Dive into the wonders of Antarctica with this multi-grade lesson collection! Tailored for K–2, 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12, each unit includes engaging activities, thought-provoking discussions, and hands-on projects to uncover the mysteries of the frozen continent. Enhance your teaching with stunning BBC video clips showcasing Antarctic wildlife, research stations, and breathtaking icy landscapes. Printable resources like animal fact sheets, scientist journal templates, and conservation challenges bring the learning to life for your students. Perfect for science, geography, and environmental lessons!
Explore the search for life beyond Earth in this Kahoot about Mars, scientific discovery, and one of humanity's biggest questions. From evidence of ancient water to clues hidden in the planet's surface, discover why scientists believe Mars may once have had the conditions needed to support life.
This Kahoot explores Martian geology, the role of water in sustaining life, and the tools scientists use to investigate distant worlds while uncovering what researchers look for when searching for signs of life beyond Earth.
Watch the videos about Mars linked below, then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about the Red Planet and the ongoing search for life in our Solar System.
Explore one of the solar system's greatest mysteries in this Kahoot about Saturn's iconic rings and the discoveries that are changing what scientists thought they knew. From clues about their origins to evidence that they may be much younger than expected, discover why Saturn's rings continue to fascinate scientists.
This Kahoot explores planetary science, space exploration, and the evidence researchers use to uncover the history of distant worlds while revealing surprising facts about one of the most recognizable features in our solar system.
Watch the BBC videos about Saturn's rings (below), then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about Saturn's spectacular and ever-changing rings.
What fish can grow longer than a school bus but feeds on tiny plankton? The whale shark is the largest fish on Earth — and one of its gentlest.
From tropical coastlines to the open ocean, these enormous fish spend their lives searching for tiny creatures drifting through the water. Discover how whale sharks use filter feeding instead of hunting, dive thousands of feet beneath the surface, and migrate incredible distances across the globe. You'll also learn why these gentle giants are endangered and how scientists are working to protect them for generations to come.
Okay, ChatGPT can't cure COVID, but using AI to develop vaccines has shown promising results.
Even though COVID vaccines ultimately saved lives, many were lost in the early days of the disease because scientists couldn’t develop the vaccine faster than the virus spread, and they had to update it when the virus mutated. Now, a team at the University of Cambridge has a way to get ahead of things.
They took the genetic blueprint of multiple coronaviruses related to the one that caused COVID-19 (think: the guest list to the worst family reunion ever) and are using artificial intelligence to work on a vaccine that would protect against a range of the viruses. It’s the first time a vaccine’s key component has been designed by AI and tested on people, but the trial’s work could open up a world of possibilities. Success would signify that we can use an AI antigen that’s safe and, importantly, can represent a whole group of viruses. That would mean we could move away from chasing a particular infection when it happens and towards preventing a whole family of viruses.
It’s too soon to know for sure, but scientists are hopeful that this technology can be implemented to replace the flu vaccine, prepare for bird flu, or protect against hemorrhagic fevers like Ebola.
Chimpanzees are among the most intelligent animals on Earth — and they just happen to be our closest living relatives. Sharing about 95–98% of their DNA with humans, chimpanzees can use tools, solve problems, communicate with one another, and even pass knowledge from one generation to the next.
Found in the forests and woodlands of central and western Africa, chimpanzees live in complex social groups called troops. They spend their days searching for food, caring for their young, and navigating a world that is increasingly threatened by habitat loss and human activity.
From cracking nuts with stones to using sticks to fish for termites, chimpanzees continue to amaze scientists with their creativity and intelligence. But how much do you know about these remarkable primates?
Whether you're a wildlife enthusiast, an animal expert, or simply curious about our closest cousins in the animal kingdom, this quiz will put your chimpanzee knowledge to the test. Let's see if you have what it takes to become a Chimp Champion!
When it comes to gathering water data, the “employee of the month” may look a little on the “green and cubical” side. Alongside Yorkshire rivers, there are multiple green boxes working hard to gather data on river quality that should, in a couple years, be available for river users and potential swimmers to access through an app that tracks pollution.
