Dolly Parton reads bedtime stories, a free activity book for pint-size horse lovers, and other books and activities to safeguard your little ones from cabin fever while you are #HomeOnTheRange.
Add Dolly Parton, country music icon and American hero, to the list of people and institutions making life a little more bearable for parents and kids alike while much of the world is on lockdown.
The first episode of her Goodnight With Dolly video series streamed live at 6 p.m. CDT yesterday (Thursday, April 2) on the YouTube page of Imagination Library, the book-giving charity the country music goddess launched in 1995. In the first installment, Parton read The Little Engine That Could — a fittingly hopeful American fairy tale about perseverance. In next week’s installment, April 9, Parton will read her own Coat of Many Colors, followed April 16 by Llama Llama Red Pajama. Find the full schedule at the Imagination Library website.
As if that weren’t enough, she also announced her donation of $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for research and finding a cure for the coronavirus.
The AQHA is offering a free ebook with the straightforward title Activity Book for Horse-Loving Kids that is bound to be a godsend for parents, grandparents, and other caretakers of children with an interest in horses. The 26-page downloadable booklet includes pictures to color and activities including color by numbers, find the differences, craft projects, a trail mix recipe, trivia, a maze, and more. Download it here.
Texas A&M Agrilife Extension has a free downloadable children’s activity book, too, with an emphasis on physical activity and nutrition.
There are plenty of other sources of education, entertainment, and activities for kids that will particularly appeal to C&I readers and their families.
The American Museum of Natural History has a science website for kids called Ology — you know, as in biology, paleontology, zoology — with games and activities for science lovers of all ages. The astronomy tab, geared toward the study of planets, stars, and other heavenly bodies, should be of special interest to kids living out in the country and in other sparsely populated areas that offer great views of the night sky thanks to reduced light pollution. The anthropology tab includes hands-on activities including paper cutouts of horse gear and riders from around the world, including a Plains Indian woman; and archaeology lessons include information about the Americas’ earliest Indigenous peoples.
We shared a few art museums offering online visits. Natural history museums are also ramping up their online offerings while visitors can't visit in person, and the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming, is among those offering virtual visits.
“When people can’t come to the museum, our staff members bring the museum to them!” writes the museum. Educators from the museum offer Skype lessons, Facebook Live programs, and other educational resources.
