades 8-12) supports student research with rich, reliable content and easy-to-use functionality. It is a modern and efficient research experience designed specifically for schools and public libraries. Explora could be used with strong grade 6, and 7 students.

Logging In

Navigate to Explora Canada. Enter the username and password for Explora from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Student work is not saved when using the shared account. Students must set up a personal account in EBSCOhost Student folders to save their research in Explora Canada.

Navigation & Use

Setting up a personal student account.

  1. Log in to Explora Canada using the credentials in the Search Portal.
  2. Select "myEBSCO" at the top right of the page. Then select "Create an account."

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   3. Set up your email address and password.

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   4. Sign in to your student account where projects can be saved.

Research Made Easy With Explora video.

EBSCOhost has improved its interface to make searching easier. Check out the Explora Quick Start Guide for helpful articles.

Recommended tutorials:

Subscriptions

Flipster Magazines

Flipster Magazines (K-Grade 12) is an innovative digital magazine platform that allows easy browsing on various topics.

Logging In

Navigate to Flipster. Enter the username and password for Flipster Magazines from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal. You do not need to set up an account to use these magazines.

Navigation & Use

Click below to learn more about specific magazines available through this subscription.

Ranger Rick Jr. (K-Grade 2)

Ranger Rick Jr. is filled with fun, age-appropriate animal facts, stories, photos, exciting outdoor activities, and lots of games, crafts, and recipes. Great for beginning readers! Monthly Parent Reading Guides help enhance the Ranger Rick Jr. subscription by recommending ways to use the magazine to encourage a strong foundation for early literacy development. There are 10 issues published per year.

Chickadee (Grades 1-4)

Created in 1979, Chickadee satisfies the 6- to 9-year-old’s insatiable thirst for knowledge and appetite for humour. Chickadee acknowledges the growing independence of primary-aged children and fosters their curiosity about and connection to the world around them.

Every month, the Chickadee team creates interactive stories, puzzles, animal features, and science experiments to educate and entertain readers.

Kayak Magazine (Grades 2-7)

Kayak Magazine is designed to catch the imagination of 7 to 12-year-olds. Every issue introduces children to Canada's fascinating stories and shows them our history in context with today's world! Educational and entertaining, Kayak imparts knowledge of Canada's fascinating history.

Les Débrouillards (Grades 4-9)

Les Débrouillards is a French language magazine about nature, the environment, technology, space, the human body, communications, history, and the future. There are 11 issues published per year (September to July). Each issue includes the following features:

This magazine is set up for fluent French students.

British Columbia History Magazine (Grades 8-12)

Discover British Columbia’s Past! British Columbia History is the British Columbia Historical Federation’s flagship publication, a quarterly magazine chronicling British Columbia’s unique story through the words and images of community writers, archivists, museum professionals, academic historians, and more.

Fresh, engaging, personal, and relevant, every issue is packed with articles, photographs, maps, illustrations, book reviews, and insights into local archives. They publish four issues per year.

The British Columbia History Magazine also publishes a Study Guide. The focus of the study guide is to encourage students to dig deeper into history to find a quiet or unheard voice. The guide will deepen understanding and knowledge of colonial histories and the current realities of Indigenous People, as well as an understanding of social injustices and discriminatory policies in Canada (including Residential Schools, the head tax, the legal system, disenfranchisement, and internment).

Subscriptions

Focused Education Resources

Focused Education Resources (K-Grade 12) is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools.

See the available resources below.

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Logging In

On Campus

To log in go here. 

No username and password are required if you are on campus at Flex Academy. You can move easily between the different BC Digital Classroom resources.

At Home

To log in go here.

Scroll down to click on the icon for the subscription you wish to access, and a login page will open.  You will then enter the username and password found in the Search Portal on the Subs/Password tab.

Once you have logged in to one of the resources on the Focused Ed page, you can easily move to another resource title without signing in again. Focused Ed will allow you to move between resources after signing in only once. Each new resource that you open will open in a new tab.

You may see this login area at the top right of the page (Especially on the Nat Geo Kids resource) as you move between resources. You DO NOT need to use this area to log in again. Scroll down the page and begin using the resource by selecting the chosen resource and logging in using the login box that generates.

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Navigation & Use

Once you have logged in to one of the resources on the Focused Ed page, you can move to another resource title without signing in again.

Each resource on the Focused Ed page has its own instruction page in the Subscriptions Chapter of SOPHIE.

The Core Collection

The Core Collection includes resources from these vendors:

The a la Carte Collection

The a la Carte Collection includes the following resources (Some resources require teachers to set up an account):   

    

Subscriptions

Gale Databases

Gale Databases (Grades 8-12) is one of the world leaders in research and educational publishing. This subscription includes full-text magazine and newspaper articles and articles from over 600 online databases with up-to-date subject matter. Gale Databases are accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Read below to learn more about the specific databases available through Gale.

Gale in Context: Canada

Gale in Context: Canada contains information on various Canadian topics, people, places, and events. Students can access content written from a Canadian perspective, including full-text magazines, academic journals, news articles, primary source documents, images, videos, audio files, and links to vetted websites organized into a user-friendly portal experience.

Gale in Context: Global Issues

Gale in Context: Global Issues offers international viewpoints on global issues, topics, and current events. Resources may be a springboard for critical thinking and analysis of social, political, military, economic, environmental, health, and cultural issues. Students can access articles, references, periodicals, primary sources, and statistical information.

Gale in Context: Science

Gale in Context: Science provides information on hundreds of today’s most significant science topics. Note that the Science in Context site also includes some Math topics.

Gale Power Search

Gale PowerSearch is a periodical, reference, multimedia, and primary source information search platform.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to Gale Databases.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the icon for the Gale Database you wish to access.

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for Gale Databases from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Navigation & Use

Resources Tutorial

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The Advanced Search feature underneath the search bar allows users to add filters and generate more specific results.

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Topic Finder 

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Users can find information organized by topic. Results can be formatted as tiles or a wheel. Below is the result of a search for “First Nations.”

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Content Levels and Lexile Measures allow readers to determine whether an article is written at an appropriate reading level for their learning needs.

