Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this fascinating documentary series examines the geological creation of some of the world's unique features, including the Alaskan glaciers, the sprawling Sahara, and the volcanic Hawaiian islands. Scientists explain the subjects' origins and try to predict what the future holds for these natural wonders (using stunningly realistic computer-generated images to illustrate their ideas). This educational series is perfect for families with grade-schoolers who've started to study related topics, but it may bore younger kids, for whom such scientific concepts are still out of reach.
Families can talk about how scientists hypothesize about the past and future. What kinds of data do experts collect to study natural history? How do they use that data to find answers to their questions? How does a landscape tell the story of its past? What is the landscape like where you live? What can you tell about your area's past based on what you see outside? How do humans affect natural history? How can we help protect our natural resources?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Emily Ashby
What causes the northern lights? How was the Great Barrier Reef formed? What forces of nature combined to create the Grand Canyon? Why is Hawaii's landscape constantly changing?
In Discovery Channel's impressive docuseries FEARLESS PLANET, scientists offer answers to these questions and more as they explore the geological origins of some of Earth's unique features, including glaciers, volcanoes, canyons, and deserts.
Through the investigative work of local experts, the series explains the formations' geological beginnings, describing how natural forces like wind, water, and fire combined to create the landscape we see today. Strikingly realistic computer graphics take the information a step further, illustrating how the creation process likely looked and -- in some cases -- predicting the area's future fate.
Extreme sportsman Will Gadd also goes on location to explore the impressive natural features, working in conjunction with local scientists to gather data that they then use to theorize about what the future holds. Episodes find Gadd rock climbing, kayaking, skiing, paragliding, and scuba diving to get a first-hand look at how geological changes have affected these unique landscapes.
Fearless Planet offers families a dramatic visual tour of some of the world's most impressive wonders, but it's the series' educational quality that really stands out. With flawless CGI effects and layman-friendly narration, the show manages to make scientific concepts like plate tectonics, biology, and even geology both intriguing and enjoyable. This series is a great find for families with grade-schoolers and tweens; their own burgeoning science knowledge will give them the background they need to understand the basic concepts of what they're seeing.
For more educational entertainment, try Planet Earth and Nature.
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ViolenceComputer-generated images depict large-scale disasters like volcanoes and tsunamis burying towns and cities. There's some discussion of the dangers that scientists and the show's guest sportsman face in their studies. (In one scene, for instance, a man walks along the ridge of an active volcano while the narrator reminds viewers that one false step could send him plummeting through the newly formed rock into hot lava.) |
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Social BehaviorScientific concepts like geology and plate tectonics are explained and illustrated for viewers, who learn how some of the earth's most impressive natural wonders were formed and continue to change. |
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