Whether it’s how to take the temperature of puppies, socializing an unsocialized kitten or identifying emergencies, adoption organizations and their foster caregivers want to be equipped with the tools and knowledge to handle challenges. That’s where Maddie’s Fund’s brand new — and free — Flash Classes come in.

Flash Classes are short videos or presentations designed to assist foster coordinators with training foster volunteers. The topics range from basics like bringing a foster pet home the first day, to caring for a kitten with a respiratory infection or other special needs, or how to play with your foster dog.

“Flash Classes are ultimately designed for foster caregivers. However, the topics they cover are applicable to adopters, new or long time pet owners, and shelter or rescue volunteers and staff members,” said Jessie Guglielmo, Educational Specialist at Maddie’s Fund. “With the advent of online learning like the Khan Academy, we saw a growing need for educational content in the form of short videos or presentations.”

This, along with a need for foster care training materials, inspired the creation of Flash Classes.

Users can expect a short how-to tutorial in the form of a video or interactive presentation, which will provide the knowledge and tools to successfully handle a given scenario.

And yes, in case you’re wondering, they’re free to all.

“It is our hope that Flash Classes will encourage more and more people to foster by providing the tools they need in an easy to access format,” said Guglielmo. “Additionally, we hope these classes will be used by foster program managers to assist in the training of foster caregivers, and will answer many of their questions. This will ultimately free up the manager’s time, giving them time to improve and expand their programs.”

Flash Classes are being developed constantly, and you can expect to see several new classes each month. So check out available classes here, and then keep checking back to see what’s new!