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

Are you ready to meet the absolute greatest footballer of all time? Join Mira and Finn as they time travel to the 20th century to discover the incredible true story of Pele! Before he was a global superstar, young Edson (who got his famous nickname by accident!) was so poor he had to practice his football skills using grapefruits and old socks stuffed with wet newspapers. Eww! But kicking those lumpy, gross socks gave him the most amazing reflexes in the world.

Listen as we uncover how a nine-year-old boy made a massive promise to his crying dad to win the World Cup—and then actually did it at just 17 years old! You'll learn how Pele scored an unbelievable 1,279 goals, why fans once stopped a match for 20 whole minutes just to celebrate him, and how he became so valuable that the President of Brazil passed a law declaring him an official, real-life National Treasure! Plus, test your football knowledge in our fun trivia quiz. Grab your favorite soccer ball and let's kick off!

Have you ever wondered who actually invented school? Get your backpacks ready because we are time-traveling 4,500 years back to Ancient Mesopotamia to find out! Discover what it was like to go to the very first school, known as the Eduba, where kids had to do their math homework on heavy slabs of wet mud! Can you imagine smoothing out dirt with your thumb just to erase your mistakes? Then, we are fast-forwarding to 19th-century America to visit a crazy one-room schoolhouse! Imagine sitting in a single room with forty other kids ranging from first to eighth grade, all trying to learn at the exact same time while crowded around a giant cast-iron stove! Plus, we are busting one of the biggest historical myths of all time: the real reason we get a long summer vacation! Hint: It had absolutely nothing to do with planting crops on a farm, and everything to do with escaping the smelly, sweaty, dangerously hot cities! Join Mira and Finn as they uncover the wild and surprising history of your classroom!

Imagine a massive global war that lasted for 45 years, where the two sides never even fought on a real battlefield! After World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union went from being allies to total rivals in a freezing standoff known as the Cold War. But how did it all begin? Join Mira and Finn as they uncover the incredible true story of a divided world and the famous "Iron Curtain" that split Europe in half! You will hear the terrifying tale of the Berlin Blockade, where millions of people were trapped without food or power, and the heroic Berlin Airlift that saved them by landing cargo planes every 45 seconds! Plus, learn about the amazing "Candy Bomber" who dropped 23 tons of chocolate from the sky in tiny parachutes to cheering kids below. And don't miss our weird fact of the day about a super-sneaky, battery-free spy bug hidden inside a beautiful wooden gift! Grab your winter coat and get ready for a history adventure packed with secret missions, daring pilots, and sky-high candy!

Have you ever wondered what kids played before video games, cell phones, or the internet existed? Grab your dice and get ready to roll, because people have been obsessed with board games for over five thousand years! Join Mira and Finn as they travel back in time to discover the incredible history of your favorite games! First, we’re off to ancient Egypt, where the boy-king Pharaoh Tutankhamun loved playing a magical race game called Senet so much that he was buried with four whole boards! Then, we'll discover the Royal Game of Ur and its crazy pyramid-shaped dice! Did you know that modern chess actually started in ancient India as a wild war game called Chaturanga, complete with pieces shaped like real war elephants? Or that Snakes and Ladders was originally invented to teach kids how to be good people? From ancient palace guards carving secret game boards into giant statues to a clever inventor making Rummikub in his backyard and selling it door-to-door, the history of board games is full of awesome surprises. Press play and let the games begin!

Have you ever wondered how people learned to throw giant opponents, fight like tigers, and use brain power to win against brute strength? It's time to dive into the epic history of martial arts! From high kicks to ground wrestling, discover how ancient warriors turned combat into a true science of skill, discipline, and respect. Travel back in time to the misty mountains of ancient China, where a monk stared at a wall for nine years and helped invent Shaolin Kung Fu using animal moves! Then, journey to Japan to meet Jigoro Kano, a ninety-pound teenager who invented Judo to stop bullies by using their own energy against them. We’ll also head to Brazil to see how the Gracie family created Brazilian jiu-jitsu to win the very first ultimate cage fight, and learn about the amazing Thai warrior who used the "Art of Eight Limbs" to defeat ten champions in a row! Grab your black belt and get ready for an action-packed historical adventure!