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 Topic: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?

 (Read 5932 times)
  • 1« Previous thread | Next thread »
  • Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     OP - December 10, 2009, 06:48 AM
    So my nieces 10th birthday is coming up soon. My sister is a good mother, but somewhat religious and defensive of Islam whenever we meet. She sorta knows I'm an atheist. However, we're always on good terms but I'm wary of some of the religious activities my bro in law is sending her on. The thing with my niece is she's a BRILLIANT girl, top of her class and extremely curious and bright. She's extremely interested in sciences and nature and always asks questions. Not a very easy kid to brainwash, she's well beyond her age when it comes to skepticism - I remember the last time we met she asked her father rather skeptically "where is allah? why can't we see him?" LOL! I remember also telling her at dinner once to "always question everything" and got a suspicious glare from my sis. hhehehe.

    Anyways, I'm want to order some sort of DVD documentary series for her. She loves nature and science shows, I already bought "Planet Earth" (the bbc show) for her. I just wanted to know if you guys have any good ideas for docs that are interesting for the kids? I got this idea after watching "The Incredible Human Journey", but I don't want to buy her that yet, it seems a bit more advanced for her.

    Any ideas?
    Quote from: thinkfree on September 28, 2010, 07:58 PM
    Iblis has mad debaterin' skillz. Best not step up unless you're prepared to recieve da pain.

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #1 - December 10, 2009, 07:18 AM
    How about something light and kid-friendly like the "Walking with dinosaurs" stuff? Kids love dinosaurs.

    ETA: Actually I'll go and ask someone I know. He's a scientist and he's got a daughter about that age.
    Devious, treacherous, murderous, neanderthal, sub-human of the West. bunny
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #2 - December 10, 2009, 08:41 AM
    What about Cosmos by Carl Sagan? It's a bit old (different cloths, the picture is of less quality and some of the science is outdated), but still very much up to date, and I think that it was primed at all members of the households, ie. also childrens and young teenagers.

    And Richard Dawkins Growning up in the universe was also intended kids, but that's not a documentary but a lecture (and also a bit old, so we have issues with cloths, picture and science).

    At the moment I cannot think of any later shows similar to these. What is great about Cosmos and Growning up in the universe is that they somehow include the viewer, and takes them beyond just showing different scientific facts.

    Perhaps Dawkins new three-part documentary on Darwin should be mentioned.
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #3 - December 10, 2009, 08:45 AM
    Also Harun Yahya has made some excellent documentaries  piggy
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #4 - December 10, 2009, 08:53 AM
    osmanthus slaps Soren around the ears.

    Oh I had this recommended as one option:
     
    Quote
    BBC's "Planet Earth" is probably about as awesome and accessible as it gets.

    Devious, treacherous, murderous, neanderthal, sub-human of the West. bunny
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #5 - December 10, 2009, 08:58 AM
    Quote from: Soren on December 10, 2009, 08:45 AM
    Also Harun Yahya has made some excellent documentaries  piggy


     Cheesy
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #6 - December 10, 2009, 02:03 PM
    You can always try youtube mate:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCAmWibS2bI
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ju0aSRgCntA
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_RqlTi6wGY

    and one of the best ever youtube science channels:
    http://www.youtube.com/user/Best0fScience

    http://www.youtube.com/user/Zuke696 (has all of Sagan's Cosmos as well as other Discovery Channel etc documentaries)
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #7 - December 10, 2009, 03:51 PM
    Quote from: Soren on December 10, 2009, 08:41 AM
    What about Cosmos by Carl Sagan? It's a bit old (different cloths, the picture is of less quality and some of the science is outdated), but still very much up to date, and I think that it was primed at all members of the households, ie. also childrens and young teenagers.

    I was going to suggest that one. I have the entire serie, I will package it on torrent when i hit toronto. You might even be able to get her to watch it and pass it under the radar.

