44 Netflix Documentaries You Can Add to Your Homeschool

It’s time to add another resource to your homeschooling toolbox…Netflix.

Your school doesn’t have to just be filled with textbooks, papers, and worksheets. In a world that’s constantly introducing new kinds of technology, education has expanded to include tools we never had as children, Netflix being one of them.

Netflix offers a wide variety of documentaries and educational shows that teach your kids more about the world that they live in. Your children can swim with explorers as they discover and investigate coral reefs deep in the sea or learn about the life of a baby cheetah in bright, captivating, colors.

Best of all, learning via Netflix is easy. Just pop some popcorn, cuddle with your kids under a nice warm blanket, push that Netflix button on your remote, and spend an hour learning about the world through images on the screen. Almost seems like magic, right?

Here are 44 educational documentaries you can find on Netflix to bring a different kind of learning into your school day.

I think you’ll be surprised by how much you learn.

NOTE: These documentaries cover a large range of topics and age groups. Some may be appropriate for your whole family, some might bore your older children, and some may not be ideal for your youngest. Please use your own discretion as to whether these documentaries are appropriate for your children to watch.

Nature

1. 72 Cutest Animals (TV-PG) – A countdown of the cutest animals in the world introduces you to 72 adorable creatures.
2. Africa (TV-PG) – Travel through Africa and learn how animals in different ecosystems live and survive.
3. Baby Animals in the Wild (TV-G) – Learn about the natural world with this TV series that tracks baby animals through their daily lives.
4. Blue Planet II (TV – G) – Take a dive into the deepest parts of the sea in a series that shows you the wonders of the ocean.
5. Chasing Coral (TV-PG) – Look into the phenomenon of disappearing coral reefs with a team of divers who try to solve the mystery of their disappearance.
6. Dino Hunt (TV-G) – Paleontologists uncover dinosaur fossils while working to discover an elusive new species.
7. Earth’s Natural Wonders (TV-PG) – See how humans survive in some of the world’s most beautiful, yet harshest, environments.
8. Frozen Planet (TV- PG) – Journey through ice and snow to uncover the coldest areas of our world.
9. Growing Up Wild (G) – Five young animals discover how to survive in a harsh world.
10. If I Were an Animal (TV-Y) – Let two siblings Emma and Tim take your young kids into the fascinating animal world. Recommended for ages 5-8.
11. Life (TV-PG) – Delve into survival with this series that uncovers animal lives from insects to reptiles.
12. Mission Blue (TV-Y7) – Follow Sylvia Earle’s campaign to save a slowly dying ocean.
13. Monkey Planet (TV-PG) – Zoologist Dr. George McGavin gives an in-depth look at the nature and lives of monkeys.
14. Nature: Animals with Cameras (TV-PG) – Cameras attached to nine different species provide an interesting glimpse into animals’ lives.
15. Nature’s Great Events (TV-PG) – Watch spectacular wildlife events with this TV series that shows how changing seasons and events affect the animal world.
16. Our Planet (TV-G) – See our world’s natural beauty and the impacts of climate change in this extensive documentary that covers different ecosystems throughout the world.
17. Planet Earth II (TV-G) – Travel through the earth and see natural wonders hardly touched by humans.
18. The Blue Planet: A Natural History of the Oceans (TV-G) – A sequel to “Blue Planet” shows you the rarely-seen world under the sea.
19. Wild Alaska (TV-PG) – Witness the great state of Alaska change as the seasons come and go and how animals survive through it all.
20. Wild Arabia (TV-PG) – Discover the changing landscapes of Arabia that are rich in both history and beauty.
21. Wild North (TV-PG) – Look at the wildlife and nature in three different Norwegian biotopes.

History

1. American Experience: The Circus (TV-PG) – Discover how the circus rose to become one of the world’s favorite forms of entertainment and why it slowly died out. 
2. Beatles: How the Beatles Changed the World (TV-PG) – Investigate the impact the Beatles had on music and culture, then and now. 
3. Martin Luther: The Idea that Changed the World (TV-PG) – Learn about a man who fought the beliefs of the Catholic Church in this docudrama about Martin Luther. 
4. The West (TV-PG) – Uncover life in the 19th century American West with this documentary that shows what life was like for pioneers and natives trying to tame a wild country. 
5. The Wheelchair President (TV-PG) – Find out how the failing health and marriage of Franklin Delano Roosevelt impacted the conclusion of WWII.

Science

1. Brain Games (TV-G) – Games, illusions, and experiments give insight into how our brains create our vision of reality.
2. Brainchild (TV-Y7) – This educational series for younger children teaches them the science of the world.
3. City in the Sky (TV-PG) – Delve into modern air travel and the many facets that make it run.
4. Edge of the Universe (TV-G) – Understand some of the mysteries of space as scientists reveal secrets about comets, asteroids, and other cosmic mysteries.
5. Forces of Nature (TV-PG) – Learn about shapes, elements, color, and motion in this docuseries about the forces governing our world.
6. Nova: Black Hole Apocalypse (TV-G) – This documentary uncovers some of the mysteries of the strangest phenomenon in the universe: black holes.
7. SuperNature Wild Flyers (TV-PG) – Learn about aerodynamics of flight by studying and watching the lives of birds.
8. The Farthest: Voyager in Space (TV-PG) – This documentary chronicles NASA’s 1977 launch of two space probes, created to send pictures and data about the furthest reaches of space back to earth.
9. The Last Man on the Moon (TV-PG) – Hear from Gene Cernan as he talks about what it meant to be the last man to stand on the moon.
10. The Lion in Your Living Room (TV-G) – Learn all about the common household pet, the cat, in this documentary that explores multiple topics from its domestication to the science of a cat’s purr.
11. The Mars Generation (TV-PG) – Follow a group of teens at NASA’s “space camp” as they dream about traveling to Mars.
12. The Pyramid Code (TV-PG) – Discover the scientific knowledge and technological advancement of one of the greatest civilizations in the ancient world: the Egyptians.

Current Events

1. He Named Me Malala (PG-13) – Follow the journey of Pakistani girl Malala, shot for standing up for girls’ education, and her determination to keep fighting.
2. I Am Bolt (PG) – The life of world record holder Usain Bolt comes alive in this documentary about his athletic career.
3. The Pixar Story (G) – Get a behind-the-scenes look at the history and creation of a company that has made some of the most loved children’s movies.

Health

1. Sustainable (TV-G) – Chef Rick Bayless and other farmers describe the sustainable food movement and how it could impact the food industry of the future.
2. What the Health (TV-PG) – This documentary discusses links between diet and disease and talks about healthcare and the pharmaceutical and food industries.

We hope you found this list helpful and can incorporate some of these into your homeschooling toolbox. Stay tuned to our blog for future posts about homeschooling resources from Bridgeway!