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Rocket & Raven · Kindergarten to Grade 2

Backyard Explorer: Kindergarten to Grade 2

Twelve weeks of looking, listening and counting outside, with a field guide for your own region.

Free, start to finish. No card. Every week opens without signing in.

Backyard Explorer: Kindergarten to Grade 2 course cover
Grade
Kindergarten to Grade 2
Length
12 weeks
Pace
6 short lessons a week, about 15 minutes each
Price
Free, every week

About this course

Backyard Explorer turns a yard, a park or a window into a science lab. Kindergarten to second graders learn to sit still and notice, to tell birds, bugs, plants and furry neighbors apart, to spot animal homes and signs, to watch the weather and the seasons, and to keep a nature notebook with counts and drawings. Rocket, Raven and Nova explore alongside. Each week's field guide lists the plants and animals people record most in your region of the United States, and a grown-up picks the region once. Every line is read aloud and every answer is a tap. Saturday is Explorer Day, a short outing with a grown-up. Every week is free.

Kids will

  • Sit still, look and listen, and say what you notice
  • Tell a bird, a bug, a plant and a furry animal apart by their parts
  • Spot animal homes and signs without touching them
  • Watch the weather and the seasons change and tell what living things do
  • Count and compare what you see and draw it in a nature notebook
  • Stay safe outside: look with eyes, ask a grown-up before touching

The 12 weeks

  1. Week 1

    Explorer Eyes

    Look, listen and notice

  2. Week 2

    Birds Next Door

    Feathers, beaks and songs

  3. Week 3

    Bug Hunt

    Six legs, eight legs, look but do not touch

  4. Week 4

    Plant Parts

    Roots, stem, leaves and flower

  5. Week 5

    Furry Neighbors

    Mammals and the signs they leave

  6. Week 6

    Scaly and Slippery

    Reptiles and amphibians

  7. Week 7

    Animal Homes

    Nests, burrows, webs and hives

  8. Week 8

    Weather Watch

    Sun, clouds, wind and rain

  9. Week 9

    Babies and Grown-ups

    Like their parents, but not exactly

  10. Week 10

    Seasons Change

    The year goes round and round

  11. Week 11

    Count and Compare

    Sunny spot, shady spot

  12. Week 12

    Explorer Badge

    Help your backyard neighbors

More in Backyard Explorer

Try Week 1 today.

Open the course, pick Day 1 and go. Make a free parent account when you want progress saved for each kid.