The Translate button invites students to translate articles into a different language. Once a language has been selected, click on the "Complete Translation" button. The article's text will be translated, and the speaker button will allow the student to hear the article spoken in the selected language. This could be very useful when learning a second language.

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The Listen toolbar features read-aloud options and downloadable MP3s. The settings icon ⚙️ provides assistive technology options, including highlighting words, high contrast mode, speed adjust, and enhanced text visibility. Click on it to learn more and apply these features.

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Subscriptions

Gizmos

Gizmos (Grades 3-12) is an interactive math and science simulation library. There are over 475 Gizmos to bring powerful new learning experiences to students. Gizmos use an inquiry-based approach to learning, validated by extensive research as a highly effective way to build conceptual understanding. 

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Gizmos has classrooms that students can sign into and work in independently. Student work is saved, and support teachers can log in to view progress.

There are five steps to log into Gizmos.


Step 1: Contact our Subscriptions Facilitator, Margaret Basaraba, through email or LiveChat on regular school days from 9 am to 3 pm for the Gizmos class codes.


Step 2: Navigate to Gizmos and enter your class code that you received from Margaret Basaraba.

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Step 3: Select either the blue or green button depending on whether you have set up an account already or are a new user.

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Step 4: Select the green button if you are a new user and need to create a student account. Fill in the form and select "submit."

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Step 5: Log in to Gizmos using your username and password to enter your classroom.

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Navigation & Use

Introductory video below.

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Select “Launch” to begin using a Gizmo.

When your Gizmo opens, you will see “Lesson Info” and the arrows to select to make the Gizmo full screen in the top right corner. Click your keyboard escape button to exit the full-screen view.

Selecting the “Lesson info” drop-down menu will display the student exploration sheet, which explains how to use the Gizmo. Students can type directly into the document by saving the file to their computer and then typing in either Microsoft Word or Google Docs. There are also vocabulary sheets available for student use.

Assessment questions are located below the Gizmo. Exit fullscreen mode, then scroll to the bottom. 

Here are some suggestions for families wishing to use Gizmos with K-Grade 2 students:

Subscriptions

HearBuilder

HearBuilder (K-Grade 8) is an online literacy program that provides systematic instruction in basic concepts, following directions, phonological awareness, sequencing, and auditory memory.  

Select the Logo below to listen to a short description of HearBuilder. Skip past the advertisement at the beginning.

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This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

  1. Navigate to HearBuilder and select the student login button.

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 2. Enter your username, password, and the login code given to you by your support teacher.

HearBuilder has a limited number of seats. It is available by referral from your support teacher.

Navigation & Use

Once logged in to HearBuilder, choose one of the four programs. Select the "Home" button in the top left corner to return to the home screen. HearBuilder recommends 15 minutes per day for four to five days per week. Teachers recommend using two of the four programs during each use.

 

Using HearBuilder on an iPad

HearBuilder works best when used on a computer. When using an iPad, all four of the HearBuilder program apps, seen in the picture above, must be downloaded individually.

Subscriptions

KnowBC (Encyclopedia of BC)

KnowBC (K-Grade 12) is BC's leading general reference site. It combines many resources, including the Encyclopedia of BC, which contains 4,000 articles and 1,000 pictures about British Columbia. The KnowBC website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to KnowBC.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the KnowBC icon.

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for KnowBC from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Navigation & Use

Use the search bar on the left side of the page and select “Searching KnowBC” to find a list of links for the many resources that are available to you through KnowBC.

Use the green bar at the top of the home page to find the resources listed there. Use the advanced search button on the top right of the page to search multiple resources at once.

Subscriptions

Learn360

Learn360 (K-Grade 12) is the ultimate streaming multimedia resource. Users can access 200,000 media resources, including videos, interactives, printables, audio content, maps, flags, and more. It is a powerful tool for blended instruction and project-based learning.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Navigate to Learn360, then enter the username and password for Learn360 from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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If you would like to set up a personal student account, contact our Subscriptions Facilitator, Margaret Basaraba, through Live Chat on regular school days from 9 am to 3 pm., for the student passkey.

Navigation & Use

Watch this short instructional video.

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When you enter Learn360, you will see the main menu at the top of your screen.

Topic Centers pull together many resources found in Learn360 for a given topic.

Bread crumbs along the top make it easier to return to previous topics.

You can simplify your search by selecting the hamburger menu (three lines) to the left of the Learn360 logo and selecting a grade range. Learn360 will use this grade range to filter as you search for new topics.

You can save research information by selecting the icon next to “Hi Heritage” and then selecting “My Content” from the drop-down menu. Create a folder, give it a title, and save your items in the folder.

Select the Learn360 logo to return to the home page.

Subscriptions

Live It Earth

Live It Earth (K-Grade 8) features new cross-curricular activities and challenges throughout the school year. Once a month, a live video presentation called "Feature Show" can be accessed, which is then saved to the dashboard for future use. The Live It Earth website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are four steps to log in to Live It Earth.


Step 1: Contact your support teacher and request a Live It Earth passcode.


Step 2Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the Live It Earth icon at the bottom of the page.


Step 3: Select the “Login” button.

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Step 4: Enter the passcode from your support teacher.

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Navigation & Use

Watch this short video below.

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Select the tabs at the top of the home page to access the various resources. You can toggle between English and French by using the drop-down menu at the top right corner of the page.

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Subscriptions

Matific

Matific (K-Grade 6) is a game-based platform for building specific mathematical concepts and skills. Each episode is 5-15 minutes, engaging students in playing math games while helping them master core math concepts.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are two types of accounts: student accounts and parent accounts.

Student Account

There are three steps to log into the student account.


Step 1: Contact your support teacher and request a username and password.


Step 2: Navigate to Matific, enter the username provided by your support teacher, then click the orange "Continue" button. 


Step 3: Enter the password provided by your support teacher, then click the orange "Log in" button.

Parent Account

There are five steps to log in to the parent account.


Step 1: Email your support teacher to request and ask for your email address to be added to your child's account. You will receive an email to verify your account and set up a password. 


