In A Locust Invasion in the Deserts of Peru, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how sudden rains bring life to the otherwise arid deserts of Peru, creating a burst of vegetation. Swarms of locusts take advantage of this new growth, consuming the vegetation and causing a dramatic impact on the desert ecosystem. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth II, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
Welcome to Death Valley! First watch The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, a short clip from the award-winning BBC series Planet Earth. Sir David Attenborough introduces you to the desert locust, whose eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years! Traveling in massive swarms, these creatures communicate with each other in massive swarms.
Once your students have watched the video, invite them to check for understanding with this quick, 8-question quiz!
In The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains that desert locust eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years. Learn how locusts find new feeding grounds by following the smell of sprouting grass, travel with the wind to find low pressure and rainfall, and use pheromones, or scent messages, to communicate with one another. This video is excerpted from BBC's Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In Building Community Gardens, Ranger Hamza and the Ramblers visit an allotment or a community garden. They learn how gardens are spaces to grow food and to engage with nature. Then they come across a compost pile and investigate why worms and robins are also at the compost pile. This video is excerpted from BBC's Ranger Hamza’s Eco Quest, a nature exploration show in which Ranger Hamza and the Ramblers go on quests to discover nature’s wonders and the important role they play in our environment.
The article "A Healthy Diet Could Reduce the Symptoms of Depression" from BBC's Science Focus explains that dietary changes can reduce depression symptoms in just three weeks. A study in Australia found that young adults who switched to a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and lean meats showed significant improvement in mood compared with those who continued eating processed foods.
In Studying Locked-In Patients, explore the ways in which doctors are working to understand and diagnose locked-in syndrome. Learn more about the challenges of distinguishing between patients who are in a vegetative state and those who are in a locked-in state, where they are conscious but unable to communicate. Doctors use advanced techniques like fMRI scans to study brain activity and learn more about these patients’ potential for recovery. This video is excerpted from BBC’s The World’s Most Extraordinary People, a documentary series revealing how rare medical conditions inspire groundbreaking scientific discoveries.
Scientists have found some very old ice. No, it’s not bag of frozen peas that have been in your freezer for three years (which means someone’s not eating their vegetables). It’s actually cores of Antarctic ice, the oldest that have ever been collected, that go back over a million years.
Researchers are keeping almost 200 pieces of meter-long ice cores that were drilled from a depth of almost 3 km over the course of four years. After careful preservation, the ice now needs to be melted in order to reveal the rich environmental history that the ice has to offer. When melted carefully and incredibly slowly, scientists can see how the Earth changed over time, including variations in temperature, snowfall, and wind, because the tiny bubbles give a snapshot of carbon dioxide levels.
Studying this old ice will help scientists understand our environment today. For example, the concentration of greenhouse gasses we see today is higher than they have been in the past 800,000 years. To understand how the climate might change in the future, we need to learn about how it’s changed in the past.
Way above the noise and traffic of New York City, rooftops are being transformed into something unexpected— farms in the sky. What used to be empty, unused space is now filled with soil, vegetables, herbs, and community gardens, all with a sweeping view of the skyline.
Some of these rooftop farms use over 200,000 pounds of soil and grow around 30 different crops, turning concrete rooftops into living green spaces. Fresh food is being grown right in the heart of the city — so local it can go from roof to table in the same neighborhood.
But these gardens aren’t just about food. They help the city work better in quiet but powerful ways. They soak up rainwater to reduce flooding and ease pressure on sewer systems during storms. They also help cool buildings in the summer, which can lower energy use and costs.
And beyond the science, rooftop gardens have another impact: they’re peaceful, beautiful places that bring nature into one of the busiest cities in the world — showing that even in a concrete jungle, something green can still grow.
In JoJo and Gran Gran Build a Scarecrow, JoJo and her friends are working in the community garden. When pigeons come to eat the vegetables, they build a scarecrow to scare the birds away. Two real-life children make a bird feeder from an apple and seeds. This video is excerpted from BBC’s JoJo & Gran Gran, a children's animated television series following JoJo, an inquisitive and cheerful 4-and-a-half-year-old girl and her loving Gran Gran, who always has something new to teach her.
In JoJo and Gran Gran Visit the Community Garden, JoJo and her grandmother head to the local allotment, or community garden, to harvest some vegetables. Real-life children visit a community garden to see the vegetables that grow there. This video is excerpted from BBC’s JoJo & Gran Gran, a children's animated television series following JoJo, an inquisitive and cheerful 4-and-a-half-year-old girl and her loving Gran Gran, who always has something new to teach her.
In Understanding Carbon Footprints, host Harith Iskander explores how foods contribute to global warming. Each stage of food production — from farming to packaging and delivery — uses energy and releases gases that affect the climate. Learn how different types of food, such as meats and vegetables, have different impacts on the environment and discover ways we can make more eco-friendly choices. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Got Science?, a science magazine series that explores and explains science in everyday life.