Though there are currently apps that show pollution data, that information is old and outdated. This upcoming app is special, because it will use live data from an on-site sensor to provide real-time pollution levels in the water. It’s not meant to tell people “safe” or “not safe” or “swim” or “don’t swim,” but it can give people what they need to make an informed decision... mostly.
The green boxes have a big shortcoming: they’re unable to detect some really nasty bacteria like E.coli, which can only be measured in a lab. But don’t worry, old-school scientists are on the case, manually taking samples to send away for analysis. These findings will be used to build a data set that will be combined with green box data, and AI learning will infer when E.coli (and other bugs) are present in the river.
So, today, we celebrate a beautiful marriage — one of traditional testing, new technology, and AI. It may not be the pairing you’re rooting for on Love Island, but it shows great promise for water safety!
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is months into a serious Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus. Its rapid spread has prompted health officials to raise the risk assessment to "very high" nationally, "high" regionally, and "low" globally. The Bundibugyo species has a case fatality rate of about one in three people, and there's currently no approved vaccine for this type of Ebola. Scientists at the University of Oxford are racing to develop one, using a strategy that may sound familiar.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists were able to develop vaccines quickly by using a harmless virus to deliver genetic material from the coronavirus. It may sound like the world’s worst Amazon delivery, but that material acts as instructions to teach the immune system what to recognize, so it can fight the real virus if a person is exposed later. It’s like showing your immune system a "wanted poster" of a criminal, and giving your body time to figure out how to respond if faced with the actual criminal.
Now, scientists are using the same strategy for Ebola: a harmless virus delivers genetic instructions from the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, helping the immune system prepare without causing the disease itself. Health officials hope the outbreak can be contained without a vaccine, but because Ebola can spread quickly and cause severe illness, having a vaccine ready would provide another powerful tool to help stop it — a definite case of "better safe than sorry."
Everybody’s destiny looks different. Scientist Nathan’s looks like a humanoid robot dancing in the street. Nathan is the engineer designing a robot named Destiny’s software, creating her personality, and making sure she doesn't trip over anything.
Like many other robots, Destiny’s hardware was built in China, but it's Nathan who has spent months customizing and programming instructions. It can do housework or walk the dog, but the tech is being developed to ultimately help save the world. Unless your room is dangerously dirty, that probably looks more like decommissioning nuclear reactors or remote bomb disposal. That’s possible with robots like Destiny because they be controlled from across the world, where their human bosses are safe and sound.
But even distance between engineer and robot doesn’t necessarily mean Destiny is open to threats. Nathan says software has come so far that if it gets hacked, the robot can turn itself off, so that it can’t be controlled. So, no danger of your teacher getting into the system and assigning extra homework or something. Destiny is meant to be a friend, not a threat! Unless you’re scared of getting out-danced. Turns out, she’s got some moves besides just “the robot”!
Ever wanted to hop onto a fluffy cloud? Catch a falling star? Bottle sunshine? Well, you can’t. But what you can do is hold some of the Moon in your hand… if you’re one of the few qualified scientists who are researching new lunar material. Sharing is caring, but these researchers have a great reason for being very precious with moon dust.
Moon dust is some of the rarest material on the planet and, for the first time, China has shared its samples of moon dust internationally. These samples have now racked up some serious frequent flyer miles, traveling across the globe after being taken all the way from the Moon. Talk about jet lag. Until now, scientists have been using samples collected decades ago. It wasn’t until 2020 that China’s spacecraft went to an unexplored spot of the Moon, then returned with 2 kilograms of moon rock. This dust is now being studied, and researchers are working carefully (VERY carefully) to uncover the evidence it has to offer about our universe’s environmental history.
Nanolitho... Nanilitha... Hmm. Ahem. Nanolithography is the process of fabricating, etching, or printing patterns on a material’s surface at the nanometer (one billionth of a meter) scale. It’s OK, we had to look it up, too.
