Distance Learning Resources for Dual Language Learners

(Updated November 3, 2021)
Our team has compiled information, resources, and activities for families and teachers of young Dual Language Learners (DLLs).

Please let us know if you have any questions or if we can provide you with any support. We are here for you. Email us at [email protected]. 

General Information about DLLs in California 

Learn why supporting young DLLs matter, and read about the benefits of bilingualism.

View our video series that highlights the benefits of bilingual education in the early years.

For Families

Screen-Free Activities to do at home with Children (in Spanish)
Many of the resources below, recommended by Abriendo Puertas, emphasize the importance of mindful screen time, and encourage activities that do not require a device. 

Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors has developed a video series as well as a list of helpful resources for organizations and families to help ease the stress and isolation during these times of physical distancing and quarantine. Resources are available in multiple languages and include helpful ways to teach children about the virus, keep your family engaged with learning activities, and best practices for staying healthy. Watch the video series in English, Spanish, or Mixteco.

ABCMouse, is a full online curriculum developed by Age of Learning Inc. for children ages 2-8 in the areas of reading, math, science, and art and is available in both English and Spanish. Content and activities are separated by age level: Preschool, Pre-K, and Kindergarten. Teachers can use ABCmouse to supplement their classroom curriculum with activities that can be done with the class as a whole or with children working on computers individually or in small learning groups.

Bilingual Kidspot Scroll down the page to access the free Language Lessons and Activities. At the moment, Spanish, Chinese, English (ESL), and French are offered.

Bilingual Kids Rock offers practical advice for parents on how to raise bilingual children.

Canticos Teach your little one simple songs in English and Spanish from Nick Jr.

Chiquipedia offers Classic Children’s Stories in Spanish. 

Colorin Colorado is a bilingual site for caregivers of dual language learners.

Colours of Us works to promote quality multicultural children’s books that reflect the diversity of our world in an empowering and non-stereotypical way.

Common Sense Media recommends bilingual television programming that provides parents with a tool for helping preschool children begin to learn words and phrases in both English and Spanish, and understand the relationship between them. 

DREME (Development and Research in Early Math Education) is offering a quick start kit of free early math resources. Their at-home early math learning kit is geared toward children from birth to age 8 and is available in both English and Spanish.

Footsteps2Brilliance is a comprehensive curriculum that contains interactive books, songs, and games in either English or Spanish for children from birth through third grade. 

Fresno Unified School District provides suggested Daily Schedules at Home (in English, Spanish, and for SPED); thank you to Fresno Unified for sharing!

Global Storybooks Portal provides stories in multiple languages for babies and toddlers. Books with simple texts and colorful images are also accompanied by audio. The website offers PDF versions of all books. A wonderful resource for families and caregivers with young DLL children.

Highlights High Five Bilingüe program developed in conjunction with Teaching Strategies, offers online books and accompanying audio in both Spanish and English for children ages 2 to 6. The program is intended for use either by teachers and parents.

Ana Lomba’s Spanish for Kids: The Red Hen (Bilingual Spanish-English Story) is a free storytelling app with accompanying lesson plans, teaches children four and up to speak in either Spanish or English.

Mindheart provides an illustrated guide to help discuss COVID-19 with young children. This resource is available in multiple languages, including but not limited to: Spanish, Chinese, and Russian.

Moms Rising offers resources, the latest research, and the opportunity to raise your voice on dual language learning. Para leer la página en español, haga clic aquí. 

Listen to the National PTA’s “Notes from the Backpack: A PTA Podcast”! In this Spanish episode, special guests Adrián Pedroza and Zully Rodríguez from Opening Doors discuss the obstacles families are facing during COVID-19, especially families with young children ages 0-5.

Parents as Teachers (PAT) offers resources for caregivers of children birth through kindergarten. Activities include Jump and Count, Outdoor Exploration, and Shadow Play, and feature ready-to-use activity pages in both English and Spanish.

Quality Start Los Angeles (QSLA) is excited to provide you with monthly Read from the Start resources focusing on Celebrating Diverse Families. Each month, QSLA and your local library systems will work together to develop a themed booklist, reading tips, and family activities all designed for families with children ages birth to five. 

Read Conmigo was created out of the discovery that many Latino parents, grandparents and caregivers who do not read fluently yet in English are hesitant to read to their children at home in Spanish. Read Conmigo books feature creative, fresh and engaging stories in both English and Spanish, so that Latino families can read aloud together.

