by California Casualty | Educators |
Our Education Blogger is a public school teacher with over a decade of experience. She’s an active NEA member and enjoys writing about her experiences in education.
Have you ever shown a video to the class only to be bombarded by ads and other distracting content? Sometimes, that distracting content can be inappropriate for school, and in some situations, get you into trouble! Educators know to view any videos prior to a class viewing to evaluate its appropriateness, but have you ever thought about what else is happening on the page or video you are watching? Fortunately, there is something you can do about it.
We’ve put together a collection of 6 free resources you can use to remove and block advertisements and other distractions from web pages and videos. These helpful resources allow you to safely show videos without worry, and they’re all simple to use.
AdBlock is one of the most popular ad blockers worldwide with more than 60 million users on Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge as well as Android. It removes ads from YouTube videos and blocks websites and search ads. Easy to install and free to use within Google Chrome. Perfect for student research. Students can become easily distracted by advertisements and videos. AdBlock helps to keep students focused.
NicerTube gets rid of all the fluff, distractions, and questionable content around YouTube videos. Copy YouTube video URL, paste into the required field, choose a background, and create your safe video. NicerTube generates a new link to your video. All for free!
SafeShare.tv Safely watch and share YouTube and Vimeo videos without advertisements and other unwanted distractions such as annotation so that they can be viewed safely without the hassle of first having to download and convert videos with YouTube Downloader. To view a video ad-free, copy and paste the video’s URL into SafeShare.tv’s safe-link generator. The site will automatically send you to the safe version of your video. You may also choose a title and description of the video.
ViewPure allows users to watch YouTube videos without comments or other distractions. ViewPure removes all comments and related videos, allowing videos to be watched without distractions, or more likely, without “inappropriate content.” It is simple and free! No need to copy and paste a URL. Simply drag and drop the “Purify” button into your toolbar. Click the “Purify” button when you are on a YouTube page to remove ads and other distracting content.
Quietube offers the ability to watch videos without the distractions. To watch web videos without the comments and other unnecessary junk, just drag the Quietube button to your browser’s bookmarks bar. Supports videos from YouTube, Viddler, and Vimeo. The site seems primitive and is only one page, however, it gets the job done!
TubeChop allows you to easily chop a funny or interesting section from any YouTube video and share it. This is a great, free tool if you want to show part of a video. Find the video you want to chop, select and cut the video, and share it. There are no ads or other distractions.
We want to hear from you! What resources do you use to remove ads and other distracting content from videos and websites? Let us know in the comment section.
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to education professionals, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
by California Casualty | Educators, News |
“Books give a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” -Plato
“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” -Joseph Addison
“There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.” -Walt Disney
Books have been used for centuries to teach, to excite, to calm, to humor, to escape reality, and so much more. Although we may not be able to go enjoy our favorite books at school or in libraries, during these trying times, we are fortunate enough to still be able to celebrate the transformative power of reading with our families by enjoying ebooks for free online.
Here are 5 websites that offer free ebooks for kids, so they can discover their love for reading:
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- Open Library – A non-profit internet archive of more than one million books that are available to read for free online, 20,000 of those are children’s books
- Oxford Owl – Is a website designed for parents to help kids learn. It has 200+ free ebooks along with activity guides separated by age and reading level to help kids learn.
- Barnes & Noble Free eBooks – Offers a large selection of free picture books, chapter books, and read-along eBooks for toddlers, as well as free fiction, non-fiction, and educational eBooks for young readers. You can download them with their free Nook app.
- Amazon’s Free Kids eBooks – Has children’s books for free download on their website by visiting the “Kindle” tab and opening up “Children’s eBooks”, you can then select any genre you would like and at the top of each genre’s page, there is a “100 Free” tab.
- International Children’s Digital Library – Is a non-profit website that offers thousands of books for children separated by age group and genre. Create a free account to save books and start reading.
If your child prefers audiobooks you could visit the World Book Day’s World of Stories, which is currently offering free audiobooks in the genres: Picture Books, Young Fiction, Fiction, & Teen.
Or you can download these audiobook apps:
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- Audible Audiobooks & Originals
- LibriVox Audiobooks
- AudioBooks.com Get Audiobooks
- CloudBeats Audiobooks Offline
- Bookmobile Audiobook Player
*Please note that not all books on audiobook apps are free
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
by California Casualty | Auto Insurance Info, Educators, News |
Earth Day is a holiday celebrated around the globe to raise awareness about environmental impacts and issues.
Celebrate the holiday by getting outdoors with your kids and trying some of these fun crafts!










