Offline Learning Activities

Read a book, or have an adult read a book to you. Then:

• Count the number of words in a sentence from the book.
• Count and say the number of syllables in a word.
• Find sight words that you are learning.
• Act out the story.
• Retell the story in your own words.
• Describe the characters, setting, main events of a story in your own words (tell someone about the main characters, places, and beginning, middle, and end of the story in your own words).
• Tell the main idea and details of the story.
• Draw a picture of or write about your favorite part of the story.
• Tell or write a different ending to a story.
• Predict what would happen in the story if the character was different. (Think of a new character to add in the story.  What would happen with your new character?)
   

Draw or write about your day. Tell in words or pictures:

• What did you do?
• What did other people in your family do?
• How did you feel?
   

Take a walk around your home, or with permission with an adult, a walk around your neighborhood.

• Take pictures or draw pictures of what you see.
• Identify and make or draw a list of items in your home or neighborhood that are person-made and items that are from nature.
• Draw or write about your walk. Tell in words or pictures:
  • What did you notice?
  • What questions do you have about your home or about things in your neighborhood?
  • How do you think your home was built or other buildings in your neighborhood were made?

Find a clock. Then think about:

• How many minutes it will be until breakfast; until lunch; until snack; until dinner; until your favorite TV show.
• Keep track of how many minutes it takes you to read a book. Determine what time it would be if you read the book again.
• Keep track of how many minutes it takes you to do daily routines, such as taking a bath or shower, getting dressed, brushing your teeth, or eating breakfast/lunch/dinner. If you started a routine at 9:00 AM, what time would it be when you finished? How many minutes total does it take you to do all of the routines?
   

Find a measuring device such as a ruler, yardstick or meter stick. If you don’t have a standard measuring device, choose something to use, such as a book or shoe. Then measure objects or rooms with the measuring device.

Count the objects in your room. How many total objects are there? How many are pieces of furniture? How many are items of clothing? How many are toys? How many are other types of objects?

Sort the objects in your room. Choose how to sort the objects such as by type, by color, by size, or by use.

Name all of the shapes in your house. Make a list of the shapes such as book = rectangle; nightstand top = square; bowl = circle/hemisphere; sink = oval.

Look for patterns in your house. Draw the patterns you find.

Read or listen to a book: 

• Write, draw or share with a family member a retelling of the story in your own words.
• Describe the characters, setting, main events of a story in your own words.
• Tell the main idea and details of the story.
• Write about your favorite part of the story. Explain why it was your favorite part.
• Summarize the story, including the characters, setting, main events, and author’s message.
• Pick one of the main characters. Write about the challenges or problems the character faced and how they resolved the challenges or problems.
• Identify a character from the story, and then make the character different in some way. Rewrite the story, being sure to change the story in appropriate ways due to the way you changed the character.
• Write a different ending to a story.
   

Read a nonfiction text. Then:

• Summarize the text, including the key ideas you learned.
• Compare the nonfiction text with a similar narrative text. Write about how the narrative got things correct when compared to the nonfiction facts. Write about where the author of the narrative text took liberties with facts.
   

Write a narrative story, poem, or play. If you write a play, act it out for people who live in your home.

Write about your day. Share:

• What did you do?
• What did other people in your family do?
• What feelings did you experience? How did your feelings influence how you acted or what you chose to do? Why?
• What would you choose to do differently tomorrow or in the future based on your experience on the day you write about?
   

Take a walk around your home, or with permission and an adult, a walk around your neighborhood.

• Take pictures or draw scientific illustrations (with labels!) of what you see.
• Identify and make a list of items in your home or neighborhood that are person-made and items that are from nature. Pick one of the objects and write about it in detail without using the actual object’s name; use as much descriptive language as possible with the goal of having another person be able to tell you what the object is.
• Draw or write about your walk. Tell in words or pictures:
  • How do you think your home was built or other buildings in your neighborhood were made?
  • What questions do you have about your home or about things in your neighborhood?
  • What did you notice?

Create a math game that uses: 

• cards
• coins
• dice
• eating utensils, bowls, plates, etc.
   

Look for a recipe -- in a recipe book or on a food box, bag or can.
Then double, triple, or quadruple the recipe and determine how many units of each ingredient would be needed.

