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Parents, brace yourselves. The Easter holidays are over but while school is still technically out, lessons aren’t.
But the challenge of homeschooling might be getting a little bit easier this term, now that a bevy of big names – alongside 200 bona fide teachers – have stepped up to play their part in the BBC’s new Bitesize Daily service.
Are your kids struggling to focus on homework? Maybe learning nature with David Attenborough or Spanish from Sergio Aguero might help their focus (and give you a little break).
The bumper 14-week curriculum launches this Monday morning so here’s everything you need to know about it.
How will the new BBC curriculum work?
Six 20-minute programmes will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC Red Button every day, targeting six different age groups – with teachers, experts and famous faces covering off what children should be learning that day.
The schedule aims to offer 14 weeks of curriculum-based learning for kids across the UK. From Bitesize Daily, parents and their children will be directed online to BBC Bitesize for an “age-appropriate” ‘daily drop’ of videos, quizzes, podcasts and worksheets for subjects including maths, English and science.
The Bitesize shows will be split into age groups 5-7, 7-9, 9-11, 11-12, 12-13 and 13-14. BBC Four will also be devoting a block of programming each weekday evening to shows that support GCSE and A-Level curriculums.
As well as this, BBC Sounds has launched two new daily education podcasts. Each episode lasts 10 minutes and will be a guide to help families who are homeschooling to navigate all this new education content and find the right material for their kids.
Who are the famous faces?
Sir David Attenborough, known the world over for his natural history documentaries, is set to be involved, helping youngsters learn about the oceans, mapping the world and why animals look the way they do.
Doctor Who’s Jodie Whittaker will also be dropping into Bitesize Daily lessons.
Physicist Professor Brian Cox will bring science lessons to life as he covers topics including the solar system, force and gravity.
Manchester City’s star striker, Sergio Aguero, turns his attention to languages as he sets about getting kids across the country counting in Spanish.
Danny Dyer, EastEnders actor and a direct descendant of King Edward III, delivers the facts on Henry VIII as he brings history to KS1 pupils.
Strictly star and former shadow chancellor Ed Balls goes back to his roots in economics to deliver a KS3 maths class.
Liam Payne, Mabel and a host of other music stars take part in a week-long Musical Big Read.
This is an extension of Bitesize’s weekly Book Club that will run throughout the 14-week term and see stars including Anita Rani and Oti Mabuse read books aimed at both primary and secondary kids. That’s all we know so far – but we’re expecting some other famous faces to pop up and will keep this updated.
And the teachers?
Both in front of and behind the camera, more than 200 teachers have come together to help the nation’s kids keep learning while schools are closed. In week one students will meet; Mr Burton (Educating Yorkshire), Ms Webb (primary school), Mr Brown (secondary school), Ms Armit (seconday), Mr Mycock (secondary) and Mr McPartlin of Britain’s Got Talent fame.
They will all front daily lessons available from 9am each week day.