STEM Archives - The Children's Hour

This time on The Children's Hour, we learn about squid with Skype A Scientist, Dr. Sarah McAnulty. These ubiquitous creatures are the psychedelic acrobats of the ocean.

The Kids Crew explores the Sun with scientists from the Sunspot Solar Observatory. Learn how the Sun gives us light and heat, how it helps plants grow, and how experts study it safely. This episode also shares the story of the sudden and permanent closure at the observatory. Comes with a learning guide!

The Kids Crew explores the amazing world of whales. Learn how these giant ocean mammals breathe, migrate across oceans, and communicate through songs that travel for miles underwater. This episode also explains why protecting whale habitats is important for the health of our planet.

We celebrate Earth Day on The Children’s Hour with students working to save the environment around them. RiverXchange is a program that partners with schools on the Rio Grande to create projects that protect our precious environment. We also learn about the founder of Earth Day, Gaylord Nelson.

Next time on The Children’s Hour, we’re going to The Moon with Commander Reid Wiseman from NASA’s Artemis 2 mission. The Bad Astronomer, Dr. Phil Plait teaches us how the moon was formed, and we learn what happens to the lunar rocks back on Earth from Dr. Chip Sharer. Comes with a learning guide - and mixed with great music!

On this episode of The Children’s Hour, the Kids Crew explores the world of manatees with educator Andrea Herman from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Kids will learn how these large aquatic mammals live, what they eat, how they raise their young, and why protecting warm-water habitats is essential to their survival. This episode includes a standards-aligned learning guide for classroom use.

Forests are full of life, stories, and connections we cannot always see. Learn how forests help keep our planet healthy, how trees communicate, and why old growth forests matter. With songs, questions from kids, and a biologist who studies trees and fungi, this show explores what makes a forest more than just a group of trees.

This time on The Children’s Hour, we explore the skin we are in. We are joined by Dr. Holly McGee and Dr. Nina Jablonski, who have written a book to explain the cultural and social history of skin color called It’s Just Skin, Silly. Then we meet Dr. Adnan Mir, a pediatric dermatologist who helps us understand even more about our skin from a medical point of view. This episode comes with a learning...

We learn all about skunks with world renown mephitologist, Dr. Jerry Dragoo. Mixed with great music sure to captivate kids of all ages. Comes with a Learning Guide!

Why do we spend so much of our lives sleeping? Is anything happening in our brains while we sleep? Do animals sleep the same way we do? On this episode of The Children's Hour, we explore the science of sleep with expert guests and our Kids Crew.

This time on The Children’s Hour we explore mushrooms with mycology educator and author, Peter McCoy. This episode comes with a companion learning guide.

The Kids Crew and Katie Stone explore the most powerful organ in the human body—our brain! Joined by Ingrid Lane and Nick Aase from the Mind Research Network at the University of New Mexico, they uncover how the brain controls everything we do, from breathing and moving to thinking and feeling. Find the episode page, learning guide and activities at https://www.childrenshour.org/the-brain Listener...

Lemurs are some of the most amazing primates in the world. These furry animals are only found in Madagascar, an island off the coast of Africa. On this episode of The Children’s Hour, the Kids Crew and Katie Stone meet Faye Goodwin, an educator from the Duke Lemur Center in North Carolina. Together they explore what makes lemurs unique, how they live, and the challenges they face in the wild. Find...

Trees have birthdays too, and scientists find out when they are by studying tree rings. This episode comes with a learning guide.

The Kids Crew discover the animals living right outside our doors. From prairie dogs, coyotes, and roadrunners in New Mexico to monkeys in Thailand, stray dogs in India, koalas in Australia, and wildlife in Brazil, we learn how animals adapt to city life. With expert guest Cooper Freeman and research from junior producer Thaniel Lentz, we explore the challenges and joys of living alongside wild cr...

On this episode of The Children’s Hour, we explore balloons. From party balloons to weather balloons, and from the first hot air balloons in 18th-century France to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, the Kids Crew dives into the history, science, art, and wonder of ballooning. Find the full episode page, including a companion learning guide and activities at https://www.childrenshour.org...

Everything we do uses energy, but not all energy is the same. On this episode of The Children’s Hour, we learn about renewable energy—power that comes from sources we can use again and again without running out. Find the learning guide, activities, and full episode page at https://childrenshour.org/renewable-energy Our Kids Crew wondered: what exactly makes energy “renewable”? Experts joined us to...

Have you ever looked up and spotted a bright red dot in the night sky? That’s Mars — our neighbor in the solar system, and a planet full of mysteries. On this episode of The Children’s Hour, we journey to the Red Planet with planetary volcanologist Dr. Larry Crumpler from the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. He works directly with NASA’s Perseverance Rover, which is exploring Mars...

Tigers and snow leopards are two of the most powerful and secretive big cats on the planet. This week on The Children’s Hour, our Kids Crew learns from zookeepers and wildlife experts who study and care for these amazing animals. Discover how tigers and snow leopards survive in the wild, how zoos help them thrive, and what we can do to protect them. Join us for a wild adventure into the lives of t...

Astronomy begins at home, just looking up and seeing what we see. The Kids Crew meet with Professor Raman Prinja, Head of Astronomy and Physics at University College in London. Professor Prinja’s book Wonders of the Night Sky details the many celestial sights we can see just by looking up at the sky after dark. Find the full episode page at https://childrenshour.org/just-look-up Exploring the univ...

Who’s hooting? This time on The Children’s Hour, we learn all about owls. Inspired by Mrs. Monica Charles’s second grade class from Coronado Elementary School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, we explore the lives of these mysterious night flyers. Find the full episode page at https://childrenshour.org/owls The 2nd graders share their owl research, discuss findings from dissecting owl pellets, and teach...

This time on The Children’s Hour we learn how everyone can contribute to active scientific research by participating in Community Science with groups like BEMP: the Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program. Find the learning guide and full episode page at https://childrenshour.org/community-science The Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program or BEMP, studies the riparian forest along the Rio Grande in New...

What's it like to sleep outside, cook over a fire, and carry everything you need on your back? In this episode of The Children's Hour, our Kids Crew shares their own outdoor adventures and learns about how to stay safe and have fun while camping. We're joined by experts from Cottonwood Gulch Expeditions and a meteorologist to answer questions and share tips about preparing for the wilderness. Find...

Why do animals travel long distances every year? On this episode of The Children’s Hour, we learn all about migration—how it works, why it happens, and which creatures migrate the farthest. From the skies to the seas, we’ll explore the incredible journeys that animals take in search of food, warmth, and safety. Find the full episode page at https://childrenshour.org/migration Our guest is migratio...

In this episode of The Children’s Hour, we explore the amazing world of frogs and toads with expert guest Josh Butler from the Albuquerque Biopark Zoo. Listeners will learn the differences between frogs and toads, what they eat, where they live, and why their survival is so important. With fun music and real-life science, this show dives deep into amphibian life. Plus, we discover simple ways we c...