Free Online Classes For Montgomery County Seniors: March 9-12

GERMANTOWN, MD — Montgomery County seniors can take free online classes to learn how to better navigate life at home during the coronavirus pandemic.

Senior Planet Montgomery, the county's technology training program for residents 60 and older, typically offers lectures, hands-on workshops, and multi-week courses at libraries and senior centers. But during this public health crisis, Senior Planet Montgomery is moving all its programming online.

Many of the online sessions will focus on online user-friendly tools and resources for seniors.

"More Montgomery County seniors are online than ever before," said Montgomery County Chief Information Officer Gail M. Roper. "The Senior Planet Montgomery programs provide a means for them to get more out of their internet availability, and we hope, more out of life overall. We have programs that are geared specifically to support the way seniors learn best — which makes so many things easier to understand."

Classes change on a weekly basis. From March 9 to 12, participants will learn how to set up an online account with their utility company, navigate Instagram, and use online shopping sites.

Courses are also offered in Spanish.

Take a look:

Online Bill Pay

• When: Tuesday, March 9, 3-4 p.m.
• Description: In this hands-on workshop, learn how to set up an online account with a utility company and explore its many advantages, including automatic bill pay and paying with a credit card or from a bank account. Learn how to better understand a bill using color charts and graphs.

Online Shopping

• When: Thursday, March 11, 4-5 p.m.
• Description: Buy products on the Internet from a computer and have them shipped home. Online stores often have larger inventories and lower prices. Lecture will provide a general introduction to shopping online using the popular website Amazon.com. Learn how to search for products, make comparisons, and add items to an online shopping cart.

Instagram Basics

• When: Friday, March 12, 11 a.m.-noon.
• Description: Learn about this visually-oriented social media platform. Lecture offers an overview of Instagram’s more popular features and why it is one of the most used social media platforms.

Clase en Español:

Todo sobre cómo elegir una nueva computadora

• Cuando: Miércoles, 10 de Marzo, 11 a.m.- 12 p.m.
• Descripción: ¿Tienes preguntas sobre comprando un computadora nueva? ¿Interesado en qué marcas son buenas? ¡Únase a este programa para que todas sus preguntas sobre computadoras sean respondidas!

Click here to learn more about Senior Planet Montgomery and its virtual program offerings. You can also call and email the group at 240-753-0676 and mocoinfo@seniorplanet.org.