Head over to our Pinterest board, “Earth Day Crafts for Kids” for more fun Earth Day activities you can do with your kids at home. Don’t forget to give us a follow at California Casualty to stay up to date on every new recipe idea we discover! Scan our Pincode with your Pinterest camera to follow:

This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters and nurses. California Casualty does not own any of the photos in this post, all are sourced to their original owners. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
by California Casualty | Educators, News |
Here are 32 Youtube Channels made for online learning K-12!
Click here to download the guide.

This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
by California Casualty | Educators, News |
Here are 100+ Indoor Activities that your child can do indoors, that don’t require a screen!
Click here to download.

This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
by California Casualty | Educators, Health |
Our Education Blogger is a public school teacher with over a decade of experience. She’s an active NEA member and enjoys writing about her experiences in the classroom.
The “discussion.” It’s inevitable. Kids are going to want to talk about Coronavirus-COVID19 (if they haven’t asked you already). This is a difficult, yet important, discussion. So, where do we start the conversation?
The good news- There’s no right or wrong way to approach this topic. However, if you are unsure of how to navigate this conversation, you may find these tips to be helpful.
Be Calm
Your kids naturally react to your emotions. When you are calm, kids are more likely to listen to you and better understand.
Be Available
Allow time in your schedule simply for talking. Tell your kids you are available if they have questions. Try not to force conversations. When kids are having strong feelings, validate those feelings and talk about them.
Be Prepared
Don’t be surprised if you have to repeat information to your kids; any type of crisis can be confusing. Kids need to find ways to feel reassured, and repetition of information can satisfy this need.
Be Honest
Adults want to make scary situations less frightening for kids. It’s natural. But during times of crisis and uncertainty, it is important to be honest with kids. Provide information using age-appropriate language and concepts. Also, remind kids that not everything they read or see is an accurate representation of the truth; we must be mindful consumers of media.
Be Sensitive
We may struggle to find the answer to the big question: Why? Please find reliable information to help you answer this question (fact sheets from CDC). Don’t use language that blames a group of people or assumes specific races or ethnicities contract or spread the virus.
Be Attentive
Know what your kids are watching and hearing on TV and online. It’s always a good idea to limit screen time, especially during a crisis. Too much information can be overwhelming and may cause confusion or anxiety. Also, be aware that kids may be listening to adult conversations.
Be Proactive
Revisit proper hygiene routines with them, like:
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- Practicing sneezing and coughing into your elbow or tissue
- Washing hands for 30 seconds using soap and hot water (wash before eating or touching food and after blowing nose, coughing, sneezing, or using restroom)
- Hand sanitizing
- Avoiding sick people
Be Comforting
Reassure kids that they are safe in their homes. Try to avoid making promises to kids that no one in their families or close circles will contract the virus. Remind them that most people who become sick from COVID19 will recover.
Be Inspiring
This is a great time to show kids how helpful people can be during times of crisis. Even though many people have been affected by this virus, there are also many people who are reaching out to help. Ask your kids if they’d want to help during this time. Focusing our attention on positive actions can have a tremendous effect on our well-being.
A few ways kids can help:
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- Give blood (must be 17 years old)
- Support your local food bank
- Donate money to reputable non-profits
- Write letters or make pictures to send to doctors and nurses at local hospitals
- Send letters or pictures to people living in residential centers (local retirement centers and nursing homes)
One last thing to remember: kids are resilient. The way adults respond and offer support to kids can help mitigate the potential negative emotional consequences related to this traumatic event. Our kids will bounce back, and perhaps even grow, from this experience.
This article is furnished by California Casualty, providing auto and home insurance to educators, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and nurses. Get a quote at 1.866.704.8614 or www.calcas.com.
For more information visit:
www.cdc.gov
www.aacap.org