Naomi Wu’s Curated Children’s Educational Videos V1.0 (approx. 400hrs)

This suggested viewing list curated by Naomi Wu.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naomi_Wu

These recommendations are offered under the assumption that all files will be obtained legally and with the permission of copyright holders. Naomi Wu and associated business entities assume no responsibility for any copyright infringement that may occur as a result of compiling this list.

This list was created as an alternative to parents and guardians using online streaming services, without parental supervision to keep children occupied. By its very nature- passive, non-interactive video consumption without the involvement of a teacher or parent, will never be an effective educational tool. But rather than let perfect be the enemy of good it’s offered as something “better” than streaming platforms.

Watched on Random and Shuffle mode on any modern video player, this list is simply intended to be a better alternative to a playlist selected by an algorithm that may include videos or advertisements most parents would consider inappropriate or unhelpful for children. The list is far from inclusive and primarily focuses on videos created by public broadcasters that will be easy for parents to obtain online.

These videos were selected with the following criteria in order to be suitable for as many families as possible. Additional videos can be added to suit different needs and educational philosophies.

1. The target age is 6-16 years old
2. There are two tracks- the Physical Sciences and the Natural Sciences. Neither should be excluded or neglected. While the Physical Sciences transfers over to engineering-related subjects better, the Natural Sciences appeals to younger children and a healthy respect for nature and the environment is an essential part of modern engineering.
3. No sociology or human history (outside of a limited engineering scope) as they are too subjective across cultures and quickly cross over into politics.
4. No military or guns, again, this can become political very quickly and there's enough of this sort of thing elsewhere.
5. No reality shows, crime, aliens, supernatural, conspiracy, speculation, or fabricated drama.
6. Calm, deliberate pacing with well-enunciated English to assist ESL listeners. This also encourages both a longer attention span and the presentation of data as a coherent, easy-to-understand narrative- no frenetic shouting for the sake of fabricated drama or mumbled dialog for “realism”.
7. All videos are encoded at a maximum 720p using H.264 so they can be played on low-cost devices with minimal hardware specifications.

Note, the following two series cover the “Birds and the Bees” but in a very tasteful, educational, and non-graphic manner that I considered appropriate for all ages. If you prefer to handle these delicate topics yourself, they can be easily removed (although kindly seed the complete torrent).

BBC Inside The Human Body (2011)
Human The World Within (2021)

*How to make this list a better educational tool?*

1. Watch it with your child, if they have questions, show them how to look up the answers to those questions using primary sources to determine what the current consensus is. Later, feign disbelief at something they learned from watching these videos on their own and have them "prove it" to you using what you taught them about citing primary sources.
Losing a small bet over an easily verifiable scientific fact will turn a valuable lesson into an unforgettable "victory" for them. Reinforce this occasionally- allow expertise and citations to have final say over "because I said so"- however inconvenient at the time. This does not undermine your parental authority, but rather shows it stems from greater knowledge gathered from experience- knowledge they can slowly accumulate for themselves. Otherwise, when they are adults, some other authority figure will be able to lead them astray just by "saying so" against overwhelming scientific evidence and consensus.
However much you might want your child to think you have all the answers- a far more valuable lesson is to show them that you can find all the answers- and they can too. Being able to vet the information they will be bombarded with daily and filter out the misinformation is arguably one of the most essential lessons a child can learn.

2. If you are watching a video together they have already seen and enjoyed, ask them to narrate the video for you in their own words with the sound off. If your child is interested in a documentary video they watched without you, be patient while they describe it, ask age-appropriate follow-up questions. If they don't know the answer, ask them to satisfy your curiosity and find out for you using primary sources as described above. Speculation in advance of research is acceptable (formulating a hypothesis), speculation without follow-up research is not (guessing).

3. Learning comes from repetition, be patient if your child wants to watch the same video multiple times. Or if they rather see animals than machines. There are no videos in this torrent that will not contribute to their education. They are learning not just the scientific content of the video, but well enunciated English, improved attention span from the slower pacing of the documentary format, and narrative skills- explaining what is happening, and why in a clear order of events.

Naomi Wu