Aging ain't for Sissies
Aging isn't easy. My name is Marcy Backhus and I am your host! Make sure your complete well-being is handled with a community and information that can make it easier and FUN. Aging needs humor, which you can find in the "Aging ain't for Sissies" Podcast, along with informational guests that give us the information we need.
Aging ain't for Sissies
Smart Aging: 10 Free & Cheap Courses to Keep Your Mind Sharp
Ready to keep that gorgeous brain of yours in ship shape? Aging doesn't mean your learning days are behind you—in fact, they might just be getting started!
We're diving into the world of free and affordable online education specifically designed for seniors and retirees. From the comfort of your favorite chair (pajamas optional but recommended), you can access courses from prestigious universities like Harvard and MIT, learn practical skills on YouTube, or discover new creative outlets through platforms like Skillshare. The best part? Most of these resources won't cost you a dime.
The lineup includes AARP's Senior Planet, which functions like a digital summer camp for grown-ups, teaching everything from Zoom skills to financial literacy. We explore the Open Learning Initiative from Carnegie Mellon, perfect for brushing up on academic subjects your grandkids think you know nothing about. Plus, discover how your local library card might be the secret key to premium learning platforms you never knew existed.
Whether you want to casually drop "when I was studying at Harvard" at your next dinner party (thanks, EdX!), learn a new language before your next trip abroad, or simply keep your mind active and engaged, these ten platforms offer something for every curious mind. Remember, aging ain't for sissies, and neither is learning something new—but the rewards are absolutely worth it.
Ready to surprise yourself and maybe a few others along the way? Listen now, then go sign up for a class that catches your fancy. Your brain will thank you, and you'll have fascinating new topics for your next social gathering. After all, we're not just getting older—we're getting started!
Hello and welcome to Aging for Sissies. My name is Marci Backus and I am your host. Well, welcome to all my fabulous agers out there. Welcome back to Aging for Sissies, the show where we talk about living our best life with a little wisdom and a little sass, and occasionally, a little Diet Coke. I am your host, marcici, and today we are talking about keeping those gorgeous brains of ours in ship shape. It's not easy to do is raging, but let's face it, the body might protest when we try yoga, but the brain, she's ready for some action and, thanks to the magic of the internet, we can learn anything we want in our pajamas, with snacks and a Diet Coke.
Speaker 1:Today's topic is inspired by a list of 10 best free or cheap online courses for seniors and retirees. I'm going to walk you through each one, give you the scoop and a little commentary, because, you know me, I always have an opinion. So I, craig, cut this article out for me or left it for me here online. People on YouTube can see it. It's the 10 best free or cheap online courses and I thought it would be good to go through with that. I think that keeping our mind active is super important not just our bodies but our minds. We need a combination of things to age and to get through the aging process. So that means we need to keep learning and I want to make sure that you're doing it in the cheapest and easiest way possible. So these are either cheap or they're free. And the first one well, before we even start, let me just catch you up on me.
Speaker 1:I do two podcasts, so I try not to repeat myself too much on each, but I'm doing really well. Life is going really good. Blood clot is gone. We have a plan so that I can fly and travel and not get blood clots anymore, since I can't treat them and I have to just live with them and it's dangerous. So I have flights coming up. Next week I'm going to Arizona, then in September I am flying to Washington for a wedding, and then we are. I'm flying to California to spend some time with Kyle in the beginning of October, middle of October we are flying. Middle late October we are flying to Ireland. So I've got a lot coming up.
Speaker 1:My podcast inside Marcy's mind I did this week's episode is about slowing down, getting ready for vacation and getting yourself in the mood, in the mode, a lot quicker than waiting the three days that they say it takes us to calm down for a vacation. So that's happening on Inside Marci's Mind. You can find that where you find your podcast. But today I am talking to you from my podcast Aging Ape or Sissies, and we're going to talk about how to keep that brain young and beautiful. So hang in there and I'll be right back. All right, so we're back. I had a little blip, so if you're on YouTube, you saw the blip. If you're listening, it should be just seamless.
Speaker 1:Anyhow, the first website that you can learn from is Senior Planet from AARP. It's apparently like a summer camp for grownups, except for, instead of paddling a canoe and learning how to do that, you learn how to use Zoom without accidentally showing everyone your ceiling fan or your underpants. They've got a class on tech, fitness, finances and even social connections. So I'm just saying, if there ever was a how to politely hang up on a robocall course, I'm signing up. Oh, my goodness, what else? On the AARP Senior Planet, you'll find a guide that includes helpful tips and tricks on how to navigate online learning platforms and maximize the benefits of your courses. So that's a great place to start, senior Planet from AARP, because it can teach you how to use these platforms in the best way possible.
Speaker 1:The second one I'm going to talk about is the Open Learning Initiative. It's a series of courses offered by Carnegie Mellon University. Okay, so that's the first. It's a smart a school smart enough to make my high school chemistry teacher weep with joy. They've got everything from psychology to French. Here's my advice Pick something that you can casually brag about at dinner parties. Oh me, I've been brushing up on data analytics. No big deal, no, but seriously, it gives you a lot to learn. And, like I, need to learn Spanish because I think Craig and I are going to be traveling to Mexico a lot more. So I'm going to be looking at this one for Spanish. All right, so we all know this.
