PBS to Broadcast Curriculum-based Programming

As Arkansas’s only statewide broadcasting network, Arkansas PBS is proud to partner with the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) to broadcast streamlined, curriculum-based programming for the state’s pre-K through 8th grade students in response to mandatory school closures due to the new coronavirus.

Why Arkansas PBS?

It’s important to meet the needs of Arkansans during this crisis, especially for our children who need educational instruction regardless of the circumstances. The goal of this creative solution is to limit lost instruction time and to limit the impact on our children as much as possible.

When Arkansas PBS was founded more than 50 years ago, it was always with the intent that we would be an essential educational resource for the entire state. With six transmitters and as the state’s only educational television network, we’re thrilled to fulfill a critical need and serve Arkansas students, teachers and families during an unprecedented time.

How will this work?

Utilizing the power of television, Arkansas PBS will broadcast curriculum-based programming from ADE that’s specifically targeted to children enrolled in pre-K through 8th grade. This content will align with current state and federal standards so that programming is flexible enough to serve as both supplemental and fundamental, based on timing and need. All lesson plans are being developed by ADE.

Beginning Monday, March 30, we will modify regularly scheduled Arkansas PBS programming for three weeks to offer specific pre-K-8 resources between the hours of 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Program modifications will go on throughout the duration of school closures, and they’ll address a wide variety of content areas. Educators and parents will be able to access the lesson plans and curriculum materials tailored to the PBS content to facilitate meaningful use of the content and learning. These AMI packets will be sent to school districts digitally so that schools can personalize the lesson plans before  distributing them to their students.

Additional Resources

An Arkansas PBS LearningMedia resource page has also been developed to aid teachers and parents in their kids’ at-home learning and is available through ArkansasIDEAS, ideas.myarkansaspbs.org. AMI instructional packets, which include lesson plans and other resources, will be available. This page will allow teachers to search for the age range that most accurately applies to their students – ages 3-5, ages 6-11 and ages 12+ – to be connected with resources for online instruction, professional development and training, additional materials, and resources students can access from home. Parents can search the same age groups to find activities for children based on subject area. These resources include educational videos, activities and games.

Arkansas PBS will also share daily resources on Facebook, and parents can sign up at myarkansaspbs.org/engage to receive daily learning resources emails.

More information about the modified broadcast schedule, available online resources and virtual professional development opportunities is available at myarkansaspbs.org.

Watching With Us

Arkansas PBS is available statewide over the air or through select cable and satellite providers. To see what channel serves your region of the state, view our transmitter map at myarkansaspbs.org/onair/transmitters. More information about how to watch with cable and satellite providers can be found at myarkansaspbs.org/channelinformation. Instructional content will also be accessible on the Arkansas PBS Facebook page and the Arkansas PBS YouTube page. Additional ways to watch are available at myarkansaspbs.org/online.

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