Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Why Do We Dream?

For Students 9th - 10th
Amy Adkins reveals the top seven reasons why we might dream. [5:38]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Would You Opt for a Life With No Pain?

For Students 9th - 10th
Imagine if you could plug your brain into a machine that would bring you ultimate pleasure for the rest of your life. The only catch? You have to permanently leave reality behind. Hayley Levitt and Bethany Rickwald explore Robert...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Who Was Confucius?

For Students 9th - 10th
Most people recognize Confucius' name and know that he is famous for having said something. Bryan W. Van Norden reveals the man behind the mystery. [4:29]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Scientific Origins of the Minotaur

For Students 9th - 10th
The myth of the Minotaur tells the story of an enraged beast forever wandering the corridors of a damp labyrinth, filled with a rage so intense that its deafening roar shakes the earth. But is this story just fiction, or an attempt of...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Inside the Minds of Animals

For Students 9th - 10th
Do animals think? It's a question that has intrigued scientists for thousands of years, inspiring them to come up with different methods and criteria to measure the intelligence of animals. Bryan B Rasmussen navigates through this...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How Do You Know You Exist?

For Students 9th - 10th
How do you know you're real? James Zucker investigates this in this mind-boggling tribute to Rene Descartes's Meditations on First Philosophy. [3:02]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Unintended Consequences

For Students 9th - 10th
Historian Edward Tenner tells stories that illustrate the under-appreciated gap between our ability to innovate and our ability to foresee the consequences. [16:10]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Try Something New for 30 Days

For Students 9th - 10th
Is there something you've always meant to do, wanted to do, but haven't? Matt Cutts suggests: Try it for 30 days. This short, lighthearted talk offers a neat way to think about setting and achieving goals. [3:21]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Islam, the Quran, and the Five Pillars

For Students 9th - 10th
Gain insight into Islam- the people, the places, the practices, and the historical significance. [12:52]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The History of Marriage

For Students 9th - 10th
Marriage means something different to everyone and has changed over time and across cultures. Alex Gendler traces the history of getting hitched, providing insights on polygamy, same-sex unions and even marriage between the dead and the...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: What Makes Us Feel Good About Our Work?

For Students 9th - 10th
What motivates us to work? It seems that most of us thrive by making constant progress and feeling a sense of purpose. Behavioral economist Dan Ariely presents two eye-opening experiments that reveal our unexpected and nuanced attitudes...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Toward a Science of Simplicity

For Students 9th - 10th
Simplicity: We know it when we see it- but what is it, exactly? In this funny, philosophical talk, George Whitesides chisels out an answer. [19:05]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: What Is Love?

For Students 9th - 10th
Is love a signal winding through your neural pathways? A cliche? A cult? Brad Troeger takes a shot at the definition of love. [4:50]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: On Reading the Koran

For Students 9th - 10th
Lesley Hazleton sat down one day to read the Koran. With serious scholarship and warm humor, Hazleton shares the grace, flexibility and mystery she found, in this myth-debunking talk. [9:34]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Hidden Meanings of Yin and Yang

For Students 9th - 10th
The yin-yang symbol holds its roots in Taoism/Daoism, a Chinese religion and philosophy. John Bellaimey explains why we all contain the spirit of yin and of yang- and how we can achieve a balance of both in our lives. [4:09]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Happy Secret to Better Work

For Students 9th - 10th
We believe that we should work to be happy, but could that be backwards? In this fast-moving and entertaining talk, psychologist Shawn Achor argues that actually happiness inspires productivity. [12:20]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Let's Talk About Dying

For Students 9th - 10th
We can't control if we'll die, but we can "occupy death," in the words of Dr. Peter Saul. He calls on us to make clear our preferences for end of life care- and suggests two questions for starting the conversation. [13:20]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Our Buggy Moral Code

For Students 9th - 10th
Behavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons some think it's OK to cheat or steal. Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational- and can be influenced in ways we can't...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Detention or Eco Club: Choosing Your Future

For Students 9th - 10th
Growing up surrounded by gangs in South Central Los Angeles, Juan Martinez wasn't exposed to the great outdoors. One day in high school, he was given the life-changing choice between detention or Eco Club. He chose nature and has since...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How to Practice Effectively for Just About Anything

For Students 9th - 10th
Annie Bosler and Don Greene explain how practice affects the inner workings of our brains. [4:50]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How to Be Confident

For Students 9th - 10th
The fastest route to confidence is to stop being so attached to one's dignity and seriousness; and plainly admit that one is an idiot. The School of Life explains. [5:03]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: A Syrian Refugee's Story

For Students 9th - 10th
In this short film, Welcome to Canada, learn about a Syrian refugee's story, Mohammed Alsaleh, who fled violence and imprisonment by the Assad regime during Syria's Civil War. Mohammed was granted asylum and now lives in Canada where he...
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How Do Animals Experience Pain?

For Students 9th - 10th
How do the animals all around us experience pain? Robyn J. Crook examines pain in both vertebrate and invertebrate animals. [5:06]
Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Why Are We So Attached to Our Things?

For Students 9th - 10th
Our sense of ownership emerges incredibly early. But why do we become so attached to things? Christian Jarrett details the psychology of ownership. [4:34]