Step 2: Log in to your child’s Matific account and click on the blue cog in the upper right corner.

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Step 3: Choose “Parent” from the list of options.

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Step 4: Sign in using your parent password, then click the green "Continue" button.

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Step 5: Select your child's name to see their report and progress.

Navigation & Use

Watch this short video below.

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Students will be given a placement test called “Pilot Training.” Students need to complete the placement test without assistance so they are placed at the appropriate level. 

First, students can choose to set up an avatar and a nickname. Then, students will enter Adventure Island and begin their “Pilot Training.” When they finish the placement test, they will see their Pilot Badge on the screen and begin to travel down the Adventure Island path.

Parent-Assigned Activities 

Parents can choose to assign their children's activities using the "Parent Assigned" category on the "Assigned Work" map by logging in to their parent account and following these four steps.


Step 1: On the Parent Dashboard, scroll down to "Skill Performance" and select the drop-down arrow. 

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Step 2: Select up to five activities by clicking the title, then clicking "Assign 5 activities." Click the "X" to close the page.

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Step 3: Once you have assigned work, select "Switch user" at the top of the page to return to your child's workspace.

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Step 4: View the "Assigned Work" island to confirm that work is assigned (look for the green circle). As each of the assignments is completed, the number on the island will decrease.

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Stuck on a Problem

If your student is on a problem and cannot move forward, use the bookmark tab to go to the next problem. It is found on the top right corner of the page.

Subscriptions

myBlueprint

MyBlueprint (Grades 7-12) is a Career Education planner. The platform is a great asset as our students prepare for the creation of their digital portfolios and the world of work. Some of the features students will find in myBlueprint are:

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are six steps to log in to myBlueprint.


Step 1: Navigate to the myBlueprint landing page and select the "Sign Up" button in the top right corner. 


Step 2: Select your school from the drop-down menu.

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Step 3: Select "Student" for the account type.


Step 4: Select your grade level, then select the green "Continue" button.


Step 5: Complete the form, then select the green "Continue" button.

 


Step 6: Fill in the form with your account information and select "continue."

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Once your account is set up, visit myBlueprint and click the "Log In" button to enter your username/email and password. Your teacher may have done this in advance, and you will be able to bypass the steps above.

Navigation & Use

Watch this short video below.

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The best place to start is by visiting the Education Planner Resources hub. There are many resources on a variety of topics, including Getting Started, Implementation & Curriculum, Exemplar Portfolios & Checklists, Lesson Plans, and Course Packages. Be sure to select "British Columbia" in the province filter box to access the resources for BC students.

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Here are some selected highlights from the Education Planner Resources hub:

Career and Life Assessment Surveys

The "Who Am I?" video explains how students can use the five career and life assessment surveys.

Scholarships

1. Enter your myBlueprint account. 

2. Select "Dashboard" from the left menu bar.

3. Use the "x" to close the "Welcome to myBlueprint" box.

4. Select "Show Prizes - View Scholarships"

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Apply for these scholarships by April 26, 2025.

Ten $3000 HR Block Canadian Scholarship contest for students in grade 12. 

Five $1000 myBlueprint Canadian Scholarship Contest for students in grades 11 and 12 attending a Canadian post-secondary institution.

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Year At A Glance

The Year at a Glance documents offer a month-by-month breakdown of learning goals, student activities, and valuable resources for successfully implementing the Education Planner for Grade 7-12 students. Click the links below to access the resources for each grade level:

Beyond Graduation

When students reach the end of their Grade 12 year and are ready to graduate, myBlueprint will prompt them to update the email on their account from a school email to a personal one. Adding a personal email will ensure that students will retain full access to their myBlueprint accounts free of charge after graduation.

According to their Privacy Policy, myBlueprint will delete accounts that have been inactive for more than 24 months. Before deletion, students will be notified via email to prompt them to log in to their accounts to retain access. If they do so, the 24-month window resets. If the student still does not log in, the account will be deleted.

Subscriptions

Mystery Science

Mystery Science (K-Grade 5) contains hands-on, low-prep, easy-to-use activities to engage students in learning the "doing" of science and engineering. There are three levels for families to choose from:

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

First, select which mysteries you want to use by visiting the Mystery Science Lessons by Grade Level spreadsheet. The previous link also contains the titles of the "Mini-Mysteries" which are each about five minutes long. You may also find it useful to select your mysteries from the Mystery Science Year Plan. Once you have selected your lessons, email your support teacher with the lesson names to receive a student link.

Navigation & Use

For information about getting started, visit the Mystery Science – Getting Started hub.

Mystery Doug is a weekly video series from the creators of Mystery Science that inspires students to ask questions! It’s the perfect five-minute break for morning meetings, snack time, or any transitions in your day. Mystery Doug can also be found on YouTube.

Purchasing Access to Mystery Science

Families can sign up for a paid account through the HCOS purchasing department at a cost of $99.00 USD. Mystery Science offers discounts on homeschool memberships during their early April and August sales of about $69.00 USD. 

If parents purchase an account in Mystery Science and their teacher sends them a link, it will not open if the parent is signed in to their purchased account. Parents will need to sign out and clear their browser cache before clicking the link sent by the teacher. Parents do not need to log in to be able to open the link.

Subscriptions

National Film Board Education

The NFB Education (K-Grade 12) includes creative documentaries, animation, interactive stories, and participatory experiences. Their mission is to provide new perspectives on Canada and the world from Canadian points of view that serve Canadian and global audiences through an imaginative exploration of who we are and what we may be. The National Film Board website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

The Education Menu

There is no longer a username and password to enter the Education Menu.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the National Film Board icon.



The Media School

Media school is for teachers and students aged 13+. Logging in is required.

Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the National Film Board icon.

Step 2: Select "Sign In" from the left menu bar.

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Step 3: Select "Create your NFB account."

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Step 4: Set up your account.

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The next time you log in, go to nfb.ca and select "Sign in" from the menu on the left.

Navigation & Use

Select “Education” from the menu on the left of the page.

Select “More Resources” from the top menu bar. Then select “Professional Development” from the drop-down menu.