Reading Rockets is a national public media literacy initiative offering information and resources on how young kids learn to read, why so many struggle, and how caring adults can help.

Rollins Center provides an at-home learning experience for Spanish-speaking preschoolers and their families. This free learning experience intends to support Latino parents to continue their children’s Early Learning during these troubled times of the Coronavirus pandemic and beyond.

Unite For Literacy features collection of books, organized by topic, with a narration option offered in many different languages.

Vroom has collected simple and fun ways to boost brain building at home together with your child; resources are available in English and Spanish.

What Do I Wear – Touch, Look and Listen is a visual dictionary app for children ages 2-4 developed by StoryToys that introduces early learners to over 65 types of clothing through multiple languages. The user can customize the app with both a primary language (including English, Dutch and Chinese) and secondary language (French and Spanish) from the main menu.

Wide Open School‘s resource hub can be accessed by parents to supplement at-home learning for their preschooler. Activities are available for Pre-K-12 grade students and include daily plans, family fun, emotional well-being, reading and writing, math, arts, and so much more. The best part: you can view all the materials in multiple languages other than English!

Zero to Three has compiled resources, in English and Spanish, both for professionals and families to support grandparents as child care providers.

Online Resources for Teachers

The Head Start Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center (ECLKC) is a website containing a wealth of resources on a variety of different ECE-related topics. Its Dual Language Learners Toolkit provides resources that can be used to support DLLs in both their home language and English, which are divided by audience: administrators and managers; teachers, caregivers, and family services staff; and families.

Bellwether Education explores how to support DLLs’ math learning in early care settings.

CEEL’s Transitional Kindergarten Teaching Certificate is a three-course online certificate program by the Center for Equity for English Learners (CEEL) at Loyola Marymount University provides Transitional Kindergarten and early childhood teachers with expertise to create and design effective learning environments, curriculum, and instruction that are developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate for Dual Language Learners.

Colorín Colorado is a national multimedia project that offers a wealth of bilingual, research-based information, activities, and advice for educators and families of DLLs and English learners through its Spanish-English bilingual website.

Dual Language Learner Supports, a project of SRI Education, is a self-reflection tool for early childhood educators geared towards infants, toddlers, and children ages 3-5. It promotes full implementation of research-based strategies that ensure DLLs have full access to and effective participation in the daily learning experiences. The tool can be used to review instructional practices, identify children’s strengths, and plan for next steps.

Frog Street provides engaging and interactive Professional Learning that both motivates and educates! When teachers excel, students succeed.

The Language Lizard website offers a comprehensive list of resources for both families and teachers. Resources include multicultural lesson plans, research and articles on the benefits of bilingualism, and engagement strategies to help support young dual language learners.

Loyola Marymount University’s Center for Equity for English Learners developed online training modules which emphasize effective literacy practices with the goal of increasing knowledge and use of Dialogic Reading practices for professionals working in culturally and linguistically diverse ECE and TK settings.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) offers helpful resources to support young children who are learning a second language while continuing to develop their home language.

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) offers a number of resources on helping children and their families cope with trauma and stress. The Resource webpage includes helpful filters to search for specific items (such as Resource Type and Audience). In addition to Spanish, there are a handful of resources available in other languages, including Vietnamese and Armenian.

PBS Kids offers resources in Spanish for younger learners. The webpage has online games featuring characters from PBS shows.

PD2GO is an online professional development website developed by First 5 California, which offers a series of 15-minute professional development modules including step-by-step instructions for coaching resources, self-reflection, and vignettes in the facilitator’s guide, as well as DLL-specific content focused on: systems supports, enhancing interactions, and assessment. 

Teaching At The Beginning generates free video resources through their website and YouTube channel for instructors, directors, and teachers who work with young dual language learners acquiring English. These visual tools showcase the teacher-child dynamic, peer-peer interaction, parent and family engagement, and the four stages of preschool second language acquisition.

The Latino Family Literacy Project is a research-based parent involvement program for Spanish-speaking parents to improve reading comprehension and vocabulary. Their free teacher resources for family engagement include teaching tools, a monthly e-newsletter, bilingual parent handouts, and free with purchase items, including a webinar training, family phonics for ESL, and bilingual STEM. 

WestEd is offering a webinar series that addresses the ways educators can support multilingual and English Learner students in distance learning.

Zero to Three provides resources for building healthy relationships with infants and toddlers. It offers several educator and parent resources related to supporting DLLs and their development, including articles, books, and trainings through their website.