Speaker 1:The next one is a no brainer. It's YouTube. You can learn how to change your car's battery to anything you want on YouTube. It's a place where you can just learn anything. I mean anything crochet cooking, how to fix a leaky faucet. But be aware, you start watching one video on Italian cooking and suddenly it's three hours later. You've been watching 17 videos on beekeeping and you're considering ordering a hive from Amazon. If you do hear that I don't know. It sounds like you might pick that up. We have the air and water show here this weekend, so they're doing some practicing out there. It's pretty exciting because the jets go. So YouTube here's my view lots of um jets flying by. It's very exciting. I love it. A lot of people hate it. I love it.
Speaker 1:I have used YouTube for all kinds of things. I've used YouTube for helping me fix my printer. I've used YouTube for helping me with things with the car. I've used YouTube to help teach me how to edit my podcast and learned how to use Adobe Audition is, which I use for these podcasts. So YouTube is fabulous. It is obviously a rabbit hole that you can jump down, but it is a great place to learn. So if you're looking to learn something oh, you know what else I use YouTube for. I have an embroidery machine. It's a sewing machine that's also a computerized embroidery machine. I have learned so much on YouTube for that.
Speaker 1:So number four is Khan Academy K-H-A-N, k-h-a-n Academy. This is great for brushing up on subjects you either slept through in high school or forgot entirely. This is going to give you your math, science, history or, like I like to call it, the things my grandkids think I don't know. I don't have grandkids, but my great nieces and nephews it's the things that young people think you don't know anything about, like doing a podcast. Ha ha ha, I know how to do a podcast. Anyways, the best part is this one is free and you can go at your own pace. So there's no judgment if it takes you three weeks to go through algebra basics, but if you want to touch up on things that you learned in school, this is a great one. Again, that's K-H-A-N Academy, khan Academy.
Speaker 1:Number five FutureLearn. These folks team up with universities around the world. You could learn history from a professor in London one week and the science of happiness from someone in Australia. The next Bonus you don't even need a passport, but you do. Sometimes I write my scripts and I lose my train of thought, but don't get too excited. You still have to make your own tea. So Future Learn is a great place to learn from all over the world.
Speaker 1:Again, that one is Future Learn and I do believe that one is free. Don't quote me Coursera. Coursera, this is like Netflix of online learning. You've got everything from Ivy League courses to Google certifications. You can audit many of them for free, or pay if you want a certificate, because nothing says I'm a lifelong learner like hanging a certificate in the science of well-being right next to your family photos. So, coursera, you can learn classes from Duke University of Michigan. They're all right there for you. You can earn a certificate as a Microsoft Project Manager in four months, plus you can get started with a free trial. So that's one. If you want to get certificates to get a job or to increase the job you're already in, that's a great place to do it edX, harvard, mit and more, right from your living room. And if you've ever wanted to drop well, when I was studying at Harvard into a conversation, here's your chance. Just maybe skip the part where it was online and free. So that's edX, e-d-x, e-d-x okay, skillshare this one's for the creatives.
Speaker 1:I love Skillshare art, writing, design and even cooking. Think of it as Pinterest. But instead of just looking at pretty pictures, you actually learn how to make stuff. Or you sign up and watch two videos and then just buy the thing on Etsy anyway. No judgment, that made no sense. If it didn't make sense to you, it didn't make sense to me. When I wrote it, it made sense. So think of it as Pinterest, but instead of looking at pretty pictures, you actually learn how to make stuff. Okay, so Skillshare is something I have used. I love it.
Speaker 1:Ted, e-d, ted-ed. We've all heard of TED Talks. Right, big ideas and small, digestible doses. Ted-ed is just like that, but made for learning, and some of these animated lessons are better than Netflix shows. Just be prepared to study suddenly and suddenly, no weird facts like why cats always land on their feet and how ancient Romans cleaned their clothes. That's a good one. So that's TED-Ed, t-e-d-e-d, ted-ed.
Speaker 1:Your local library has online learning. Your local library probably offers free online courses through things like Gale Courses or LinkedIn Learning, which means all you need is a library card, and if you don't have one, shame, go get one. It's the OG membership card. Before Costco was even a thing, everybody had a library card, and if you don't, it's time to get one. Check out your local library. You can get books online, you can download them, listen to them. A library card, even though you may not go directly into a library anymore, is super important. So these were. Let's go through them again.
Speaker 1:Let me get back to it. The first one we talked about was Senior Planet from AARP. Senior Planet, okay, open Learning Initiative, carnegie Mellon this is where you can get some great. This is where I'm going to go for learning Spanish. Anyways, youtube, we know YouTube right, everybody knows YouTube. Future Learn, coursera, edx, skillshare, ted-ed, your local library, so keep that all.
Speaker 1:I will try to get that on my website. Agnameforsissiespodcastcom. I will get that list and the links. How's that? 10 best places for free or cheap online courses for seniors and retirees. All right, well, not a very long episode today, but good information. I think I'm trying to bring you information, as always, that I think that's going to be useful to you, that you're going to be able to learn. I will try to always put the links up on agingaidforsissiespodcastcom. That is my website. If you haven't checked it out, check it out. You can listen to past episodes there. Again, I have another podcast, inside Marci's Mind. Go there, check that one out. You can find that where you found this podcast. So there you have it 10 ways to keep your brain buzzing, your curiosity satisfied in your grandkids and great nieces and nephews impressed. Remember, aging ain't for sissies, and neither is learning something new. Now go sign up for a class, surprise yourself and maybe surprise a few other people too. I'll see you next time, and until then, keep living, keep laughing and keep proving that we're just getting started.