In How Musk Oxen Survive in the Arctic, narrator Sir David Attenborough showcases musk oxen in the Arctic and their adaptations for survival in harsh conditions. The musk oxen can break through the frozen ground to access vegetation, creating opportunities for other animals like Arctic foxes and various birds. Calves are birthed early, allowing them to acclimate to their environment before summer arrives. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In A Locust Invasion in the Deserts of Peru, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how sudden rains bring life to the otherwise arid deserts of Peru, creating a burst of vegetation. Swarms of locusts take advantage of this new growth, consuming the vegetation and causing a dramatic impact on the desert ecosystem. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth II, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
Welcome to Death Valley! First watch The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, a short clip from the award-winning BBC series Planet Earth. Sir David Attenborough introduces you to the desert locust, whose eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years! Traveling in massive swarms, these creatures communicate with each other in massive swarms.
Once your students have watched the video, invite them to check for understanding with this quick, 8-question quiz!
In The Desert Locust Finds New Feeding Grounds, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains that desert locust eggs can hatch after being in the ground for 20 years. Learn how locusts find new feeding grounds by following the smell of sprouting grass, travel with the wind to find low pressure and rainfall, and use pheromones, or scent messages, to communicate with one another. This video is excerpted from BBC's Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In Building Community Gardens, Ranger Hamza and the Ramblers visit an allotment or a community garden. They learn how gardens are spaces to grow food and to engage with nature. Then they come across a compost pile and investigate why worms and robins are also at the compost pile. This video is excerpted from BBC's Ranger Hamza’s Eco Quest, a nature exploration show in which Ranger Hamza and the Ramblers go on quests to discover nature’s wonders and the important role they play in our environment.
The article "A Healthy Diet Could Reduce the Symptoms of Depression" from BBC's Science Focus explains that dietary changes can reduce depression symptoms in just three weeks. A study in Australia found that young adults who switched to a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and lean meats showed significant improvement in mood compared with those who continued eating processed foods.
In Studying Locked-In Patients, explore the ways in which doctors are working to understand and diagnose locked-in syndrome. Learn more about the challenges of distinguishing between patients who are in a vegetative state and those who are in a locked-in state, where they are conscious but unable to communicate. Doctors use advanced techniques like fMRI scans to study brain activity and learn more about these patients’ potential for recovery. This video is excerpted from BBC’s The World’s Most Extraordinary People, a documentary series revealing how rare medical conditions inspire groundbreaking scientific discoveries.
Scientists have found some very old ice. No, it’s not bag of frozen peas that have been in your freezer for three years (which means someone’s not eating their vegetables). It’s actually cores of Antarctic ice, the oldest that have ever been collected, that go back over a million years.
Researchers are keeping almost 200 pieces of meter-long ice cores that were drilled from a depth of almost 3 km over the course of four years. After careful preservation, the ice now needs to be melted in order to reveal the rich environmental history that the ice has to offer. When melted carefully and incredibly slowly, scientists can see how the Earth changed over time, including variations in temperature, snowfall, and wind, because the tiny bubbles give a snapshot of carbon dioxide levels.
Studying this old ice will help scientists understand our environment today. For example, the concentration of greenhouse gasses we see today is higher than they have been in the past 800,000 years. To understand how the climate might change in the future, we need to learn about how it’s changed in the past.
Way above the noise and traffic of New York City, rooftops are being transformed into something unexpected— farms in the sky. What used to be empty, unused space is now filled with soil, vegetables, herbs, and community gardens, all with a sweeping view of the skyline.
Some of these rooftop farms use over 200,000 pounds of soil and grow around 30 different crops, turning concrete rooftops into living green spaces. Fresh food is being grown right in the heart of the city — so local it can go from roof to table in the same neighborhood.
But these gardens aren’t just about food. They help the city work better in quiet but powerful ways. They soak up rainwater to reduce flooding and ease pressure on sewer systems during storms. They also help cool buildings in the summer, which can lower energy use and costs.
And beyond the science, rooftop gardens have another impact: they’re peaceful, beautiful places that bring nature into one of the busiest cities in the world — showing that even in a concrete jungle, something green can still grow.
In JoJo and Gran Gran Build a Scarecrow, JoJo and her friends are working in the community garden. When pigeons come to eat the vegetables, they build a scarecrow to scare the birds away. Two real-life children make a bird feeder from an apple and seeds. This video is excerpted from BBC’s JoJo & Gran Gran, a children's animated television series following JoJo, an inquisitive and cheerful 4-and-a-half-year-old girl and her loving Gran Gran, who always has something new to teach her.
In JoJo and Gran Gran Visit the Community Garden, JoJo and her grandmother head to the local allotment, or community garden, to harvest some vegetables. Real-life children visit a community garden to see the vegetables that grow there. This video is excerpted from BBC’s JoJo & Gran Gran, a children's animated television series following JoJo, an inquisitive and cheerful 4-and-a-half-year-old girl and her loving Gran Gran, who always has something new to teach her.
In Understanding Carbon Footprints, host Harith Iskander explores how foods contribute to global warming. Each stage of food production — from farming to packaging and delivery — uses energy and releases gases that affect the climate. Learn how different types of food, such as meats and vegetables, have different impacts on the environment and discover ways we can make more eco-friendly choices. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Got Science?, a science magazine series that explores and explains science in everyday life.
In How Musk Oxen Survive in the Arctic, narrator Sir David Attenborough showcases musk oxen in the Arctic and their adaptations for survival in harsh conditions. The musk oxen can break through the frozen ground to access vegetation, creating opportunities for other animals like Arctic foxes and various birds. Calves are birthed early, allowing them to acclimate to their environment before summer arrives. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.