Orbit: Science for kids on the move!

If you *choose* to listen to this episode, you’ll learn all about the science of making decisions! 🧠✨ We’re joined by Dr. Marco Palma from the Texas A&M Human Behavior Laboratory, as we seek to understand how the brain makes decisions, why we sometimes make bad decisions, and the biology of how the body reacts when we’re faced with decisions! 

This episode is part of the “Cool Jobs for Curious Kids” series, exploring 8 STEM careers and the science behind their jobs! This series is a collaboration with LevelUp Texas, powered by Texas A&M University.

➡️ Level-Up Texas: More Info 

➡️ Explore Cool Jobs in the classroom! K-5 classroom resources: https://bit.ly/cooljobs_resources 

➡️ Texas A&M Human Behavior Lab: https://hbl.tamu.edu/

Episode activities

🕒 10-10-10 decisions! When your family is thinking about a decision, talk about how this decision is going to make you feel in 10 minutes, in 10 days, and in 10 months!

For example: “If I practice the piano today, I will probably feel pleased with myself in 10 minutes. In 10 days I might have learned something small and be happy about my progress. And in 10 months I might know several new songs!”

🛒 Grocery Store Economics! Next time you go to a grocery store, talk as a family about where things are in the store. For example: Where is the milk in the store and why? What is at ‘kid’ eye level and what is at ‘adult’ eye level? 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

🐝 Earth Day activities for families: LINK

Ever watched bees buzzing around and thought, what are they actually up to? 🐝🌼 In this super exciting episode, we dive into the tiny (but mighty!) world of bees and discover how they help plants grow, flowers bloom, and even the food we eat!  We’re joined by the amazing Dr. Laura Gonzalez Mozo from the American Museum of Natural History, who answers your curious questions ! 🐝

✨ A special thanks to the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF)! https://www.neefusa.org/

🦖 American Museum of Natural History: https://www.amnh.org/ 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

This week, we orbiters learn about orbiting! 🚀 This episode dives into the science and technology of machines in outer space, zooming around the Earth! Alongside Joelle Romeu, an aerospace engineer with Boeing Company, we learn what satellites are, how they impact our life on Earth, and about the incredible job of Aerospace Engineers! 🌍

This episode is part of the “Cool Jobs for Curious Kids” series, featuring STEM professionals responding to kids’ questions— a collaboration with LevelUp Texas, powered by Texas A&M University.

➡️ Level-Up Texas: ⁠More Info⁠ 

➡️ Explore Cool Jobs in the classroom! K-5 classroom resources: https://bit.ly/cooljobs_resources 

➡️ Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers: https://shpe.org/ 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

This week we're visiting the incredible San Antonio Zoo in San Antonio, Texas 🦁 to understand the inner workings of zoos! We're joined by Andreau Papadakis to learn why zoos exist, the role they play in protecting species through breeding and rehabilitation programs 🐢, and the different jobs and education paths that could lead curious Orbiters to work at a zoo someday!

This episode is part of the “Cool Jobs for Curious Kids” series, featuring STEM professionals responding to kids’ questions, a collaboration between LevelUp Texas and Cumbre Kids, powered by Texas A&M University.

➡️ Level-Up Texas: ⁠More Info⁠ 

➡️ Explore Cool Jobs in the classroom! K-5 classroom resources: https://bit.ly/cooljobs_resources 

➡️ San Antonio Zoo: ⁠https://sazoo.org⁠ 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

Ever wonder how drones can help scientists take care of wide open spaces? What do they look for from the sky and how does that help wildlife on the ground? 🦌

This week on Orbit, we’re joined by Dr. Humberto Perotto from the Texas A&M Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management! He answers kids’ questions about how drones are used to monitor plant health, track animals, map changes across rangelands, and support conservation.

This episode is part of the “Cool Jobs for Curious Kids” series, featuring STEM professionals responding to kids’ questions— a collaboration between LevelUp Texas and Cumbre Kids, powered by Texas A&M University.

➡️ Level-Up Texas: ⁠More Info⁠ 

➡️ Explore Cool Jobs in the classroom! K-5 classroom resources: https://bit.ly/cooljobs_resources 

➡️ Expert guest: Dr. Humberto Perotto 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

Ever wonder what cavities are or how they form? 🦷 Or maybe why we have baby teeth? Or if the tooth fairy travels to different countries? 

This week we're joined by Prof. Ariana Vargas from the Texas A&M College of Dentistry! We explore the science of teeth, and amazing jobs like dental hygienists, dentists and dental assistants!

This episode is part of the "Cool Jobs for Curious Kids" series, in collaboration with LevelUp Texas, powered by Texas A&M University.

➡️ Level-Up Texas: ⁠More Info⁠ 

➡️ Explore Cool Jobs in the classroom! K-5 classroom resources: https://bit.ly/cooljobs_resources 

➡️ Expert guest: Prof. Ariana Vargas 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

Orbiters! Today we’re exploring atoms - the tiny building blocks of the universe! We’ll discover what atoms are, what they’re made of, where they’re found, how scientists discovered them, and more (including how many atoms are in a blue whale!).

We’re joined by PhD scientist and chemical engineer Dr. Fernanda Sulantay-Vargas from Yale University! Dr. Fernanda is also a science communicator, active with the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and the founder of InspiraSTEM, an organization that inspires and supports students from El Salvador in STEM. 

➡️ The Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE): Website

➡️ InspiraSTEM: Website 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

Did you know that studying rocks today can teach us about the Earth millions of years ago!? We're joined by an incredible geoscientist - Dr. Lina Perez-Angel, from Brown University - to explore the incredible world of Sedimentary Rocks, including what they're made of, how they form, and how scientists study them!

This episode was supported in part by the National Science Foundation Grant 2402100 from the Division of Earth Science. 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

Ever wonder what happens in your brain while we sleep? Or why we need to sleep at all? In this episode, Dr. Daniel Davila-Williams - a pediatric neurologist from Texas Children's Hospital - joins Orbit to discuss the science of sleep! 

🌐 Website for Dr. Davila-Williams: LINK

🎙️ This episode is also available in Spanish on our sister podcast, Cráneo: Ciencia para niños curiosos. 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more

🦷 Why do lions have sharp teeth? Why do whales have different teeth than humans? And how can scientists learn about animals that lived millions of years ago just by studying their teeth?

In this episode, paleontologist Dr. Silvia Pineda-Munoz helps Orbiters explore the fascinating world of mammal teeth. Discover what makes an animal a mammal, why different animals have different kinds of teeth, and how fossil teeth help scientists unlock secrets from the past.

➡️ Featuring Dr. Silvia Pineda-Munoz, founder of Climate Ages, a project that connects stories from Earth's past with the environmental challenges we face today. 

Orbit links

• 💬 Submit your kids' questions! Click here to get started 
• 💛 Support this podcast by joining The Curious Club 
• 🖍️ Episode coloring pages 
• 🎧 Cumbre Kids website 
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 A message for parents about our values: Read more