Digital Storytelling is an introductory workshop on media production. Students can navigate through videos and interactive activities related to the different stages of film production. They will acquire the tools to create digital stories and dynamic videos using accessible equipment (e.g., smartphones, software).

Ocean School is an environmental resource that aims to create a generation of ocean-literate citizens. A team of educators and scientists take learners on a global aquatic expedition that provides the knowledge and tools to produce innovative solutions to the world’s oceans' growing challenges.

Mini-Lessons are set up within school subjects and recommended age groups. They include an educational synopsis, overarching questions, activities, short films, historical context, and online resources.

Educational Playlists are selections of films on curricular themes which address the important issues of the day. Many of the playlists are also linked to the study guides.

NFB Study Guides are designed to facilitate the integration of films into student learning. Study guides are written by Canadian educators and are designed to be a starting point for creating personalized lesson plans.

Difficulties streaming a film?

Please update your browser if the player window does not appear on the film page. If you still cannot see the film player, please get in touch with Margaret Basaraba through LiveChat on school days from 9 am to 3 pm. She will need to know your browser type and version, and if you are trying to watch our films on a school network or via a proxy server.

If you can see the player but can’t play the film you wish to view, please check whether you experience the same problem when viewing other films or the same film at a different resolution. The player window should automatically adapt the quality to your connection quality, but you can also choose your quality level. If you experience this problem with only one film, please contact Margaret Basaraba with the film's name and the resolution setting so the National Film Board team can investigate further. If you experience this problem with all films, please upgrade your browser and/or use a different internet browser (e.g., Safari, Firefox, Chrome).

If the film you are trying to watch starts and stops, try selecting a lower resolution for video playback. Using a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi and reducing the traffic on your network (e.g., downloading other files simultaneously) may also improve playback.

Subscriptions

National Geographic Kids

National Geographic Kids (K-Grade 7) is a children's magazine published by the National Geographic Society. It is a one-stop shop for elementary and middle school students interested in the cultural or natural world. The National Geographic Kids website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to National Geographic Kids.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the National Geographic Kids icon.


Step 2: Enter the username and password for National Geographic Kids from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Navigation & Use

National Geographic has magazines, books, videos, and pictures.

Headings on the site can be changed to different languages through the drop-down menu at the top right of the page.

The language and font size of articles can be changed in the menu above the article.

Articles can be cited, downloaded, saved, and printed.

Advanced Search can be used to make your search more specific.

Subscriptions

PebbleGo and PebbleGo Next

PebbleGo and PebbleGo Next (K-Grade 5) are searchable databases covering animals, science, biographies, social studies, and health. It is a fantastic tool to build basic research skills.

PebbleGo (K-Grade 3) has built-in reading and research tools such as levelled texts, consistent navigation, fun educational games, and spoken-word audio that models correct pronunciation and fluency.

PebbleGo Next (Grades 3-5) provides curriculum-connected articles designed for intermediate-aged students.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Use the PebbleGo direct link in the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Navigation & Use

Watch the short video below.

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Visit the Resources Centre to locate videos, lesson plans, and content maps.

PebbleGo and PebbleGo Next use visual navigation tools. Users can search by either typing into the search bar or clicking on the breadcrumb pictures underneath the search bar. Selecting any of the pictures will take you back to that specific page.

Students can choose to play games or answer the question of the day.

PebbleGo and PebbleGo Next also include assistive technology. Hover your mouse over headings to hear them read aloud. Articles are read aloud by selecting the arrow at the article's beginning. Select highlighted words to read or hear the definition.

Once students have chosen an article, a new bar appears at the bottom of the page with several options.

Subscriptions

ProQuest (Historical BC Newspapers)

ProQuest (Historical BC newspapers) (Grades 8-12) includes over 365 million pages of world-class collections, 325 years of historical periodical content, and 350 years of global, national, and regional newspapers. ProQuest gives researchers access to more than 125 years of the historical archives of The Province (1894-2010), the Vancouver Sun (1912-2010), and the Times-Colonist (1884 -2010), including in-depth insights into how stories and perspectives evolved over the decades. Students can review primary source material through local and regional stories, events, and people. ProQuest is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to ProQuest.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the ProQuest icon.


Step 2: Enter the username and password for ProQuest from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Navigation & Use

To begin using ProQuest, you must accept cookies at the bottom of the page. Until you do this, the homepage is grayed out.

You can search for Historical BC Newspapers using a basic or advanced search. You can also search by publications or databases. You can see in the picture below that you are searching three databases. In the advanced search, you can limit your search by source, document type, and language after entering your search terms.

Once you have started a search, you can return to the home page by clicking on the ProQuest logo at the top left.

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Select the hamburger menu (three lines) and choose “All Databases (5)” from the drop-down menu. You can also access the Support Center by clicking the button at the bottom of this menu.

Subscriptions

Reading Eggs, Fast Phonics, & Reading Eggspress

Reading Eggs (K-Grade 7) focuses on a core phonics and sight words curriculum using skills and strategies essential for sustained reading success.

Reading Eggs (K-Grade 2) makes learning to read interesting and engaging for kids with great online reading games and activities. Games, songs, golden eggs, and other rewards motivate students to keep exploring and learning as they build foundational literacy skills.

Reading Eggspress (Grades 2-7) is designed for older readers and provides a unique and effective learning environment. It focuses on building reading fluency and comprehension, spelling and vocabulary, and writing skills, including grammar and punctuation, in an exciting and relevant way. Teachers can assign a read-aloud activity via Reading Eggspress assignments. Students record themselves reading for one minute in a stress-free environment of their choice. Teachers can then remotely listen to these recordings, assess fluency and provide personalized, constructive feedback on student performance.

Fast Phonics (K-Grade 5) is an online synthetic phonics program where children learn essential phonics skills, including letter‑sound recognition, blending, and spelling. Children explore fun activities, decodable reading books, and meet lovable characters like the Reading Eggs Yeti.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Please preview content before using it with your students, especially in Reading Eggspress, as there may be secular content. These books are optional and are not required reading. Families are advised to actively check texts to make choices that align with their family’s values.

