Comcast has made nearly 2,000 hours of programming and thousands of free titles available to Xfinity video customers in the US, to give children and parents easy access to educational programming by grade level as part of the company’s comprehensive response to the Covid-19 crisis.

The collection is a joint effort with Common Sense Media, a source of entertainment and technology recommendations for families whose trusted age-based ratings and reviews are integrated into Xfinity on Demand. A subset of the education collection is also available on Xfinity Flex and across devices via the Xfinity Stream app and website.

“Today Xfinity is making thousands of hours of educational programming and resources available to our customers through Xfinity on Demand as we know how challenging it is for families right now who are suddenly home-schooling young children – many with both parents working, as well,” said Rebecca Heap, SVP of Video & Entertainment at Comcast. “The programming selected in partnership with Common Sense Media is available in one comprehensive destination organised by grade level to make it as easy as possible for parents to find what is most relevant to their family.”

Xfinity customers with X1 or Flex can say “Education” or, if their voice search language is set to Spanish, “Educación,” into the Xfinity Voice Remote to access content available to them by grades “K-2,” “3-5,” “6-8,” and “9-12” and also “for all ages” currently including:

• Free programmes from SVODs Bluprint, CuriosityStream, The Great Courses Signature Collection, Grokker Yoga Fitness, HISTORY Vault, Kids Room and The Reading Corner.
• Additional free adult continuing education programming from these SVoDs focused on the “Mind,” “Body,” and “Soul” spanning biographies; podcasts on a range of topics including technology and business; yoga; dance; food and cooking; fitness; wellness; ballets and operas; and gardening.
• Educational series from networks and streaming services including Animal Planet, HBO, HISTORY, Nick Jr., PBS KIDS, Prime Video, Smithsonian Channel and more.
• Spanish language programming available from networks including CBeebies, Discovery Familia and Kids Central.
• First-hand interviews and historical narratives from Voices of the Civil Rights Movement, Comcast’s signature commemorative programming initiative honouring the impact and legacy of the movement.

Additionally, Comcast has enlisted the guidance of Natascha Crandall, Ph.D., a psychologist and educator to program the content across English Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies based on grade appropriate guidelines aligned with the current U.S. school curriculum.

“When schools close and other community places people congregate are off limits, it can feel overwhelming for families with kids, so we’ve partnered with Xfinity to curate a list of educational recommendations to help kids learn and keep them engaged during their time indoors,” said Ellen Pack, President of Common Sense.

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