Many regions are offering webinars (online workshops/events that you can attend from the comfort of your home/office) and the Nevada region is keeping a list of what's going on in SCBWI webinars for all of us.
Webinar Links
It's not children's writing, but Writers Digest offers some free webinars.
Again, not kidlit, but the Florida Writers Association also offers webinars that may be of interest. Some are free. Click here.
What You'll Need for a Webinar
– a computer, tablet, or smart phone (images will be tiny!) with internet access – you can call in with a phone, but it limits your access to community
– nice to have a headset, especially if you don't want to disturb others around you or have trouble hearing from your computer speakers
– suspend or stop downloading files from the Internet during the event to avoid failures or freezes
– temporarily shut down all applications that could influence the connection speed, such as Skype, youtube, updates, etc.
How to Proceed with a Webinar
– register – you'll usually receive a notification of how to connect
– download any software you need as recommended by the webinar organizer–this software offten has opportunity for you to do a test
at the time of the event connect 5-10 early so you are ready to go when it starts
– usually all attendees are muted, but it never hurts to hit mute on yourself
– there's usually an "ask a question" or "ask the speaker" button to ask a question live–there may be a "raise hand" button for the same purpose
– there's usually a chat area where attendees can talk to one another
– if you have technical issues, there is usually a contact for someone who can help, but if you just get booted out, sign in again
– if you miss the live webinar, you usually have access to the replay for a limited time