Logging In

There are three steps to log in to Reading Eggs, Reading Eggspress, or Fast Phonics. All three will show up on your dashboard.


Step 1: Contact your support teacher and request login information.


Step 2: Navigate to Reading Eggs and select your desired subscription, then click the blue "Login" button in the top right corner.

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Step 3: Enter the login information from your support teacher.

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Navigation & Use

Here are some helpful videos to review during the initial start-up process:

You can also review more tutorial video content on the Reading Eggs site or try a sample lesson in Reading Eggspress. 

Reading Eggs printable library.

Teacher toolkit

Worksheet bundles

If you would like to share your student's reading progress with your support teacher, consider using a voice recorder (e.g., Vocaroo) and sharing the file.

Additional Learning Opportunities in Reading Eggs

Story Factory (Lessons 11+) invites students to practice writing skills and storytelling by creating their own storybooks. Students can save their books to My House for later rereading or submit them to a weekly contest.

Reggie’s Shop Arcade (Lessons 7+) and My House (Lessons 11+) motivate learners by awarding Golden Eggs to celebrate their learning achievements. In Reggie’s Shop, students can cash in their Golden Eggs to decorate their house or dress their avatars. In the Arcade, students can also spend their Golden Eggs and play educational games.

Spelling Skills Bank (Lessons 41+) incorporates lessons that test spelling strategies, including word structure, word families, meaning, segmentation, phonics, and repetition to build spelling knowledge.

Puzzle Park (Lessons 41+) allows students to experience brain-stretching puzzles that reinforce comprehension, high-frequency sight word knowledge, vocabulary development, and problem-solving. 

Driving Tests (Lessons 41+) assess reading skills such as high-frequency sight words, phonics skills, and vocabulary. Students are rewarded with an exciting racing game when they answer questions correctly.

Storylands (Lessons 61+) focuses on expanding vocabulary and building comprehension skills using activities, levelled texts, and a comprehension quiz in each lesson.

Troubleshooting

Subscriptions

rightnow MEDIA

rightnow MEDIA (K-Grade 12) is a video library of Bible study topics for students of all ages, including a "Just for Kids" section. 

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Find the invitation link under the Subs/Password tab on the Search Portal. Follow the instructions to sign up for an account on rightnow MEDIA.

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Navigation & Use

Watch this short video below.

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Select the "Browse" button in the top left corner to get a quick idea of what is available. Once on the "Browse" page, you can refine your search by selecting the "Advanced Search" button at the far right.

Assistive technology options include "audio only" and picture-in-picture settings.

You can find rightnow MEDIA Kids by selecting the "Kids" button in the top left corner. Select the logo at any time to return to the homepage.

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Subscriptions

TeachingBooks

TeachingBooks (K-Grade12) is an online database that explores children’s books and young adult literature. The database provides access to additional materials (e.g., short movies, audio book readings, book discussion guides) to enhance learning, including the following features:

Logging In

Navigate to TeachingBooks, then enter the username and password for TeachingBooks from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Navigation & Use

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Search TeachingBooks when logged into our school account, and a SORA logo will appear with titles that are in our collection. Select the SORA logo to check out your item. Learn more at TeachingBooks.net/SoraDiscovery.

TeachingBooks can also be accessed through Sora. 

TeachingBooks has an Early Literacy Toolkit available for parents. These include book suggestions, printables, graphic organizers, instructional supports, timely topics, and ready-to-use ideas.

Digital Escape rooms are a fun way to engage students and enhance learning. Navigate to Digital Escape Rooms, then select a book title from the list. Scroll down to select "Book Guides, Activities, and Lessons." Scroll down to the Digital Escape Room button on the next page.

Games include Book Cover Jigsaw Puzzles, Book Description Word Search, Concentration, and Author/Illustrator Name Game.

Fluent French and Spanish speakers may wish to use French Language Resources or Spanish Language Resources. Please note that these resources are not for French or Spanish language learners.

Subscriptions

Touch-type Read & Spell

Touch-type Read and Spell (TTRS) (Grades 3-12) is a typing course that is a highly accessible, multi-sensory course that teaches touch-typing, reading, and spelling at the same time. TTRS has 24 levels, each with 31 modules. Modules contain words organized into groups of spelling patterns. Students practice typing these patterns using the correct fingering for touch-typing. At the end of every four modules, there is a dictation module to reinforce patterns previously practiced. The keyboard and screen can be customized for sensory comfort and support.

This course is designed for students who also have difficulty synthesizing phonemes. Engaging the skill of touch-typing aims to provide an additional avenue of learning. It is an excellent resource for students challenged by dyslexia.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In


Step 1: Fill in this short machform.


Step 2: Wait for an email from Subscriptions Coordinator Margaret Basaraba with a username and password.


Step 3: Navigate to TTRS and enter the username and password from Margaret.

If you are a Flex family, don't use the steps above. Navigate to TTRS and enter the username and password that your Flex teacher has given you. 

Navigation & Use

Select the short video below to hear David's story.

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Once you have logged in to the dashboard, you will see a bar at the top to access the TTRS main course, including statistics, subjects, messages, settings, notifications, and your profile information. 

Hand-Placement while typing

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The hand-placement keyboard will not show up when you are using an iPad and are in a browser. Please download the TTRS app onto your iPad to see the hand-placement keyboard.

Subjects and Free Writing

The Subjects tab allows students to practice words within specific areas of interest (e.g., Art, Fitness, Gaming, Music, GCSE Religious Education through Christianity) or English and Spanish Language Arts content (e.g., spelling, grammar, parts of speech). 

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Parents are encouraged to preview age range suggestions for subjects to be sure the subjects chosen are age-appropriate.

Find free writing pages by selecting the "TTRS Course" button on the top menu. Select the green "free writing" button to get started.

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Visit the TTRS Help Centre for more information on adjusting settings. It may also be helpful to download this printable daily checklist to keep track of progress.

Finding The Level You Are Working On

There have been some problems with TTRS' new site. If it refuses to save your work, you can move on by following the instructions below. Please ask your teacher to email Margaret Basaraba if you are having issues with TTRS.