It’s probably not a word you hear in everyday life, but you’re likely familiar with some of the results. You’re probably reading this on one of those results, because it’s a prominent part of building phones and computers — both things that rely on technology that allows manufacturers to pattern incredibly small things. The process is similar to screen printing, where you create a stencil of your design, lay your screen onto your material, pour on the paint, and lift your screen to reveal the design. Nanolithography uses a similar method, but on a much, much, much smaller scale. Way smaller stuff than you’d ever get your pencil sharp enough to sketch!
For example, scientists have created the world’s smallest violin at 13 microns wide and 40 microns tall. To put it in perspective, a micron is 0.000001 m, and one single human hair is between 15 and 120 microns. So you probably can’t play the violin, but it’d be really easy to pack in your bag.
Aside from being cool, learning how to work with material at this teeny tiny scale can open up new possibilities in technology, and is crucial for making improvements.
There’s a shark in the water! No, no, it’s good — we promise! The WasteShark is not actually a shark, but an autonomous robot that was built to tackle a big problem: plastic pollution in the water. Some estimates put the amount of plastic waste in the hundreds of millions of metric tons. Between canals, rivers, and oceans, waterways around the world are affected.
To make things worse, marine plastic is a relatively new problem, so the solutions haven’t caught up to the issue. The old methods of putting people in boats to fish out plastic isn’t enough, so Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology, took to the drawing board and built a robot.
The WasteShark is basically a vacuum that cruises around the water and sucks up trash, without needing a person to sit and drive it. It can be controlled remotely or put in autonomous mode, because of its sophisticated addition: software that helps it identify and avoid sucking up items that are not trash. The ducks and fish are very grateful. Despite its sophistication, there are still challenges with developing the robot, since scientists have to figure out how to program it to recognize and act on reflections, currents, and wind.
The shark can gather up to a ton of trash over a 24 hour period, which is just the beginning of what needs to be done to reverse the pollution issue. Luckily, the next step is already in the works: the MegaShark.
Dive into the wonders of Antarctica with this multi-grade lesson collection! Tailored for K–2, 3–5, 6–8, and 9–12, each unit includes engaging activities, thought-provoking discussions, and hands-on projects to uncover the mysteries of the frozen continent. Enhance your teaching with stunning BBC video clips showcasing Antarctic wildlife, research stations, and breathtaking icy landscapes. Printable resources like animal fact sheets, scientist journal templates, and conservation challenges bring the learning to life for your students. Perfect for science, geography, and environmental lessons!
Explore the search for life beyond Earth in this Kahoot about Mars, scientific discovery, and one of humanity's biggest questions. From evidence of ancient water to clues hidden in the planet's surface, discover why scientists believe Mars may once have had the conditions needed to support life.
This Kahoot explores Martian geology, the role of water in sustaining life, and the tools scientists use to investigate distant worlds while uncovering what researchers look for when searching for signs of life beyond Earth.
Watch the videos about Mars linked below, then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about the Red Planet and the ongoing search for life in our Solar System.
Explore one of the solar system's greatest mysteries in this Kahoot about Saturn's iconic rings and the discoveries that are changing what scientists thought they knew. From clues about their origins to evidence that they may be much younger than expected, discover why Saturn's rings continue to fascinate scientists.
This Kahoot explores planetary science, space exploration, and the evidence researchers use to uncover the history of distant worlds while revealing surprising facts about one of the most recognizable features in our solar system.
Watch the BBC videos about Saturn's rings (below), then take the Kahoot and see how much you know about Saturn's spectacular and ever-changing rings.
What fish can grow longer than a school bus but feeds on tiny plankton? The whale shark is the largest fish on Earth — and one of its gentlest.
From tropical coastlines to the open ocean, these enormous fish spend their lives searching for tiny creatures drifting through the water. Discover how whale sharks use filter feeding instead of hunting, dive thousands of feet beneath the surface, and migrate incredible distances across the globe. You'll also learn why these gentle giants are endangered and how scientists are working to protect them for generations to come.
