Top 10 shows/cartoons to teach children about STEM
Kids these days are always brimming with excitement and have so many questions about almost anything and everything. The moment you step into your house after a long day at work, they’d greet you with the burning questions they have about something they have learned or experienced throughout their day.
Their questions could range from “What is that?”, “Why is that happening?” to “How does that work?” Well, we’ve made things easier for you with our specially curated picks of STEM shows that we believe kids would absolutely love.
STEM education focuses on educating students in 4 specific disciplines - Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. The integration of these 4 disciplines enables children to learn more than just science and mathematical concepts - children are also able to develop a variety of skills such as problem solving, critical thinking, creativity and many more!
You can now do your own chores or take a short break while enabling your children to learn topics ranging from outer space to math and myth busting - all with these awesome shows! Check them out below!
Ages 4-6
These shows are great for curious minds as they help stimulate creative thinking and imagination and prepare your kids for school!
1. Blaze and The Monster Machines (STEM)
Rating: ✭✭✭✩✩ (Common Sense Media)
This animated series revolves around a monster truck and human driver duo, Blaze and AJ, as they have adventures in their city and learn about various STEM concepts like buoyancy and trajectory which help them along the way. Take note mamas - with delightful visuals and captivating tunes, this show is sure to pique your child’s curiosity in learning STEM!
You can watch their episodes and clips for free on their official YouTube channel or on Nick Jr’s website!
2. Ask the StoryBots (Science, Math)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✭ (Common Sense Media)
Your child can easily learn scientific concepts in a fun-filled way with the StoryBots! The colourful StoryBots live in computer parts and they help kids find answers to their ‘big questions’. Come and join their exciting adventures as they explore questions relating to Science, Math, Geography and more - with the use of vibrant animation and songs!
StoryBots is available on Netflix and you can view their episodes and clips on their playlist on Netflix Jr’s YouTube account.
3. Helpsters (Technology, Engineering)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (Common Sense Media)
This educational Sesame Workshop series is about a crew of puppet monsters, led by Cody, whose business is solving problems big and small by using the concepts of coding. The Helpsters teach critical thinking and pre-coding concepts so that children learn how to address challenges of any size and simplify them in order to find solutions.
Your child will be able to catch teamwork in action and also gain important lessons in self-confidence and effective communication!
The series can be watched on Apple TV+ or you can view clips of their ‘Helpsters Help You’ on their YouTube playlist!
4. Earth to Luna! (Science)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✭ (Common Sense Media)
The series features Luna, whose passion for science prompts her exploration of the world with energy and enthusiasm. Together with her little brother Jupiter and pet ferret Clyde, Luna pursues answers to her questions about what things are, and why and how scientific actions take place. Children are sure to bob their heads to the captivating songs in the show and have fun joining in her explorations!
Watch Luna get excited about Science on the official YouTube channel!
5. Numberblocks (Math)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (IMDb)
Numberblocks follows the adventures of cute block characters in Numberland, with the number of blocks determining the numeral they stand for. The characters can even transform into other numbers - for example, the characters 3 and 2 can combine to create the character 5!
The show helps children learn numeracy skills and ensures that they get a good exposure to early mathematical concepts. That's right mamas, you can truly count on this show to teach your children simple maths!
You can view their episodes and watch live streamings on Numberblocks’ YouTube channel.
Ages 7 and above
These shows are great to reinforce what has been learnt in school and would definitely deepen your child's interest to learn more about STEM-related concepts!
6. Mythbusters Jr. (Technology, Engineering)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (Common Sense Media)
A spin-off of the popular TV show Mythbusters, Mythbusters Jr. hosts young talented kids, who bound together to tackle myths using chemistry, physics and popular culture know-how. The show will definitely entertain the young ones with its small-scale experiments that they can do in their kitchen!
You can view clips of the series on their playlist here or watch it on Amazon Prime Video!
7. Odd Squad (Math)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (Common Sense Media)
In this series, the Odd Squad is an organisation entirely run by children who use their math skills to solve the problems posed in every episode. Now in its third season in 2020, they travel around the world to solve mysteries with their math skills. Children can join in on the fun and learn to solve problems using addition and subtraction, as well as the importance of communication and perseverance!
You can watch the first 2 seasons of Odd Squad on Netflix.
8. Our Planet (Science)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (Common Sense Media)
Narrated by the renowned David Attenborough, Our Planet is a beautiful docuseries that can be watched by the entire family to learn about the amazing species of wildlife and their survival methods. Children will also be able to learn about topics like climate change and its effects on the environment.
Though the series is a smart pick for family viewing, parents should be advised that the show contains scenes like predators' hunting prey.
You can watch Our Planet on Netflix!
9. Annedroids (Technology, Engineering)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✩ (Common Sense Media)
The show features eleven-year old genius and kid scientist Anne, who loves to solve problems using her expertise in engineering and computer programming. Throughout the series, she happily shares her knowledge with her friends, who join her in exploring the possibilities of science and solving scientific problems with real-life solutions.
The show incorporates many scientific concepts in each episode, and is sure to inspire children’s interest in the STEM subjects!
You can watch all four seasons of Annedroids on Amazon Prime Video.
10. Xploration Outer Space (Science)
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✭ (Common Sense Media)
Xploration Outer Space exposes kids to STEM concepts as they relate to space discovery. The show encourages children’s curiosity about related subjects as it tackles a range of questions from the fun “How do astronauts go to the bathroom in space suits?” to the philosophical “Could there be life on other planets?”.
The topics that are touched on will make parents want to tune in as well, making this a smart choice for curious families!
All five seasons of Xploration Outer Space are available on Amazon Prime Video.
(Written by Zulaikha)