Log in to your account and select the "TTRS" Course button from the top of the page.

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Select the toggle arrow to the left of the "Level" number.

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Select the button for the level that you are working on and continue working.

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You can choose any level button.

Turning Audio Off

The default setting is for TTRS to read aloud the words that are being typed. The audio track accompanies the letters as they appear on screen, reinforcing sound-letter correspondence, which is a crucial skill for sounding out words in reading.

If you wish to turn the audio off, select "Settings" from the top menu bar.

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Next, click on "Audio Settings" from the left menu bar.

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Toggle the "Play word audio" button off, then click the green "Apply Changes" button on the left of the screen. You may also want to turn off "Announce Spacebar" and "Training. The" Announce module praise" feature gives a brief amount of applause as students finish a module.

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Every fourth module is in dictation mode, and the words are not displayed; they are only spoken. If your sound is turned off, you will not be able to hear or see every fourth module.

Finding Reports

Select the "My Stats" tab to see how your student is doing.

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The next page to load will show you the reports from the "Main Course." If your student is working in the "Subjects" area of the course, you will need to select "Subjects" to see those reports.

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Subscriptions

Twig Science

Twig Science (Grades 6-10) is an interactive science program that immerses students in the exciting world of science and natural phenomena. It has thousands of short videos covering math and science, plus 80+ hands-on experiments. The Twig Science website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to Twig Science.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the Twig Science icon.

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Step 2: Enter the username and password for Twig Science from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

Navigation & Use

Select the video below to watch an overview of Twig Science for grade six.

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Using the main menu, users can explore Twig Science resources by subject.

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Select the "Find videos" button in the top right corner to access the drop-down menu to select how you would like to use Twig Science.

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Mindmaps and Twig Videos

There are many different types of Twig videos available for Science and Math. Select "Mind Maps" from the drop-down menu and select a topic. Each heading branches into more specific headings as you narrow your search.

Subscriptions

Twig Science Reporter

Twig Science Reporter (K-8) is a weekly science news service. The brainchild of Twig Education and Imperial College London, it has been created to help families connect science lessons with real-world news.

Logging In

  1. Enter Focused Education.
  2. Scroll down to the "Twig" icon at the bottom of the page and select it.image.png
  3. Select "Sign up for free."

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4. Fill in the form. Fill in the form using "Central Okanagan #23" as your school district and "Heritage Christian Online School" as your school. Select finish.

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5. To continue to your account, select the "skip" button at the bottom of the page.

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Alternatively, you can also go to YouTube and subscribe to this link. This gives you access to many of the Twig Science Reporters' videos from Imagine Learning. Scroll down after using the link.

Navigation & Use

Select the video below to watch a short preview of grade three Science with Twig.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh9j0bdBtEM

News Updates

Don't miss the latest developments in science and engineering with weekly films focusing on current news and significant world events.

Features

Don't miss the latest developments in science and engineering with weekly films focusing on current news and significant world events.

Videos

Discover the answers to curious questions and meet the craziest creatures with engaging and thought-provoking videos.

Fact Packs

Explore science-related facts with text-based resources.


Subscriptions

Tynker

Tynker (K-Grade 10) teaches coding as students create games and animated projects. Students gain a solid foundation in programming and computational thinking, which prepares them to transition to any mainstream object-oriented programming language. After learning the fundamentals, students can transition to JavaScript or Python within the Tynker learning system.

HCOS Enrolled students who wish to receive teacher-guided instruction in Tynker can email Mr Mark Lamden for more information about enrolling in the online ADST: Levelled Coding module. Check with your support teacher for Mr Lamden's contact information.

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

There are eight steps to log in to Tynker.


Step 1: Email Margaret Basaraba for help setting up an account. If your students already have a Tynker account, you can email Margaret Basaraba to ask for additional classes to be added to their account.


Step 2: Navigate to Tynker and select "Log In" from the top right corner.

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Step 3: Select "Student." 

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Step 4: Enter the username and password provided by Margaret or your support teacher, then click the orange "Log in" button.

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Step 5: Select "school" from the drop-down menu by the Tynker logo.

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Step 6: Select the "join a class" button.

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Step 7: Enter the class code provided by Margaret or your support teacher.

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Step 8: Select the course you wish to enter by clicking on the picture.

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Navigation & Use

Watch this short video to learn more about how students can use Tynker. Additional video tutorials are available at the Tynker Support Centre.

Completing Lessons

Each lesson will be brightly lit before it is completed. There will be many steps inside the lesson to complete it. Select the picture to open the lesson.

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As each lesson is completed, it will be grayed out.

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As you start each lesson, you will see locks on each of the parts of the lesson that are not completed. Tynker will move you through each of these steps. When the lesson is complete, all the locks will be gone, and only numbers will remain.

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To log out during a lesson, select "Replay." Go to the top right and select "log out."

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A progress bar will appear if you have only partly completed a lesson.

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Students can repeat previous parts of a lesson by selecting an earlier number.

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Students can move forward to a new lesson by selecting the gray arrow by the Tynker logo in the top left corner.

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All of the numbers will be shown when a lesson is complete.   

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Sound can be turned off by selecting the three dots at the top right corner and then toggling the "Sound" switch.

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Subscriptions

What in the World?

What in the World? (Grades 5-10) is a current events resource that enhances understanding of current Canadian and international events. The magazine is published eight times a year from September to May. Each issue includes:

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In 

Access to "What in the World?" magazine has changed. Contact your teacher to receive access to the "What in the World?" resources.

Navigation & Use

Your support teacher will need to forward the documents to you.

Magazine Formats

Magazines are available in two formats: .pdf and .docx.

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Students' resource links that coordinate with the current magazines can be found here.

Subscriptions

World Book

World Book (K-Grade 12) is the leading online encyclopedia. The website is accessed through Focused Education Resources and the BC Digital Classroom.

Focused Education Resources is a not-for-profit, shared services organization that supports excellence in K-12 education in British Columbia. It is a consortium of BC public school districts and independent schools that work together to create accessible learning resources for BC schools. Within Focused Education Resources is the BC Digital Classroom, which houses many of the subscriptions available to HCOS and Flex families.