Okay, ChatGPT can't cure COVID, but using AI to develop vaccines has shown promising results.
Even though COVID vaccines ultimately saved lives, many were lost in the early days of the disease because scientists couldn’t develop the vaccine faster than the virus spread, and they had to update it when the virus mutated. Now, a team at the University of Cambridge has a way to get ahead of things.
They took the genetic blueprint of multiple coronaviruses related to the one that caused COVID-19 (think: the guest list to the worst family reunion ever) and are using artificial intelligence to work on a vaccine that would protect against a range of the viruses. It’s the first time a vaccine’s key component has been designed by AI and tested on people, but the trial’s work could open up a world of possibilities. Success would signify that we can use an AI antigen that’s safe and, importantly, can represent a whole group of viruses. That would mean we could move away from chasing a particular infection when it happens and towards preventing a whole family of viruses.
It’s too soon to know for sure, but scientists are hopeful that this technology can be implemented to replace the flu vaccine, prepare for bird flu, or protect against hemorrhagic fevers like Ebola.
Chimpanzees are among the most intelligent animals on Earth — and they just happen to be our closest living relatives. Sharing about 95–98% of their DNA with humans, chimpanzees can use tools, solve problems, communicate with one another, and even pass knowledge from one generation to the next.
Found in the forests and woodlands of central and western Africa, chimpanzees live in complex social groups called troops. They spend their days searching for food, caring for their young, and navigating a world that is increasingly threatened by habitat loss and human activity.
From cracking nuts with stones to using sticks to fish for termites, chimpanzees continue to amaze scientists with their creativity and intelligence. But how much do you know about these remarkable primates?
Whether you're a wildlife enthusiast, an animal expert, or simply curious about our closest cousins in the animal kingdom, this quiz will put your chimpanzee knowledge to the test. Let's see if you have what it takes to become a Chimp Champion!
When it comes to gathering water data, the “employee of the month” may look a little on the “green and cubical” side. Alongside Yorkshire rivers, there are multiple green boxes working hard to gather data on river quality that should, in a couple years, be available for river users and potential swimmers to access through an app that tracks pollution.
Though there are currently apps that show pollution data, that information is old and outdated. This upcoming app is special, because it will use live data from an on-site sensor to provide real-time pollution levels in the water. It’s not meant to tell people “safe” or “not safe” or “swim” or “don’t swim,” but it can give people what they need to make an informed decision... mostly.
The green boxes have a big shortcoming: they’re unable to detect some really nasty bacteria like E.coli, which can only be measured in a lab. But don’t worry, old-school scientists are on the case, manually taking samples to send away for analysis. These findings will be used to build a data set that will be combined with green box data, and AI learning will infer when E.coli (and other bugs) are present in the river.
So, today, we celebrate a beautiful marriage — one of traditional testing, new technology, and AI. It may not be the pairing you’re rooting for on Love Island, but it shows great promise for water safety!
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is months into a serious Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus. Its rapid spread has prompted health officials to raise the risk assessment to "very high" nationally, "high" regionally, and "low" globally. The Bundibugyo species has a case fatality rate of about one in three people, and there's currently no approved vaccine for this type of Ebola. Scientists at the University of Oxford are racing to develop one, using a strategy that may sound familiar.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists were able to develop vaccines quickly by using a harmless virus to deliver genetic material from the coronavirus. It may sound like the world’s worst Amazon delivery, but that material acts as instructions to teach the immune system what to recognize, so it can fight the real virus if a person is exposed later. It’s like showing your immune system a "wanted poster" of a criminal, and giving your body time to figure out how to respond if faced with the actual criminal.
Now, scientists are using the same strategy for Ebola: a harmless virus delivers genetic instructions from the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, helping the immune system prepare without causing the disease itself. Health officials hope the outbreak can be contained without a vaccine, but because Ebola can spread quickly and cause severe illness, having a vaccine ready would provide another powerful tool to help stop it — a definite case of "better safe than sorry."
