According to Family Zone, in 2016, kids 8 years of age and underspent 65% of their online time on YouTube, and kids 9 – 12 years old spent 38% of their time on YouTube, watching videos. Every single day, there is 576k hours’ worth of videos uploaded to YouTube. With the rise of YouTube, we are all increasingly able to consume media content whenever and wherever we want. If you are looking for complete guidance for kids to start learning to code, here is Ultimate guidance for parents: coding for kids.
YouTube, as an open platform, allows the audience to watch videos based on their own preferences and interests, and, in the meantime, YouTube also gives content creators the freedom to be creative and make videos that specifically cater to their audience’s needs. Also, a lot of educational YouTube videos present learning coding/programming in a fun and interesting way. Kids will learn to code with full of fun. In addition, there are some online games which are playing a similar role to YouTube’s educational videos. Here is the list of Top 10 online coding games for kids.
Among the sea of YouTube videos, not all of them are appropriate for kids to watch. However, considering the amount of time our kids spend on YouTube daily, we definitely want to take advantage of the platform and teach our children STEAM using video content. Fortunately, there are plenty of such resources online. Here, we will introduce 20 online educational video channels that are created explicitly for kids’ STEAM education.
1. Openlab
If your kid is a coding robot enthusiast or has shown great interest in educational robots, Openlab is the place to go. Created and supported by Makeblock, Openlab is filled with demos for innovative coding-robot projects. If you own any Makeblock products, such as mBot and Codey Rocky, this is the channel you want!
2. Super Awesome Maker Show
The Super Awesome Maker Show features tutorial videos created by a young girl, Sylvia. She is passionate about making different things, from gadgets to toys. The things she makes in her videos are all very straightforward and easy to do.
3. The Backyard Scientist
The Backyard Scientist, who has 4.2 million subscribers on YouTube, conducts experiments in his backyard in Florida. Please note that his videos are very entertaining to watch, but not every one of them is worth trying at home. Parents are encouraged to provide guidance and supervision.
4. Crash Course
Crash Course is one of the most viewed STEM YouTube channels. Started in 2006, it now has 9.2 million subscribers. It offers courses in physics, philosophy, astronomy, biology, and more.
5. Crash Course Kids
Producers at Crash Course also create content for another channel, Crash Course Kids. Content wise, it focuses on promoting STEM education, too. That said, compared to the Crash Course, this channel is more friendly towards younger kids when it comes to the visual illustration and the way they explain science, such as engineering, earth science, physical science, and so on.
6. SmarterEveryDay
The host of this show, Destin Sandlin, explores a lot of fascinating science subjects using an elementary and fun vlogging style. It’s the kind of science show that your family can sit down and watch together.
7. Vsauce
This channel was created by Michael Stevens in 2010. With over 10 million subscribers on YouTube, this channel attracts audiences of all ages by exploring the mysteries of the world. As the fan base and needs grow bigger and more specific gradually, Vsauce now has three channels with three different hosts, but they all have one shared goal – science is cool and let me tell you about it.
8. The Coding Train
The host, Daniel Shiffman, teaches young students to code using YouTube videos with funny animations. His videos cover topics from the basics of programming languages like JavaScirpt (with p5.js) and Java (with Processing) to generative algorithms like data visualization.
9. Vi Hart
Vi Hart positions herself as a “mathematician and virtual reality philosopher.” Sounds pretty complicated, right? But her videos are very witty and entertaining to watch and a great resource to help kids develop their interest in STEM.
10. ExpeRimental
The Royal Institution of Great Britain opened this channel on YouTube and dedicated it to promoting STEM education and activities. The ExpeRimental is a series of short films that will make it fun, easy, and cheap to do science at home with your kids.
11. HooplaKidzLab
Though branded as a lab for kids, HooplaKidzLab’s content is for audiences of all ages who are curious about science and would like to get their hands dirty with fun science experiments. The majority of the experiments are created as tutorial videos. You can easily follow them step by step and do science at home.
12. MinutePhysics
“Simply put: cool physics and other sweet science” is how Henry Reich introduces his YouTube channel, MinutePhysics. Henry’s videos usually last 2-3 minutes and explain some of the most sophisticated science topics to his audience.
13. patrickJMT
The host Patrick Jones created this channel to tutor kid’s math virtually. His extensive collection of tutorial videos is all for free. And don’t question his qualifications just because he is an online tutor. Hold your conclusion until you watched his videos.
14. NASA eClips
It’s never too early to fall in love with NASA! On this channel, you will find plenty of short, relevant educational video segments, designed for a wide variety of STEM learners. There is no doubt that if you want to learn, you learn from the best!
15. Amoeba Sisters
Behind the pink and purple amoebas are two sisters, Brianna and Sarina, who use animated videos to demystify science. Be sure to check them out if you are looking for some easy-to-understand animated educational videos for your kids to watch.
16. STEM coding
According to the channel, it is the YouTube home for the STEMcoding project (http://u.osu.edu/stemcoding), which is an effort to infuse coding into high school physics, chemistry, and math. It does require a certain amount of coding knowledge to understand the video content.
17. Code.org
This channel is dedicated to promoting computer programming by providing free coding educational videos. It doesn’t matter if you have any coding background or experience, you will always find a course here that’s suitable for you to start with!
18. Make:
Into STEAM? Into making things? Looking for a cool project to work on with your kids and their friends? Then you shouldn’t miss this channel! The mission of this channel is to bring the do-it-yourself mindset to all the technology in your life.
19. Flocabulary
Wouldn’t it be cool if STEAM-related concepts can be taught through hip hop music and animation? If this sounds awesome to you, you should check out Flocabulary. According to the channel, teachers at 20,000 schools use Flocabulary’s standards-based videos, instructional activities, and student creativity tools to supplement instruction and develop core literacy skills.
20. Make Anything
Another great channel for makers, but this time it’s all about 3D printing! Devin Montes, the host of this channel is a 3D printing enthusiast. Each video that he uploaded to the channel documented his experience working on 3D design project. While sharing his very first-hand experience, he also is trying to provide educational content and “inspire viewers to exercise with their creativity.”
Just like the internet itself, YouTube and other online video platforms can be of significant help for kids and adults in their study of STEAM-related subjects. The quality of the educational videos depends on how the creators to contribute their time, experience, and knowledge to creating informative content and uploading it on these platforms.
In addition, as parents, it’s crucial to provide proper moderation and responsible supervision in order to make the most of these resources. The list above only serves as a small example of all the great STEAM educational videos out there. Feel free to explore, choose your favorite channel and platform and the learning experience started now! If you are want to learn more resources for kids to learn to code, here are the top 10 online resources for kids to learn coding.