STEM and STEAM YouTube Channels for Kids

We've put together a list of kid-friendly YouTube channels on STEM and STEAM topics: science, technology, engineering, arts and design, maths, robotics, coding, digital making, logical thinking ...

Have you got a child who wants to watch endless inane nonsense on YouTube? Then this post is for you. OK, it's for me. But I thought I'd share it. I've tried it and said child still sits glued to the content even if it's actually informative. Who knew?

If your child is committed to spending lots of time watching YouTube then you might as well try and subvert their tendencies and direct them towards something worth watching.

Please note: We haven't watched every video on all of these channels (we're working on it) and can't promise that you will find every video suitable for your kids. It should be mostly okay but as usual when kids are online we recommend that you remain in earshot and be ready to shout 'stop that video now' in a voice that lets your kids know you mean it. Also some of the videos may feature promotional content. And it's YouTube, ads will try and sell your kids hair regrowth products and mortgages. It's a trade-off.

Here's our list of recommended channels and playlists. There a variety to appeal to different age groups and interests from little kids to tweens and teens.

• WonderQuest with Stampy - Many kids will be familiar with stampylonghead from his YouTube channels. In WonderQuest Stampy tackles science and other educational topics. 
• Adafruit Circuit Playground with Adabot - An awesome preschooler-style series that explains the basics electronics of electronics. We re-watch the whole series every time a new episode comes out. Which isn't often enough. We may still be watching when my kids are teenagers. 
• Goldie Blox Toy Hackers with Simone Giertz - Yep. Now my kids can experience Simone Giertz with the volume up. If you've seen her own channel you'll know what I mean. 
• Crash Course Kids - Oh yes, Crash Course for Kids. Engineering and lots of Science. Crash Course style. 
• Sci Show Kids - Yep, Sci Show for kids too. Experiments, answers to those why questions. 
• Chess Lessons for Kids and Rugrats and Rooks - Fun videos to teach kids chess. 
• Here Comes Science - They Might Be Giants - The official music videos for this fab album. 
• Can You Solve this Riddle - TedEd - Classic puzzles to develop logical thinking. There's lots more on the TedEd channel too.
• Super Awesome Sylvia's MINI Maker Show - Fun projects to make explained by an awesome young maker. 
• ExpeRimental - Science experiments you can do at home from the Royal Institution. 
• Make Anything // 3D Printing Channel - Packed with Maker inspiration. 
• Grand Illusions for the Enquiring Mind - Toys with interesting mechanisms and clever tricks. There are loads of these and they are fascinating. 
• Jragon // Learn How To Make Minecraft Commands - Learn how to code inside Minecraft (without mods)
• Michael Faraday's The Chemical History of a Candle - A modern version of Faraday's classic lecture series for children by engineer guy Bill Hammack. 
• Cryptography from the Khan Academy - An often neglected but increasingly important topic. There's loads more on the Khan Academy channel. 

Got more suggestions? Yes please. Add them in the comments.

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