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June is National Zoo and Aquarium Month

Zoos and aquariums are actively engaged in critical conservation work, protecting endangered species and restoring ecosystems. Ignite your students' passion for wildlife and environmental stewardship through virtual field trips, live animal webcams, and curricular connections. These resources offer countless ways to bring real-world conservation science into your lessons and inspire the next generation of environmental advocates this month and throughout the year.

Grades K-12

Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

This resource offers live webcams for the naked mole rat, elephant, lion, and giant panda at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. The website also gives some information and the latest news about the animals.

Grades 2-12

Gez.la Virtual Trips

Gez.la uses open-source resources to share more than 150 virtual trips. Take your class on a virtual trip to visit zoos, aquariums, and other sites worldwide. Choose your tour from the list, read the short description, and view the virtual trip!

Grades 1-12

Giant Panda

Learn fun facts and viewing tips for visiting the giant pandas at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. This site includes a panda cam, physical description, and conservation information. Be sure to also view the news section for all of the latest information.

Grades K-12

Reid Park Zoo

The Reid Park Zoo offers webcams for African wild dogs, Andean bears, elephants, flamingos, giraffes, lemurs/duikers, lions, and sloths. The site provides information to help you learn more about these animals and others at the zoo.

Grades K-12

New England Aquarium

The New England Aquarium offers 15+ free educational activities (including Adaptation & Survival, Secret Animal, and Shark Observation), plus three tide pool books, animal facts, live webcams, and conservation research resources.

Grades K-12

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian offers digital exhibitions, lesson plans, virtual tours, and interactive tools covering history, science, art, and culture. Resources include worksheets, videos, and inquiry-based activities from museums, zoos, and more for all grades.

Grades 4-12

Shedd Aquarium Educational Materials

Chicago's Shedd Aquarium offers educational materials that include extensive online lesson plans, interactive animations, and virtual field trips to ocean habitats and aquarium exhibits suitable for most grade levels and curriculum topics.

Grades K-12

The Aquarium of the Pacific

The Aquarium of the Pacific offers webcam resource kits, virtual field trips, livestreams, NGSS-aligned lesson plans, and professional development workshops to help teachers integrate marine science and oceanography into the STEM curriculum.

Grades K-12

Houston Zoo

Houston Zoo's webcam page features livestreams of Asian elephants, giraffes, gorillas, rhinos, and flamingos from 7 AM–7 PM CT daily, letting viewers watch animals in their habitats and see feeding interactions.

Grades K-12

Georgia Aquarium

The Georgia Aquarium offers a variety of live cameras, including the ocean voyager, beluga whales, sharks, jellyfish, southern sea otters, and underwater puffins. Each webcam page features resources you can click to learn more.

This Week at TeachersFirst

We invite you to register for an upcoming OK2Ask virtual workshop! We’re also sharing our Infusing Technology Blog and a paid opportunity to join our team as a part-time contributor. Read the details below!