Click below to learn more about the specific features offered by World Book.

Early Learning (K-Grade 3)

Early Learning supports early elementary students with “Trek’s Travels,” “Welcome to Reading,” and “Know It.” These sites include narrative stories, interactive games, and a visual encyclopedia to support early reading, numeracy, and knowledge. Pre-readers will enjoy listening to stories. Readers can control the story's pace as word-by-word highlighting guides them. They can also play games and enjoy sorting, painting, and matching puzzles. Print-and-go activities will also interest your primary-aged students.

World Book Kids (K-Grade 5)

World Book Kids is an online encyclopedia designed for a younger primary elementary audience with easy-to-read articles, illustrations, and engaging activities. Students can enjoy science projects, experiments, biographical searches, animal comparisons, and mapping searches, including World Book Maps with printable PDF maps.

World Book Student (Grades 5-8)

World Book Student gives elementary and middle school students access to encyclopedia and reference articles, biographies, videos, animations, historical features, educational tools, and activities. Students will learn about research skills needed to complete research projects, including the planning process, evaluating sources, and creating citations. Students will also learn how to use MyResearch, which allows them to save all their research. Students can also create timelines to make their social study projects sparkle with 21st-century options. The biography centre will help students research famous Canadians and inspiring people. Surf the Ages website is for ancient civilizations research. Quizzes and activities are made easy for teachers and students to access. In the Headlines provides a history feed from news of the day.

World Book Discover (Grades 3-9)

World Book Discover is a collection of resources for differentiated learning, including read-aloud, text translation, video, and easy-to-read information. This resource supports students who need additional support with research articles, tools, and multimedia and interactive videos. There is also a life skills component to help students build financial literacy and health education skills.

World Book Advanced (Grades 9-12)

World Book Advanced gives students access to refined optimized searching of encyclopedias, multimedia, eBooks (including Shakespeare and Dickens, library, and other classics), and primary source databases. It also includes research tools such as dictionaries, atlas, and research guides with bibliographical citation builders. Students have the ability to create individual accounts, save their content, create timelines, and develop citations in MLA format. Primary and secondary sources are covered in all databases. The Pathfinders feature helps students research popular topics and links to media, biographies, government, and history.

World Book Timelines (K-Grade 12)

World Book Timelines is optimized for tablets and offers hundreds of pre-generated timelines across eight broad topics, which cover various time periods in history or span the life of historical public figures. Featuring more personalization and customization options than any other World Book site, World Book Timelines allows users to create their own timeline from scratch, adding events, descriptions, and media. 

L’Encyclopédie Découverte (Grades 8-12)

L'Encyclopédie Découverte offers students a colourful engagement in the French language. Categories include: People, Exploring the World, Science and Math, Religions of the World, Plants and Animals, History, Arts and Literature, and Sports and Hobbies. Rich with images and engaging activities, L'Encyclopédie Découverte gives students added value and experience alongside their French language studies. This site is for students who are already fluent in French and is not meant to be a language-learning resource.

Logging In

There are two steps to log in to World Book.


Step 1Navigate to BC Digital Classroom, then select the icon for the World Book resource you wish to access.


Step 2: Enter the username and password for World Book from the Subs/Passwords tab in the Search Portal.

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Navigation & Use

Select the video below to watch a short overview of World Book Online.

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World Book Online Video Tutorials is a collection of brief video tutorials to help familiarize users with the resources available on World Book.

Saving Your Research

World Book allows students to set up their own “My Research” page for saving their work. Click the hamburger menu (three lines) at the top right corner to access.

Next, select “My Research” from the navigation options.

Finally, select “Create an Account” to set up your folder with your username and password.


Users can now save a WorldBook article to their "My Research" page by selecting the "Tools" setting in the upper right corner of the article.

Subscriptions

World Watch News

World Watch News (Grades 7-12) contains current news stories from Christian journalists through engaging 10-minute episodes, airing each weekday. This platform invites students to build news literacy, critical thinking, and Biblical discernment. Students are reminded daily that “whatever the news, the purpose of the Lord will stand.”

This subscription is not available to HCOS Registered students.

Logging In

Navigate to World Watch News and use the code found in the Search Portal or the Learning Commons Website to set up your account.

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Fill in the form and select the "I am at least 13 years old" button. Then select the "Register Your Account" button. 

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Please ignore the "Get 30 Days Free" button on the next page. Use the "Sign In" button at the top right of the page.

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Navigation & Use

Download the World Watch News app on your preferred streaming service.

World Watch News uses Vimeo to play videos. If your content blocker is not allowing you to view their pages, you may need to add Vimeo as a trusted site.

If you would like to receive daily email reminders, scroll to the bottom of the home page and select “Add an email address” to sign up for automatic emails.

Unit Study Kits

Unit Study Kits are a carefully researched compilation of reading and listening resources, curated subscriptions, and choice-based activities based on BC's curriculum's Big Ideas and Core and Curricular Competencies. Learners will engage in questioning, researching, discussing, exploring, creating, reflecting, and designing as they interact with these engaging activities and topics while inquiring about the world around them. 

This short video will help you get started with Unit Study Kits on the Learning Commons website.

In this video, Rachael Rennie shares how to use HCOS Unit Study Kits. Below are timestamps to help you navigate to specific topics in the video:

1:54-2:16 What are Unit Study Kits?
2:17-10:17 What’s inside a Unit Study Kit?
10:47-13:21 Why use Unit Study Kits?
13:22-15:17 Tips for Using Unit Study Kits
15:18-15:40 Where to find Unit Study Kits
15:58-18:36 Unit Study Kit Tour
20:40-23:01 How can Unit Study Kits be adapted?
23:02-24:44 How long should it take to complete a Unit Study Kit?

Purpose & Goals

Unit Study Kits provide a flexible option for families who seek to build academic skills and knowledge with Social Studies and Science units aligned to the BC Curriculum. Many of our kits offer flexibility for whole-family learning. We encourage families and teachers to collaborate in the kit selection and planning process. 

