Squiz Kids Shortcuts
Each week we take a deep dive into a high-interest news or current affairs topic, answering kids' burning questions about everything from the Olympics to Islam. A new episode is released every Monday morning.
Looking for curriculum-aligned comprehension activities for each shortcut? We've got you covered. And check the episode notes for more resources to dig deeper.
LATEST SHORTCUT
Your Shortcut to… YouTube
Your Shortcut to… YouTube We’ll take you through HOW YouTube came into being; WHO are some of the most famous YouTubers… and WHY you need to stop, think, and check when watching YouTube. For the full episode transcript, click here. LINKS: Newshounds, Squiz Kids’ free media literacy curriculum: https://www.squizkids.com.au/about-newshounds/ The first YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw The…
Squiz Kids Shortcuts dive into the who, what, when, where, why and how of the big news stories.
PREVIOUS SHORTCUTS
The Titanic
It was elegant, expensive, and doomed… the greatest shipwreck of all time. We’ll take you through WHY Titanic is the most famous ship, and shipwreck, in history… HOW it all went so wrong … and WHAT Titanic looks like today.
Listen nowThe Great Barrier Reef
It’s one of the seven natural wonders of the world… the only living thing visible from space … and experts are worried it’s in danger. We’ll take you through WHY the Great Barrier Reef is so famous; WHAT exactly is a coral reef; and HOW one of Australia’s top tourist attractions is in trouble.
Listen nowAll About Autism
It’s a common disability, and some people call it their superpower… Boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed than girls… and some people who have it, have no interest in a cure. We’ll take you through WHAT autism is… WHO are some famous people on the autism spectrum, and HOW to be a good friend to someone who is autistic.
Listen nowWater
It covers 2/3 of our planet’s surface… it’s the reason there’s life on Earth… and still, two billion people on our planet don’t have enough. We’ll take you through WHY there’s a water crisis … HOW unsafe water can make you sick… and WHAT kids can do to help.
Listen nowThe Secret World of Maths
We can find it in shells, flowers, pinecones and snails… it’s needed in sport, construction, space exploration and more… and it pairs very nicely with a sweet, flaky dessert. We’ll take you through WHAT pi (not pie) is… HOW else maths is found in art and nature … and WHO has jobs that involve maths.
Listen nowNoodles
You can eat them for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert… if you’re in China, you’ll have a long life if you slurp them … and no, Marco Polo did NOT introduce them to Italy. We’ll take you through why it is that we humans love noodles so much; where in the world we can eat noodles; and—we think you’ll be surprised by this one—when we can eat them.
Listen nowClever Critters
Rats that save lives… frogs that pretend to be insects … and plants that can count? We’ll take you through why some animals have these amazing abilities, how humans are using clever critters, and what we know about plant intelligence.
Listen nowValentine’s Day
It has its roots in an Ancient festival that featured goats… Shakespeare was a fan… and it was changed forever by the Hallmark company. We’ll take you through WHEN Valentine’s Day got started, HOW it is celebrated by different people, and WHAT are some of the craziest real-life romantic gestures we’ve discovered.
Listen nowLearning Disabilities
Up to one in ten Aussie kids has one… so did Albert Einstein… and they can make school really hard. We’ll take you through WHY learning disabilities are different from other disabilities… WHAT types of learning disabilities are common… and HOW kids with learning disabilities get help at school.
Listen nowAustralia in Antarctica
It’s a desert… it’s the coldest place on earth… and 60 Australians live there all winter long! Who are the people who choose to live in the coldiest, windiest, and driest continent on earth? What work are they doing there? And how do they survive in such a harsh place?
Listen now