Choose a number. Build equations that equal that number.
Try to use a mix of +, -, x and ÷. (Example: My number is 4. 2+2=4. 5-2+1=4. 16-8÷2=4.  4x4=16. 4+4=8. 4-4=0. 4(4+4)=32.)

Look for shapes in your home, in magazines, in books. Make a list of the shapes you find. Describe the shapes, telling how many angles, sides and faces (if the shape is 3-dimensional) that they have.

Build something out of objects in your home. Write about your process: What did you choose to build and why? What items were required? What tools did you use, if any? What steps did you take to build your finished product?

Monitor and describe the weather.

• Take note of the weather each hour, and write about what you notice.
• Describe the temperature every hour (use a thermometer or invent your own system for determining how hot or cold it is)?
• If there is wind, what is the speed of the wind and from what direction is it coming?
• What precipitation do you notice? Determine a system for measuring the precipitation and monitor the volume over a 12-hour and 24-hour period of time.

Read a book. Then:

• Summarize the story, including the characters, setting, main events, and author’s message.
• Write about the theme. What is the  theme you’ve identified? Justify your position.
• Pick one of the main characters. Write about the challenges or problems the character faced and how they resolved the challenges or problems.
• Identify a character from the story, and then make the character different in some way. Rewrite the story, being sure to change the story in appropriate ways due to the way you changed the character.
• Write a different ending to a story.
   

Read a nonfiction text. Then:

• Summarize the text, including the key ideas you learned.
• Compare the nonfiction text with a similar narrative text. Write about how the narrative got things correct when compared to the nonfiction facts. Write about where the author of the narrative text took liberties with facts.
   

Write a narrative story, poem, or play. If you write a play, act it out for people who live in your home.

Take a walk around your home, or with permission and an adult, a walk around your neighborhood.

• Identify and make a list of items in your home or neighborhood that are person-made and items that are from nature.
• Pick one of the objects and write about it in detail without using the actual object’s name; use as much descriptive language as possible with the goal of having another person be able to tell you what the object is.
   

Write an opinion paper about a current event. Specifically:

• Summarize the current event. What’s happening? What was the origin of the situation?
• Consider both sides of a current event and write about the different perspectives.
• Form your own opinion about the event, and assert your opinion. Provide a reasoned argument to support your opinion.
   

Write a narrative story in your favorite genre.

Write the lyrics to a favorite song -- either the entire song, or perhaps just the chorus. Then:

• Describe the meaning of the lyrics to you. Why do these lyrics appeal to you? What message do they send to you?
• Rewrite the lyrics.

Create a math game that uses: 

• cards
• coins
• dice
• eating utensils, bowls, plates, etc.
   

Look for a recipe -- in a recipe book or on a food box, bag or can.
Then double, triple, or quadruple the recipe and determine how many units of each ingredient would be needed.

Choose a number. Build equations that equal that number.
Try to use a mix of +, -, x and ÷. (Example: My number is 4. 2+2=4. 5-2+1=4. 16-8÷2=4.  4x4=16. 4+4=8. 4-4=0. 4(4+4)=32.)

Look for shapes in your home, in magazines, in books. Then…

• Make a list of the shapes you find.
• Describe the shapes, telling how many angles, sides and faces (if the shape is 3-dimensional) they have.
• Find the area and perimeter of each shape using a standard measuring tool (e.g., ruler) or your own measuring tool (e.g., shoe, pencil).
   

Draw and/or construct geometric figures. Write about the characteristics of these shapes. Describe the number of angles, sides, and/or faces. Explain the total number of degrees in each shape, and how you determined this.

Use a measuring device of some sort -- examples: ruler, meter stick, ruler app on your phone, or even a random object. Use the device to measure the perimeter, area, and volume of your room, and/or of the rooms in your home. If using random object, convert the measurement of the device into metrics. If using a typical 12” ruler that has no metric indicators on it, convert all of the measurements into metric units.

Develop, administer and graph a survey using the people in your home.

Ask for permission and then, assemble an item in your home that might need to be built.

Ask for permission, and then, try to fix an item in your home that might be broken.

Talk with family members about their careers or about various careers, and then write a summary of your conversation. Questions to ask:

• What skills or knowledge are required for your career?
• What career options did you explore?
• If you were to change careers, what would you choose? Why?