in the garden – need a second? enrichment entertainment
When you need a few, maybe more minutes to re-group or go on a quick zoom call and want to buy some time to keep your kids busy? Enrich the precious few minutes with our top 5 list of entertaining and educational favorites right now.
NASA JPL: Dishing the Dirt – Video
Enjoy a video with your little or big one from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology. From their website: “NASA doesn’t study just the stars and planets. It is also concerned with the soil beneath your feet. Studying the moisture in the top two inches of the soil from space with a satellite named SMAP can help weather forecasters predict flash floods, farmers grow more crops, and communities plan for drought.” This is a great way for a child to learn about space and gardening, you’d be surprised how they are related.
National Geographic Kids Cookbook: Gardening – Video
From National Geographic Kids and Nat Geo Books: How your child can use food to explore the world around them through food and gardening. From youtube: “Grow some greens! Master chef and National Geographic Explorer Barton Seaver gives kid-friendly tips on growing and eating your own herbs and veggies from his new book, packed with scrumptious seasonal recipes, fun food facts and challenges, tips on sustainability, and more.”
Weird But True from National Geographic – Video
Enjoy a 3 minute clip about bee keeping in Southside Chicago. One super interesting fact is that ‘drones’ are male bees that don’t have stingers. Watch hosts, Charlie and Kirby pick one up right out of the hive! For an added bonus, check out why bees are so important to the world and our food in this video HERE. This is really for those fans who love fun facts.
Descanso Gardens Book Recommendations with Video
Descanso Gardens has a list of recommended books with links to book reading videos. This “Over and Under the Pond” book reading from YouTube is one of our favorites because it is lovely and calming for children and adults alike. You can find all the books and links to book reading videos HERE.
Ada Twist, Scientist – Netflix Program
From the beloved Ada Twist Book series, Netflix has partnered with Higher Ground Productions to bring Ada to life on the small screen. My 7 year old son introduced me to this new series and we, yes, I said we, are hooked. In this 6 episode season, they have jam packed 12 short science lessons! We couldn’t resist adding the Cake Twist/Garden Party episode to our list. The Garden Party episode introduces your children to Rory Aronson, a robotics engineer who grows plants with a Farm Bot. One of their Farm Bots is at NASA where they are using it to do research about how to grow food in space! I have learned so much watching these 10 minute shows, the way they pack in so much learning is brilliantly done. Science is the best!