Our kits support learning in a variety of areas, including: 

Learn more about Unit Study Kits at specific grade levels by exploring the following categories:

Grades K-3

Our Grades K-3 Unit Study Kits are filled with fun and flexible activities to bring God’s world to life for our youngest learners. Families will discover beautiful books, intentionally selected videos, and engaging activities.

Grades 4-5

Students in Grades 4-5 are gaining confidence as learners and enjoy being challenged with thought-provoking content, skill development, fascinating books and videos, and a wonderful array of knowledge-building activities.

Grade 6

Our newly revised Grade 6 humanities-based kits contain specific assignments that allow students to delve deeply into curricular topics while still providing them with room to express themselves as unique children of God.

Grades 7-9

Unit Study Kits for Grades 7-9 students are designed to begin preparing them for the HCOS Grad program. Units provide structured learning opportunities within a framework that promotes choice while allowing students room to express themselves as learners.

HCOS Unit Study Kits are available in both physical and digital formats. In Grades K-6, a blended instruction guide is used for all kits. In Grades 7-9, you will access a digital guide for links and other digital resources; however, you can also borrow a physical kit from the Learning Commons.

Unit Study Kit Components

HCOS Unit Study Kits are available in a digital format (blended guide), with an optional physical kit of books and resources that you can borrow from the Search Portal to have shipped to your home.

Digital Unit Study Kits

Nothing will be mailed to you when you choose a digital kit, as all your resources will be digital. Digital Unit Study Kits are accessible through the Learning Commons using your Encom username and password. You will also need passwords for the various subscriptions used in the kits. To view these, log in to the Search Portal and choose the Subscriptions Icon in the menu at the top. This will take you to the Subscriptions page, where you will find usernames, links, and passwords.

Unit Study Kits comprise the Unit Study Kit guide and accompanying eBooks, audiobooks, and subscriptions linked directly within them. These guides are digital documents with fully clickable links. Blended guides contain links to digital books, videos, and other virtual tools, games, and interactive resources. All instructions for activities are found within the kit guide. We recommend that you log into Sora and the subscriptions before starting, saving the passwords in your browser as you go. If eBooks are unavailable, please get in touch with Pippa Davies.

Unit Study Kit Guides


Blended Guide

Digital Guide

Physical Guide

Physical Unit Study Kit (Add-on)

Kindergarten to Grade 5

Grade 6 Social Studies

Grade 6 Science

Grades 7-9

We are in the process of creating updated blended guides for Grade 6 Unit Study Kits.

Digital Unit Study Kits are available to all HCOS students.

Physical Unit Study Kits (Optional Add-on)

Physical Unit Study Kits can be booked through the Learning Commons Search Portal. When you order a physical kit from the Learning Commons, you will be mailed an assortment of physical books to accompany your learning. The kit will be shipped to your home, and HCOS will send a courier to pick it up afterward. You must still access the digital unit study kit (guide) online.

Physical Unit Study Kits are available to HCOS-enrolled students only. 

French Unit Study Kits

These kits have been written for students in grades 5 - 9 but can also be used for older students. They provide reading and viewing content as well as offering listening, speaking and writing suggestions. Any work completed by students should be shared with their support or course teacher for evaluation.  They are intended to be supplementary in nature and will not cover all aspects of Core French, especially conversational components. These kits can be found on our website by selecting "French" in the subjects filter:

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Watch the video below to learn more about how to use French Kits:

0:25 - 0:45 Receiving and reviewing physical books from the Learning Commons
1:08 - 1:12 Table of Contents - components of each kit
1:12 - 1:41 Vocabulary
1:42 - 3:39 Reading
3:40 - 4:14 Post-reading Questions
4:15 - 4:49 Reference book activity ideas
4:50 - 5:24 Comic Book Activity suggestions
5:25 - 5:56 Videos and Music
5:57 - 6:14 BrainPOP suggested videos
6:15 - 6:49 Writing Project Ideas
6:50 - 7:30 Speaking and Conversation Ideas
7:31 - 8:04 Reflection
8:05 - 8:13 Standards

Used Bookstore

Welcome to the HCOS Used Curriculum Store

You will find books and curricula from many of your favourite publishers: A Beka, Saxon, Sonlight, RightStart Math, Tree of Life, and more! We have curricula covering Math, Socials, Science, Language Arts, Health, Bible, and Art, as well as novels and MakerEd/manipulatives. If you are looking for something in particular, email Shandra Wiebe at swiebe@onlineschool.ca; she will check to see if a copy is available.  

Webstore Policies

Please read the product descriptions carefully. The edition of the item will be noted where information is available. Descriptions include a list of all items in a set.

Condition is noted as follows:

Searching for Items 

To Search, click on the Shop tab. Categories appear on the left.  Once you click on a title, you will see Tags that can help refine your search by grade or other filters. You can also enter the title or publisher into the Search Bar for results.

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Payment & Shipping

Shipping costs are based on the number of items purchased and the weight and bulk of certain items.

  1. Add the items to your cart

  2. When done adding items, click on the cart

  3. Enter the promotional code if there is one active

  4. If you are using a PO Number for payment, enter: HCOS PO in the coupon code box, then enter the PO number in the comments box at the bottom of the Shipping page. 

**If there is a sale with a percentage off coupon (i.e. thanks10), it must be entered as the FIRST coupon before the HCOS PO coupon to receive the discount.

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7. Choose your shipping method:

Product Descriptions

Please read the product descriptions carefully. The edition of the item and condition (e.g., new, like new, fair) will be noted where information is available. Descriptions include a list of all items in a set.

It is your responsibility to ensure you are purchasing the correct edition or volume needed. 

Returns & Refunds

We do not offer returns or refunds but will issue a credit if an item is not working (e.g., CD, DVD).

Visiting the Physical Learning Commons

Pick-ups/Drop-offs -The physical Learning Commons in Kelowna is open Mon–Fri from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Browsing Resources - You can browse the curriculum and the used bookstore anytime, but the main library conducts classes. Call or email to find the best time to come; after 3:00 p.m. is usually fine. Email Kelly Wiebe at kelly.wiebe@onlineschool.ca or call 778-721-8309.

Learning Commons location: