For Kids
Climate Change for Kids
- Climate Change in Your Garden - If cold weather is keeping you indoors, use your mouse to explore the interactive garden on this U.K. Phenology Network website. Click on the plants and animals to learn how climate change could affect them. If your speakers are on, you’ll hear an audio
- EPA Climate Change for Kids - help children to learn more about global warming and things they can do to help
- Global Warming Kids - Great links for kids on global warming, climate change and solutions.
- Kids Fight Global Warming - This website has been set up to help kids and families learn about Global Warming and to get involved now in helping the environment. If you care about the world you live in and want to enjoy things like fresh air, clean water, wild animals, beaches and
- Polar Action Guide - Want to help protect the polar ice cap? Download this PDF guide to find out what you and your family can do about global warming’s impact on the arctic.
- Professor Polar Bear’s Education Center - This website, created by the Department of Energy’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program, explains global warming in simple, straightforward language. Featuring a polar bear that’s concerned about melting ice and the warming environment, the site o
Critters & Creatures Education for Kids
- All-Star Endangered Critter Cards - This Why Files collection of printable trading cards is a great introduction to endangered species around the world. The front of each card features an animal photo; move your mouse over it to read about the species and how it is threatened.
- Animal Diversity Web - Written by students at the University of Michigan with the help of professional biologists, this website features information about thousands of animal species, including detailed descriptions and photos. Some records even include audio and video.
- Bug Bytes - The sounds of crickets courting and flies flying familiar to many of us, but have you heard a rice weevil larva eating inside a wheat kernel, a termite cutting a piece of wood, or a grub chewing on a root? Modern insect detection and control technology
- Central Shark - Which are cooler, dolphins or sharks? After being plagued by this question for years, the folks at the Oregon Coast Aquarium set out to answer it. The result: this website, which compares dolphins to sharks in 14 categories. By the time you read the fin
- Electronic Naturalist - This online education program for students in kindergarten through eighth grade features a new environmental unit each week of the school year. Each lesson includes reading material, artwork, activities and related resources. Recent topics covered: wher
- Going Bug-gy - Facts and fun about insects
- Infrared Zoo Even if you already know which zoo animals are warm-blooded and which ones are cold-blooded, it’s still fun to look at these pictures taken with a thermal infrared camera at NASA’s Infrared Processing and Analysis Center. Scientists use infrared to study
- Journey North - Track the migrations of birds and mammals at this website, which maps wildlife sightings across North America. If you’d like to add your own data, click the owl icon on any wildlife page to report a sighting.
- Kid’s Planet - This fun site is packed with kid-friendly environmental information. Learn about animals around the world, play animal-themed games and find simple ways to help protect the environment.
- National Zoo AnimalCams - The National Zoo has so many webcams, it’s hard to decide which one to watch first. Whatever animal you choose to spy on, you’ll find streaming video of that creature in action and a few paragraphs of background information on the animal and its natural
- Shark School - How sharp is your shark knowledge? This kids’ site from the San Diego Natural History Museum offers a shark FAQ, a glossary, profiles of sharks that live off the California coast and an overview of a shark’s anatomy. If you think you’ve already got the
- The Bonobo Challenge - We promise to get you cutting-edge news and current events and happenings from around the globe about everything that helps save the bonobos and save the world.
Environmental Education for Kids
- ARKive Education - Free multi-media resource for teachers and educators on a wide range of science and environment based topics.
- Be, Live, Buy Different - Headed to the mall? Take a few minutes and visit this website first. A project of the World Wildlife Fund and the Center for a New American Dream, the site was created to inform young people about how everything we buy and use affects biodiversity. Disc
- Biology of Plants - This Missouri Botanical Garden website uses simple explanations, Flash animations and time-lapse videos to teach kids in grades K-3 about plants and how they grow. Sidebars offer definitions of plant vocabulary words, answer common questions and suggest
- Cities Under the Sea - Did your family like the movie Finding Nemo? At this Ocean Future Society website, Jean-Michel Cousteau invites kids to visit Nemo’s home and learn what real coral reefs are like. The site explains what corals are, describes the importance of reef biodi
- EEK! - an online magazine for grades four to eight created by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, is packed with short articles and activities about animals, plants and environmental issues.
- Electronic Naturalist - This online education program for students in kindergarten through eighth grade features a new environmental unit each week of the school year. Each lesson includes reading material, artwork, activities and related resources. Recent topics covered: wher
- Energy Hog - According to this website, energy hogs are “nasty critters that hide all over your home and pig out on wasted energy.” Battle the energy hogs online (and pick up a few energy-saving tips) by playing games at this website; completing all five games earns
- Field Trip Earth - You don’t need a school bus to take a field trip! Travel the world with your web browser at this site, which offers interviews, discussion groups, field reports, essays, slide shows and educator resources. Start on the “Choose a Field Trip” page, and us
- Global Response - Got a few minutes? Write a letter to help protect the environment. This activism site focuses on environmental issues around the world, and includes all the background information you’ll need to write a great letter. If you get inspired and want to do m
- GREEN - The Global Rivers Environmental Education Network (GREEN) seeks to engage young people as active citizens who improve conditions in their watersheds now and in the future. GREEN empowers young people to learn more about the watersheds they live in and
- Kid’s Planet - This fun site is packed with kid-friendly environmental information. Learn about animals around the world, play animal-themed games and find simple ways to help protect the environment.
