Science

Zoos are popular among kids anytime, and the same goes for their online versions. The San Diego Zoo has a page for children on its website with games, tutorials about animals and videos (check out the always entertaining Baboon Cam). The National Zoo’s animal webcams have been grabbing eyeballs in the lockdown era, especially the cheetah cam; a cheetah recently gave birth to four cubs for the world to witness.

The Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta had a feed from nine underwater webcams on its website before the pandemic, and now it has added one called Gator Crossing. For the aquarium, one of its biggest new additions is its “Deep Sea Learning” video series. Also new is an At-Home Learning page on the website that includes artwork submissions, coloring pages and other resources for kids.

Although children may not know it, math is lurking in some of these fun activities. “Animals are a great point of entry to teach complex lessons about equations and population growth,” said the aquarium’s president and chief executive, Brian Davis.

When you can barely leave the house, outer space seems very far away. But NASA at Home offers tons of resources for students in elementary, middle and high school: E-books, virtual tours, podcasts, videos and much more, all with an eye to linking the agency’s work to science, technology, engineering and math.

Younger children can learn to launch a balloon-powered “rocket,” and older ones can use the web app NASA Home and City to see how science changes their world. The Artemis mission to the moon, scheduled for 2024, has its own landing page, filled with cool graphics and details.

NASA astronauts are interacting with children, too. Recently, while aboard the International Space Station, Christopher Cassidy and Jessica Meir took part in a virtual call with students from their home state, Maine. The Q. and A. was available on NASA TV for anyone to listen in. The astronaut Christina Koch, who recently set a record for longest spaceflight by a woman, did a series of daily story times on Instagram.

“I was hearing from many of my friends and family about the challenges of working from home while managing home schooling,” Ms. Koch said in an email. “I had been doing board games and reading with my nieces and nephews over video chat, so I thought about reading to a wider audience so parents could have something positive on the screen for their kids.”