Everybody’s destiny looks different. Scientist Nathan’s looks like a humanoid robot dancing in the street. Nathan is the engineer designing a robot named Destiny’s software, creating her personality, and making sure she doesn't trip over anything.
Like many other robots, Destiny’s hardware was built in China, but it's Nathan who has spent months customizing and programming instructions. It can do housework or walk the dog, but the tech is being developed to ultimately help save the world. Unless your room is dangerously dirty, that probably looks more like decommissioning nuclear reactors or remote bomb disposal. That’s possible with robots like Destiny because they be controlled from across the world, where their human bosses are safe and sound.
But even distance between engineer and robot doesn’t necessarily mean Destiny is open to threats. Nathan says software has come so far that if it gets hacked, the robot can turn itself off, so that it can’t be controlled. So, no danger of your teacher getting into the system and assigning extra homework or something. Destiny is meant to be a friend, not a threat! Unless you’re scared of getting out-danced. Turns out, she’s got some moves besides just “the robot”!
Ever wanted to hop onto a fluffy cloud? Catch a falling star? Bottle sunshine? Well, you can’t. But what you can do is hold some of the Moon in your hand… if you’re one of the few qualified scientists who are researching new lunar material. Sharing is caring, but these researchers have a great reason for being very precious with moon dust.
Moon dust is some of the rarest material on the planet and, for the first time, China has shared its samples of moon dust internationally. These samples have now racked up some serious frequent flyer miles, traveling across the globe after being taken all the way from the Moon. Talk about jet lag. Until now, scientists have been using samples collected decades ago. It wasn’t until 2020 that China’s spacecraft went to an unexplored spot of the Moon, then returned with 2 kilograms of moon rock. This dust is now being studied, and researchers are working carefully (VERY carefully) to uncover the evidence it has to offer about our universe’s environmental history.
Nanolitho... Nanilitha... Hmm. Ahem. Nanolithography is the process of fabricating, etching, or printing patterns on a material’s surface at the nanometer (one billionth of a meter) scale. It’s OK, we had to look it up, too.
It’s probably not a word you hear in everyday life, but you’re likely familiar with some of the results. You’re probably reading this on one of those results, because it’s a prominent part of building phones and computers — both things that rely on technology that allows manufacturers to pattern incredibly small things. The process is similar to screen printing, where you create a stencil of your design, lay your screen onto your material, pour on the paint, and lift your screen to reveal the design. Nanolithography uses a similar method, but on a much, much, much smaller scale. Way smaller stuff than you’d ever get your pencil sharp enough to sketch!
For example, scientists have created the world’s smallest violin at 13 microns wide and 40 microns tall. To put it in perspective, a micron is 0.000001 m, and one single human hair is between 15 and 120 microns. So you probably can’t play the violin, but it’d be really easy to pack in your bag.
Aside from being cool, learning how to work with material at this teeny tiny scale can open up new possibilities in technology, and is crucial for making improvements.
There’s a shark in the water! No, no, it’s good — we promise! The WasteShark is not actually a shark, but an autonomous robot that was built to tackle a big problem: plastic pollution in the water. Some estimates put the amount of plastic waste in the hundreds of millions of metric tons. Between canals, rivers, and oceans, waterways around the world are affected.
To make things worse, marine plastic is a relatively new problem, so the solutions haven’t caught up to the issue. The old methods of putting people in boats to fish out plastic isn’t enough, so Richard Hardiman, CEO of RanMarine Technology, took to the drawing board and built a robot.
The WasteShark is basically a vacuum that cruises around the water and sucks up trash, without needing a person to sit and drive it. It can be controlled remotely or put in autonomous mode, because of its sophisticated addition: software that helps it identify and avoid sucking up items that are not trash. The ducks and fish are very grateful. Despite its sophistication, there are still challenges with developing the robot, since scientists have to figure out how to program it to recognize and act on reflections, currents, and wind.
The shark can gather up to a ton of trash over a 24 hour period, which is just the beginning of what needs to be done to reverse the pollution issue. Luckily, the next step is already in the works: the MegaShark.