- Kids Saving Energy - Games, tips, and facts just for kids who want to save energy!
- MBGnet - What it’s like where you live! This Missouri Botanical Garden website offers an introduction to six terrestrial biomes and six aquatic ecosystems. Each section includes a descriptive overview of the featured habitat, answers to frequently asked question
- My First Garden - Visit this website for help planning a kid-friendly garden. The University of Illinois Extension site uses simple, fun language to explain each step, from choosing a location to deciding what to plant. Don’t forget to come back in a few months to submit
- Nab the Aquatic Invader! - Developed by NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program, this website invites kids in grades four to ten to become “Sea Grant Super Sleuths.” Use the site’s resources to track down aquatic invaders in U.S. waters. Full of colorful illustrations and creat
- National Geographic Kids - You’ll find lots of articles and games about science and nature at this website. Like what you see? Additional web features for kids are available in the National Geographic Explorer section.
- NC4K - I have 10 fun and easy things we can do together to protect nature! So come back often and see what’s new - and don’t forget to tell your friends!
- Ocean Life - A joint project of Scholastic and the Earthwatch Institute, this website sends you on a virtual expedition to study sea turtles and dolphins in Costa Rica. Use your investigative skills to learn about the animals and discover how they are being affected
- Planet Ocean - You don’t have to get wet to learn lots of fun facts about the ocean at this Discovery site. Find out how creatures like the tubeworm and blue whale survive in their underwater world, and vote for your favorite “Marine Megastars.”
- Planet Slayer - fun and games and the answers to all kids enviro-dilemas.
- PlanetPals - Earthday Kids Activities Lessons Fun Facts 2008
- Rainforest Heroes - At this Rainforest Action Network website, you’ll find tips for taking action to protect forests, success stories from other young activists and forest-related activities. Don’t miss the “About Rainforests” section - it’s packed with facts and photos.
- Recycle City - Want to learn more about recycling and reducing waste? Click on this site’s colorful maps and illustrations to explore a virtual town and pick up a few tips from the locals.
- Roofus Solar Home - At this site, meet a dog named Roofus who’s an expert on solar energy and energy efficiency. As you visit different parts of Roofus’ energy smart house, you’ll find energy saving tips and simple experiments to help you understand how energy works.
- Sea Grant - So you want to be a marine biologist, an oceanographer or an underwater filmmaker? Make a splash in your chosen career with the help of this site, part of the National Sea Grant College Program. You’ll find job descriptions and salaries, detailed profil
- Secrets@Sea - Set up like an interactive cartoon, this website invites you to play the role of Ace, an investigator assigned to explain the unusual behavior of local whales. Created as a joint project of the Vancouver Aquarium, Science World and Pacific Space Centre,
- Splash Zone: Ocean Homes - This Monterey Bay Aquarium feature offers a fun introduction to the sea creatures that live on rocky shores and coral reefs. Short rhymes, songs, games, and video clips describe the two ocean habitats, and the site is packed with colorful photos.
- The Big Blue Bus - Protecting the world’s water sources is serious business, but this Canadian government website finds a way to make it fun. Kids ages 8 to 16 can sign up as Water Wizards, and there’s a Small Fry Club for the little ones. Cartoon characters like Maximus
- The Big Green Help - Nickelodean’s Big Green Help is all about helping kids find simple, positive ways to help protect the Earth everyday.
- The Green Squad - Kids taking action for greener, healthier schools
- The Greens - A site for kids about looking after the planet
- The Truth Behind Spongebob Squarepants - If too much TV-watching has you thinking that sea sponges are square, yellow and talkative, this Ocean Futures Society website will help you get your facts straight. It uses the SpongeBob SquarePants cartoon characters as a basis for introducing the fas
- Treeture Treasure - “Treetures” are tiny guardians of the forest who’d love to teach you about trees and how important they are to the environment. Visit the adorably illustrated website to try out tree-themed activities, listen to the Treeture theme song, or send a TreeMa
- TUNZA - Treat our planet with care and affection program from the United Nations Environment Programme for youth and children
- Vermi the Worm - Come and join Vermi the Worm and all his friends on an adventure into the world of worm bins and vermicomposting!
- Water Busters! - This Flash game from the Saving Water Partnership invites you to help a little blue guy explore his house and find ways to save water and help the environment. A friendly salmon named Bert offers advice and encouragement along the way.
- Web Rangers - Planning a family trip to a national park? Sign up as a WebRanger before you go. You’ll get an overview of the National Park Service, and pick up a few facts about the individual parks while trying out the games and activities.
- Who wants to be a TREEllionaire? - If you think you know everything there is to know about trees, try your luck at this National Arbor Day Foundation game. Some of the questions are pretty tricky, but you can always ask “Treegis” for help if you get confused!
- Windows into Wonderland - Designed for students in grades 5 to 8, this Yellowstone National Park website offers “eTrips,” virtual field trips that use audio, video and Flash animation to teach kids about the park and its animals. Recent features cover Yellowstone’s wolves, the s
- Women Exploring the Oceans - Considering a career in oceanography? Find a role model — or several — at this website, created by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the National Science Foundation. The site features remarkable women working in marine science, including sc
