PBS39 has announced it has worked with educators locally and nationally to create Lehigh Valley Learns - an over-the-air educational offering, launching March 30.

Lehigh Valley Learns will broadcast over PBS39’s channels in the mornings, with grade specific programming at the same time each weekday.

Recognizing that a portion of the community does not have access to the Internet, the sole medium that can reach nearly 100 percent of students is broadcast television.

By airing Lehigh Valley Learns on PBS39, anyone with a TV can watch.

Programming by grade level will be as follows on PBS39 and PBS39 Extra:

PBS39 No. 39.1 by antenna (Also available on Service Electric No. 512/12, RCN No. 1008/8, FiOS No. 539, Dish No. 8168/39, and DirecTV No. 39).

·7:30-10 a.m. kindergarten;

·10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. first grade;

·12:30-3 p.m. second grade.

“Public television was founded more than 50 years ago to provide free, over-the-air educational materials to every single home in America,” said Tim Fallon, CEO of Lehigh Valley Public Media.

“Today, the continuing value of public TV is reaffirmed as our professional educators work with local and national experts to bring age and curriculum appropriate materials from our vast library to every K-5 student in our 3.28 million household viewing area.”

In this curriculum, for grades kindergarten through fifth, families will see a marriage of Pennsylvania State Standards and the national Common Core Standards with PBS’s educational programming.

Additionally, the programming choices align directly with English language arts topics teachers were actively teaching in the classroom earlier this year.

Students will also be provided with a curriculum for math, social studies, science and social emotional learning.

“It is our job as not only a public broadcast company, but an education organization, to step-up during times like this,” said Catherine Reifsnyder, manager of education at Lehigh Valley Public Media. “We are thrilled to be able to take action to provide the community with a consistent and reliable remote education option.”

This broadcast programming is in addition to two other resources from PBS39’s Education Department:

•PBS39 Distance Learning Resource Center: A variety of digital learning tools for children prekindergarten through high school.

On the PBS LearningMedia website, filter by grade and media type for the best learning experience possible for children.

If you have Internet access, you can find more learning content from PBS39 at PBS39.org/DistanceLearning.

•PBS LearningMedia: PBS LearningMedia is where PBS39 and PBS have curated free, standards-aligned videos, images, lesson plans, articles, primary sources and more.

PBS LearningMedia offers access to trusted content to supplement curriculum for any grade level.