Ready for some smart summer fun? Yay!! Camp TV brings the excitement of day camp right into your living room. Led by Head Counselor Zach, each hour-long episode is packed with activities in STEM, reading, the arts and other areas. Kids can also look forward to video adventures and virtual road trips to cool places around the country — plus much, much more. For ages 5–10.
Camp TV will air on KERA Channel 13 at 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. on weekdays from June 21 – August 13
Activities for each camp day are organized around a theme, like Summer Celebration Day, Snow Day, Patterns Day, Inside Out Day, Independence Day, Celebrate Your Name Day, Sports Day, Mismatched Shoe (and Sock!) Day, Favorite Animal Day, Ocean Day, Farm Day and more. Camp TV is produced by The WNET Group in New York. (WNET started Camp TV last summer, so this summer’s episodes are labeled Season 2.)
Here are downloadable, printable activity guides on what’s in store for each week!
WEEK ONE WEEK TWO WEEK THREE WEEK FOUR
WEEK FIVE WEEK SIX WEEK 7 WEEK 8
Open your world to acclaimed documentaries, public affairs programs and news on our newest channel KERA WORLD (Channel 13.4 on KERA’s over-the-air signal). The 24/7 channel showcases award-winning programs – some of the best non-fiction programming available anywhere.
KERA WORLD is a great resource for middle and high school students who want to keep learning over the summer. The schedule includes popular and critically-acclaimed series like American Experience, The Day, PBS NewsHour, Amanpour And Company, Out In Rural America, Reel South, Doc World and America Reframed. Special television events like Soledad O’Brien’s Pandemic in Seattle, in addition to a variety of appropriately themed independent films and programs, will also be scheduled.
Click here for more information about KERA World, a link to KERA’s TV schedule page and a link to the World Channel’s official site, which has more scheduling information
This website is chock full of helpful resources, including advice articles for parents and activities, videos and games for children. The site has content in English & recursos en español.
Here are some great things to check out:
▸Learn & Grow — This is a great resource for parents and caregivers of children ages 2-8. You’ll find descriptions of development levels in seven key areas — emotions & self-awareness, social skills, character, literacy, math, science and arts — along with activities and tips to help children grow in each of those areas.
▸Summer of Possibilities – The stars are the limit – literally – with this collection of tips for parents and activities for kids to do at home, many organized around themes like exploring space, reading, sharing stories and creating family routines. There’s also a printable Summer Activity Book with more games and activities and a printable Summer Reading Chart.
▸PBS KIDS Read – This site is devoted to developing a love for reading. Parents and caregivers will find tips, activities, crafts, games, lots of booklists, videos of read-alouds and much more. Get ready to dive into your next reading adventure!
PBS created dozens of these printable packets through the last school year to help kids stay engaged and learning. Each week’s packet follows a different theme, such as shadows, seasons, shapes, nature, storytelling and much more. As children complete each activity they mark their progress on a bingo card. You’ll find four packets for each week, in English and Spanish for PK-K and Grades 1-2.
Keep your child engaged and learning with monthly printable calendars of fun things to do at home each day, from our friends at PBS.
JUNE CALENDAR JULY CALENDAR AUGUST CALENDAR
These videos, activities and games will keep your child engaged and learning for weeks. Topics include nature, literacy, math, storytelling, animals, space, art and much more. Resources are broken down by grade groups. (PK – Grade 5)
These videos investigate the world through experiments, demonstrations and activities. Kids are invited to join along with host Mister C and his science crew to complete fun DIY science experiments using household materials. (grades 4-6)
Summer is a good time to get to know some of the great new shows introduced by PBS KIDS in the last couple of years. You can watch shows on KERA Channel 13, on the KERA Kids 24/7 channel, and on the KERA Kids live stream. Each show extends its educational value by also providing digital games, activities and other resources to help children practice and deepen skills they learn on the show. Here are a few examples to get you started.
| ▸ Hero Elementary – Students at Hero Elementary know that science and engineering skills can make all humans truly super. This show engages children as scientists and communicators, to learn about the natural and human-made world. Find videos, games and activities here. Check this site for videos and engaging activities. |  |
| ▸ Donkey Hodie – This upbeat yellow donkey and her pals encourage preschoolers to dream big and overcome obstacles through perseverance, resourcefulness and creative problem-solving. Like Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, this show has roots in the TV classic Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Find videos, games and activities here. And check here for video clips, lesson plans and activities. Some lesson plans and activities are in Spanish. |  |
| ▸ Elinor Wonders Why – In PBS KIDS’ smart new science show, Elinor and her friends encourage children to follow their curiosity and seek out answers using their science inquiry skills. Find videos, games and activities here. This site has interactive lessons, printable activities, videos and more, including many resources in Spanish. |  |
| ▸ Molly of Denali – Alaska Native Molly Mabray is a feisty and resourceful 10-year-old who takes children on adventures. Along the way, they learn about using informational text and gain appreciation for Alaska Native values, such as respecting others, sharing what you have and honoring your elders. The PBS KIDS site has videos, games, activities and a podcast. Check here for lessons, teaching tips, videos, digital games and activities. |  |
| ▸ Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum – This creative show helps children see their potential for greatness by involving them in adventures that include a diverse group of accomplished historical figures, from Alexander Graham Bell to Zora Neale Hurston. The PBS KIDS site has videos, games and activities. Look here for videos, teaching tips, activities and historical figure biosketches. |  |
PBS LearningMedia is a FREE collection of more than 30,000 videos, lessons, activities, games, background reading, discussion questions and other resources to enrich teaching, help students master skills and content and challenge them to dig deeper on assigned topics. Resources are available for all grades, PreK-12. Many materials come from great PBS shows like NOVA, Nature, American Experience, Sesame Street and Arthur, to name just a few. You can find resources for your favorite show by typing its name into the search bar. Resources are aligned to the Texas PK Guidelines and the TEKS teaching standards. Here are some examples of content to get you started:
▸Earth and Space Science and Life Science
▸U.S. History and World History
▸K-8 Math and High School Algebra
▸ELA Writing and Literature
Teachers – and parents – who want lesson ideas for the summer or who want to start planning classes for next year, should check out these helpful planning kits that PBS created last school year. Each of the five kits is loaded with resources for creating lessons for teaching online and in person. They are packaged for planning eight weeks out and include ideas and materials for elementary or secondary grades. Lessons often pair PBS videos and/or live TV shows with online activities, discussion questions, etc., that teach the same theme.
Find activities, games, interactive lessons, videos and other resources to reinforce key math skills for Kindergarten – Algebra I. We curated these resources to support math lessons that aired on KERA Channel 13 in summer 2020 in a unique partnership between KERA and the Dallas Independent School District. Dallas teachers created the lessons to keep students from falling behind after schools were closed due to Coronavirus in the spring. We’ve saved the resource page to help students fine tune their math mastery anytime they want.