History for Kids / History's Not Boring: The Kids History Podcast

Have you ever wondered where snakes came from? Believe it or not, millions of years ago, snakes actually used to have legs! In this spectacular episode of History's Not Boring, Mira and Finn slither back in time to uncover the wild history of snakes. Discover how ancient lizards burrowed underground and lost their limbs, leaving behind weird two-legged fossils!

Then, travel to a steamy prehistoric jungle to meet the terrifying Titanoboa! This monstrous snake was forty-two feet long—the size of a school bus—and hunted giant crocodiles! You will also learn the awesome science behind snake venom, which is basically just super spicy spit used to paralyze their prey.

Plus, we explore why snakes pop up in so many famous ancient myths, from the snake-haired gorgon Medusa to the Aztec feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl. Finally, find out why these creepy, legless, unblinking reptiles are actually heroes that protect our food and provide life-saving medicine. Get ready for some amazing facts, including how snakes smell using their tongues and can even fly through the air! Tune in for a totally snake-tastic adventure!

Have you ever had a giant argument on the playground? Now imagine if entire countries had a disagreement, but instead of fighting, they built a massive global clubhouse just to talk it out! After the devastating events of World War II, leaders from all over the globe realized they needed a permanent way to keep world peace. But how do you get 50 different countries to agree on a completely new set of rules? You throw the biggest, most important meeting ever!

In 1945, thousands of delegates traveled to San Francisco to create the United Nations. It was a monumental task! Since they didn't have computers or emails, tired typists had to use 78 tons of paper—that's heavier than a dozen elephants! The final signing ceremony for the massive UN Charter took eight whole hours!

Join Mira and Finn as they travel back to the 1940s to uncover how this amazing global team-up happened. You'll find out which US President coined the name, why the UN headquarters in New York is actually its own international territory, and why UN Peacekeepers always wear bright blue helmets!

Aloha, history explorers! Did you know the tallest mountain on Earth isn’t Mount Everest? It’s actually a massive underwater volcano in Hawaii! In this exciting episode, we are traveling to the middle of the Pacific Ocean to uncover the epic story of the Hawaiian Islands. Discover how deep-sea magma created a chain of 132 islands, and learn about the brilliant ancient Polynesian navigators who found them using only the stars, birds, and ocean waves!

Then, meet King Kamehameha, a powerful warrior who flipped a 5,000-pound rhino-sized rock and united all the islands into one kingdom! We’ll also explore the time of Queen Liliʻuokalani, the tragic but important history of Pearl Harbor, and the happy day in 1959 when Hawaii became the 50th American state. Plus, find out why the Hawaiian alphabet only has 13 letters, how you can go snowboarding on a tropical island, and try your best to pronounce the name of Hawaii's state fish: the Humuhumunukunukuapua'a! Grab your surfboards and snow pants for a fiery, volcano-sized adventure!

Did you know that the deck of cards you use for Go Fish or Crazy Eights is actually an ancient spy tool? It's true! Grab your time machine and join Mira and Finn on a wild adventure to uncover the secret history of playing cards! The story starts way back in ancient China during the Tang Dynasty, where a real princess played the very first card game using long strips of paper money. From there, the cards traveled thousands of miles across the famous Silk Road to Egypt, where the original card suits were actually gold coins, swords, cups, and polo sticks!

But the drama doesn't stop there. When cards made their way to Europe, card makers decided to base the kings on real historical rulers like Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar! The absolute craziest part? During World War II, spies teamed up with an American playing card company to create top-secret map decks. When dropped in water, these sneaky cards would peel apart to reveal hidden escape maps for captured soldiers! Tune in to discover how a simple deck of cards became a brilliant historical treasure!

Did you know that one of the most famous sports in the world started with bored shepherds and wild rabbits? Grab your clubs and time travel back over six hundred years to the windy, sandy coast of Scotland to discover the wild history of golf! In this episode, Mira and Finn uncover how Scottish shepherds invented the game by using their long wooden walking sticks to whack round sea pebbles into empty rabbit holes. But did you know this fun new game was actually completely banned by the King of Scotland? Find out why golf was considered a massive threat to national security, and why soldiers were supposed to be practicing archery instead! You won't believe how the first fancy golf balls, called "Featheries," were made by cramming an entire top hat full of wet goose feathers into a tiny leather ball. From Old Tom Morris helping to design the first 18-hole courses to Apollo 14 astronauts sneaking clubs into a spaceship to play on the Moon, this episode is a hole-in-one! Join us as we tee off into the unbelievable true story of golf!