    Quote from: Soren on December 10, 2009, 08:41 AM
    And Richard Dawkins Growning up in the universe was also intended kids, but that's not a documentary but a lecture (and also a bit old, so we have issues with cloths, picture and science).

    Tough to slip this one, no?

    I think the best answer to give a 10yr old, also by Sagan, is to tell the kid "I do not know". Such a simple answer but so hard for people to come up with as no one wants to appear like an idiot to a kid.

    "Uncle Kafirist does not know" Smiley
    "Ask the slave girl; she will tell you the truth.' So the Apostle called Burayra to ask her. Ali got up and gave her a violent beating first, saying, 'Tell the Apostle the truth.'"
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #8 - December 10, 2009, 04:31 PM
    I reckon Cosmos is probab;y the best one to watch. I'm trying to get my kids to watch it.
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #9 - December 10, 2009, 05:12 PM
    I already bought her Planet Earth, she loved it.

    Cosmos is prolly a good idea. I think it's a must at some point definitely. Problem is that those mentioned are a bit too cerebral. She's a smart kid, but still a kid and they have short attention spans. But I'll ask my sis where her interest levels lie nowadays to get an idea. If not those I might get some of those 'Walking with Dinosaurs' shows. She loves dinos and I always smuggle in that stuff as a way of covertly teaching her evolution.

    But i'll look around the Amazon choices to see whats up.
    Quote from: thinkfree on September 28, 2010, 07:58 PM
    Iblis has mad debaterin' skillz. Best not step up unless you're prepared to recieve da pain.

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #10 - December 10, 2009, 06:54 PM
    The other suggestions I had so far in reply to my question are here: http://secularcafe.org/showthread.php?p=88492&#post88492
    Devious, treacherous, murderous, neanderthal, sub-human of the West. bunny
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #11 - December 10, 2009, 07:02 PM
    Hey thanks for posting that for me! I'll probably register there too.  grin12

    I want to really buy growing up in the universe... but Richard Dawkins is in it and it my bro-in-law won't take nicely to that. I once had an argument about him with my bro-in-law and he obviously doesn't take kindly to the "new atheism" movement and guys like Dawkins or Hitchens. So he'd probably see me buying that as an obvious attempt at proselytizing atheism to his kids.
    Quote from: thinkfree on September 28, 2010, 07:58 PM
    Iblis has mad debaterin' skillz. Best not step up unless you're prepared to recieve da pain.

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #12 - December 10, 2009, 10:29 PM
    Buy RD's "Root of All Evil?" and disguise it as an Ice Age movie or something. That would be awesome  Cheesy
    "In every time and culture there are pressures to conform to the prevailing prejudices. But there are also, in every place and epoch, those who value the truth; who record the evidence faithfully. Future generations are in their debt." -Carl Sagan

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #13 - December 11, 2009, 11:37 AM
    On a related search on google I found this thread Secular Movies and Documentaries. Dig in
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #14 - December 11, 2009, 12:22 PM
    Buy her a ticket to Dawkins 5-day summer camp http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1196063/Richard-Dawkins-launches-childrens-summer-camp-atheists.html

    There's even a 10 pound prize for the child who can disprove the existence of the mythical unicorn - i am sure her dad would be proud if she won that  Cheesy
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #15 - December 12, 2009, 07:27 AM
    To be honest, for kids...Go With Books.

    Kids have great imaginations, and it is great to apply that imagination to real stuff (as opposed to just complete make believe). Books help suck them into ideas, because they can go at their own pace and really stop and ponder. It holds their attention longer and better.

    One of the best gifts I had when I was a kid was 'atlas of the universe'. It was full of pictures and charts. I remember staring for hours are the layouts and photos, really pondering things like the life of a star or the formation of the solar system.

    I really recommend it. There is a 2009 edition
    The foundation of superstition is ignorance, the
    superstructure is faith and the dome is a vain hope. Superstition
    is the child of ignorance and the mother of misery.
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #16 - December 12, 2009, 07:30 AM
    Atlas of the Universe looks awesome.

