Discover Resources
Browse curated homeschool resources from the community
How Interpreters Juggle Two Languages at Once Ewandro Magalhaes
Language is complex, and when abstract or nuanced concepts get lost in translation, the consequences may be catastrophic. Given the complexities of language and cultural exchange, how do these epic miscommunications not happen all the time? Ewandro Magalhaes explains how much of the answer lies with the skill and training of interpreters to overcome language barriers.
Cannibalism in the Animal Kingdom Bill Schutt
Until recently, scientists thought cannibalism was a rare response to starvation or other extreme stress. Well-known cannibals like the praying mantis and black widow were considered bizarre exceptions. But now, we know they more or less represent the rule. Bill Schutt shows how cannibalism can promote the survival of a species by reducing competition, culling the weak, and bolstering the strong.
The Surprising Reasons Animals Play Dead Tierney Thys
From lemurs to lizards, ants to amphibians, sharks to chickens, hundreds of animals "play dead" as a survival tactic. But how and why do animals do this? Tierney Thys explains how this curious behavior, known as tonic immobility or TI for short, can be used as a defense or offense.
SAAM: Science and Technology Through Art
Discover how you can integrate American art into your classroom. The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s educational materials are free for your use. Teacher Guides are downloadable PDFs, listed with corresponding standards and grade levels for your convenience.
The Most Lightning Struck Place on Earth Graeme Anderson
Lake Maracaibo is the stormiest place on the planet. Thunderstorms rage above this massive body of water for up to 200 days of the year, with each ear-splitting event lasting for several hours. But why? Graeme Anderson lists the factors that create Lake Maracaibo's seemingly ever-lasting storms.
What is Love Brad Troeger
Is love a signal winding through your neural pathways? A cliche? A cult? Love is easy to compare but difficult to define, maybe because we’re fundamentally biased; we try to define love while falling in or out of it. And love feels differently to every person who feels it, but this subjective emotion has evolutionary explanations, too. Brad Troeger takes a shot at the definition of love.
Insights Into Cell Membranes Via Dish Detergent Ethan Perlstein
The cell membrane, like a good jacket, protects the cell from everything outside of it. How is it simultaneously sturdy, flexible, and capable of allowing the right things to pass through? Ethan Perlstein rediscovers the scientists and their research that have changed the way we study the membrane and the cell as a whole.
First Kiss by Tim Seibles
This animation is part of our series, "There's a Poem for That," which features animated interpretations of poems both old and new that give language to some of life's biggest feelings. Check out the full series here: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTheresAPoemForThat
National Portrait Gallery Education
There are many ways to explore the lives of presidents, activists, renegades, artists, writers, and other Americans who have a place in our national story.
Geography Standard 9: Population Distribution
The characteristics, distribution, and migration of human populations on Earth’s surface.
National Museum of African American History and Culture Education
Page for educators to learn abs out upcoming programs and opportunities
The Weird Things Thatd Happen If We Blew Up This Mountain Elise Cutts
Mount Teide is one of the world’s largest active volcanoes, and there may be a way to use the basalt rock inside it to save humanity. Obviously, destroying an ancient volcano would cause catastrophic and unpredictable ecological fallout. But what if we harvested only some of that basalt— could it really stop climate change? Elise Cutts explores the fascinating science of enhanced rock weathering.
What Happens During a Stroke Vaibhav Goswami
Every two seconds, someone in the world has a stroke. One out of every six people will have a stroke at some point in their lives. Strokes deprive brain cells of oxygen and are one of the most common causes of death, and a leading cause of preventable disability. But what causes strokes in the first place? And what can doctors do to treat them? Vaibhav Goswami takes us into the body to find out.
Can You Solve the Riddle of Pandoras Box Alex Rosenthal
Pandora is having a decisively bad day. She didn’t set out to open the box; if anything she’d resisted with every ounce of her will. But her curiosity got the better of her, and a cavalcade of evils of every shape and size spilled out. Pandora knows her only chance to fix this is to capture Hope before the imps all escape her home. Can you figure out which one is Hope? Alex Rosenthal shows how.
Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo One Word Sentences and How They Work Emma Bryce
‘Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo’ is a grammatically correct sentence. How? Emma Bryce explains how this and other one-word sentences illustrate some lexical ambiguities that can turn ordinary words and sentences into mazes that mess with our minds.