Schools and daycare centres are closed because of coronavirus, but that doesn’t mean kids have to stop learning and developing life skills. With young people stuck at home, parents and educators across Ontario, Canada and the United States are turning to worthwhile educational curriculum online. This version of SOS 4 Kids’ popular Home Alone course has seen a large spike right across North America as parents look for solutions and educators source out meaningful programs for their students.
To help stop the spread of the virus, SOS 4 Kids in-person classes were cancelled during spring break, leaving parents scrambling and close to 800 kids in the Greater Toronto Area displaced. Caring adults find the Home Alone Safety for kids course a worthwhile program to help their kids prepare to stay home without adult supervision. This online course provides the same learning as the in-class training. It helps kids build confidence and skills for independence.
Youth with ADHD, learning disabilities and other special needs have always found the learning modules of the online Home Alone Safety program easy to use where a traditional classroom setting may be more challenging for them. The platform caters well to individual learning needs and to a variety of learner types. Youth learn the material at their own pace and convenience independently or with a parent or caregiver, allowing them to revisit material if repetition is the way they learn best.
Engaging and interactive, the online version takes a typical learner approx. 90 minutes to complete. Youth learn a great deal and often are able to teach their parents a thing or two after completing the program. It is very comprehensive and can benefit the whole family. The program engages youth by using games, digital media, videos and quizzes throughout seven learning modules that cover:
Staying alert and Street Smarts
People safety (Strangers and Tricky People)
At home safety
Online safety
Fire safety
Basic first aid
Injury prevention
The curriculum benefits all young people regardless of where they are on their journey to independence. It helps with home alone preparedness, but any youth can take the program whether they are going to stay home without adult supervision or not. The goal is to empower people with skills to make confident choices, prevent dangerous situations and live a safer life.