    Yeah I think books is a good idea, especially ones that inspire the imaginations. Not sure if she's interested in cosmology though, I'll have to ask.
    Quote from: thinkfree on September 28, 2010, 07:58 PM
    Iblis has mad debaterin' skillz. Best not step up unless you're prepared to recieve da pain.

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #17 - December 12, 2009, 02:39 PM
    What about Atlas of Creation? Cheesy hahaha
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #18 - February 12, 2010, 12:29 AM
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h8I3cqpgnA&feature=related
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #19 - February 12, 2010, 03:46 AM
    Since this topic came up again, I would like to mention this book
    A Really Short History of Nearly Everything

    I have read the original book (the one for adults), and it was amazing. So I assume the young readers' version is going to be just as good.

    It covers things from Evolution, Geology, Physics (Mechanical/Quantum), Big Bang, Relativity, and the history and context of their discovery, among other things.
    "In every time and culture there are pressures to conform to the prevailing prejudices. But there are also, in every place and epoch, those who value the truth; who record the evidence faithfully. Future generations are in their debt." -Carl Sagan

  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #20 - February 13, 2010, 05:36 PM
    My son is 10.  Is is absolutely crazy about Planet Earth.  It's clearly described, not too complex for kids, and clearly keeps mentioning how things "evolved to do X" and "evolved to do Y", so might help to keep the kids in touch with reality.

    Unless the father declares it Haram and throws it in the bin  Wink
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #21 - February 13, 2010, 07:14 PM
    I highly recommend 'Walking with cavemen', its fabulous and would still teach her the basics of human evolution, so later on she won't be all opposed to the idea of human evolution. If not I also recommend walking with dinosaurs or walking with beasts.
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #22 - February 13, 2010, 07:25 PM
    Just dont let her read Walking with Angels.
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #23 - February 14, 2010, 02:16 PM
    Brian Greene's 'Icarus at the edge of time' is fantastic. I bought it for my nephew and can't wait till my son is old enough so I can get it for him:

    http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl/9780307268884.html
    ''we are morally and philisophically in the best position to win the league'' - Arsene Wenger
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #24 - February 14, 2010, 02:52 PM
    I bet that book has some awesome Hubble photos in it
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  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #25 - February 14, 2010, 03:08 PM
    Yeah it has some awesome ones - the only annoying thing is that the so-called illustrator, Chipp Kidd, blocks out some of the hubble images by drawing a big black circle in the middle of the images to illustrate a black hole - if you ever do see the book you'll see what I mean
    ''we are morally and philisophically in the best position to win the league'' - Arsene Wenger
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #26 - February 14, 2010, 03:39 PM
    Quote from: abuyunus2 on February 14, 2010, 03:08 PM
    Yeah it has some awesome ones - the only annoying thing is that the so-called illustrator, Chipp Kidd, blocks out some of the hubble images by drawing a big black circle in the middle of the images to illustrate a black hole - if you ever do see the book you'll see what I mean


    I'm looking through the preview of that book and I came across this:

    It talks about a planet much like the Earth, orbiting Proxima Centauri, star closest to the Sun. This palnet had sent out a faint radio signal, once deciphered, the radio communcations confirmed what many had long thought, we are not alone in the cosmos.

    Huh?

    lol i just realized its a fictional book
  • Re: Good nature/science oriented documentaries for kids?
     Reply #27 - February 14, 2010, 04:11 PM
    It's a retelling of the famous Icarus fable which tries to bring Einsteins general theory of relativity into the domain of younger children - it's a fictional story because it tries to explain aspects of the theory in a manner that kids would enjoy and not find boring - I think the author actually does an amazing job - especially since we seem to live in a society where most young kids look upon science as boring. The author actually gives an amazing speech regarding this - to see it just click on the 'my favourite vids' link in my signature and watch the pre-selected 'big idea' video.
    ''we are morally and philisophically in the best position to win the league'' - Arsene Wenger
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