Wishing you peace and happiness this holiday season!
Be sure to check our December Factoids for events and related content throughout the month!
View our Winter Holidays Collection!
NEW ON KNOWITALL.ORG
REMEMBERING RUDY MANCKE
Rudy Mancke, who passed away on Nov. 7 at the age of 78, became a beloved figure in South Carolina and beyond through his groundbreaking work as the host of the nationally distributed television show NatureScene and SC Public Radio’s NatureNotes. NatureScene, co-created with Beryl Dakers premiered in 1978 and continued for an impressive 25 years, gaining national recognition for its simple and innovative approach to exploring the natural world.
Series include:
NatureScene was one of the most successful series produced by South Carolina ETV, taking viewers for a field trip in nature with Naturalist Rudy Mancke from 1978 to 2003. Along with Rudy were hosts Beryl Dakers and Jim Welch, and Director of Photography Allen Sharpe. Some content has been included from our Streamline collection. We are only offering South Carolina-based shows at this time.
These educational capsules are effective lesson triggers, featuring SCETV's NatureScene naturalist, Rudy Mancke. Nature Notes look at locations around South Carolina and some parts of the U.S. by getting an intimate look at creatures and plant life. Rudy provides interesting information in his usual science-is-all-around-us style. (From our Streamline collection)
Naturalist Rudy Mancke, renowned for his work on South Carolina ETV’s NatureScene series, talks a tad about some of his favorite creatures, sharing his enthusiasm for nature and his knowledge about fascinating things all around us in SC. From his office at the University of South Carolina that is filled with artifacts and creatures of every size and description, Rudy shares a minute of information on interesting science topics! (From our Streamline collection)
The special program, produced by the agency’s Education team, takes a look back at the history of the event, explains the disaster’s connections with SCETV and the University of South Carolina (UofSC) and focuses on the continued study of animals, birds and insects as the lasting impact of the Chernobyl event is explored.
Thirty-five years ago, on April 26, 1986, the largest nuclear disaster in history took place behind the Soviet Iron Curtain. The event impacted nature, nuclear science, the Soviet Union’s political and economic outlook, U.S.-Soviet relations and, of course, local residents. The ramifications of the Chernobyl event were not confined just to the local area - they were felt worldwide.
This series will “pull back the curtain” on the Soviet Union nuclear disaster of April 26, 1986, with a special panel of experts to allow students to learn about the effects Chernobyl had on the nature, nuclear science, US-Soviet relations, and the people who worked there and called it home. Rare photos and video captured by SCETV in partnership with USC will take students to the area devastated by an accident of catastrophic proportions, but, over time nature has returned. Featured are footage and photos from when NatureScene visited the site of the reactor in 2003.
NatureScene was one of the most successful series by South Carolina ETV, taking viewers for a field trip in nature. In this episode, join hosts, Naturalist Rudy Mancke and Jim Welch at Victoria Bluff in Beaufort, S.C.
On a springtime visit to this South Carolina wildlife refuge, Rudy and Jim come across beautiful wildflowers, migratory birds and even some alligators.
Along the banks of the Savannah River, natural inhabitants have been challenged by industry, which is altering their environment. Rudy and Jim explore a variety of habitats that have been set aside and studied by the Savannah River Ecology Lab. Despite the intrusion of man, nature’s resilience allows a variety of plants and animals to thrive through out the Savannah River Site.
FROM THE SKY
The holiday season in South Carolina hosts a blend of tradition, warmth, and festive spirit. Each year, the South Carolina State Christmas Tree embarks on a journey, starting as a carefully selected 35-foot Norway Spruce from Henderson Tree Farm in North Carolina and traveling 160 miles to Columbia, where it becomes the radiant centerpiece of the Governor's Carolighting Ceremony, illuminating the holiday season with joy, unity, and the spirit of community collaboration.
APOLLO 8'S OUT OF THIS WORLD CHRISTMAS PRESENT | HISTORY IN A NUTSHELL SHORTS
A Christmas miracle could not have been more needed in the year 1968. With the Vietnam War at its height, race relations reaching a boiling point in the U.S., and the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, 1968 had been a dreadful year. Morale was low across the globe, but something happened that Christmas which changed human history forever. NASA took a gamble by sending Apollo 8 to orbit the Moon, but the mission was a success! On Christmas Eve, 1968, Apollo 8 entered lunar orbit. Astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders provided the people of Earth with a Christmas gift: the first photos taken by human beings of the Earth from deep space. Seeing this tiny, blue sphere from the Moon made people forget their toils and look up into the heavens with awe-inspiring wonder. Earthrise remains one of the most iconic photographs ever taken in human history.
This video is dedicated in honor of Apollo 8's mission commander, USAF Colonel Frank Borman (March 14, 1928 – November 7, 2023).This Month on KnowItAll - View Our Holiday Programs!
HOLIDAY SPECIALS
Winter Holidays Collection
First Milo Moose Day Celebration | ETV Classics Classroom
Milo the Moose arrives home for the Christmas celebration on the Santa Express Train with Engineer Elf. Milo shares his tales of woe about not being a reindeer. Reindeers received all the attention during Christmas and no one paid any attention to a moose. Milo knows he has magic and is determined to head to the North Pole and fly just like the reindeer. His journey to finding his magic isn't an easy one! Will Milo the Moose find his magic? Will he learn how to fly like the reindeer? Christmas might be saved if he does!
The Gargoyle | ETV Classics Classroom
It's Christmas Eve, and the children are singing Christmas carols around a lighted tree in the courtyard below. In the bell tower of the cathedral is a small, lonely gargoyle who has for centuries watched the candles burning and listened to the children singing. A mysterious white-winged creature knocks the gargoyle from his perch. As a result of this encounter and after helping to mend the creature's wings, the gargoyle receives a Christmas miracle to comfort his lonely soul.
Freedom Comin' - A Gullah Kinfolk Wish
Gullah is the unique and rich culture of the sea islands off the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Gullah was birthed from the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, when West Africans were brought over to the “new world”. Host Aunt Pearlie Sue has a story to tell: Christmas Eve of December 1860 also happens to be the eve of the American Civil War. The life of slavery weighs heavily on the hearts of those who work on southern plantations, but this story contains a silver lining: a Gullah kin-folk wish: “Freedom Comin’!”
Hanukkah: Lighting the Darkness | Palmetto Scene
Rabbi Hesh Epstein of the Chabad of South Carolina explains Hanukkah and why this festival of lights is so important to the Jewish faith. Hanukkah is a Jewish holiday that lasts for eight nights and days. It starts on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar. It celebrates the victory of a small group of Maccabees, Jewish warriors, who banded together to overcome the far more numerous Syrian Greeks who had made it illegal for the Jewish people to practice their faith. The Maccabees recaptured their homeland and rededicated their temple. The Festival of Lights commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem.
The Singing Christmas Tree | ETV Classics Classroom
Live performance with costumed dancers and the singing Christmas tree with a medley of traditional holiday music and carols, with narrative of the first Christmas throughout. The final nativity tableau ends with the Hallelujah Chorus and The First Noel and the narrative of the story of Jesus. A twentieth Anniversary Celebration.
Traditions in the New Year
Take a look at some traditions celebrated in the New Year.
RECENTLY ADDED TO KNOWITALL.ORG
THE WORLD OF CECIL
When the Civil Rights Movement in South Carolina hit its stride, Cecil Williams was there with his camera creating a visual record through marches, meetings, sit-ins, demonstrations and riots. A child of the movement, himself, Williams was both an active participant and a passionate observer and preserver of its history. It is a role he prepared for from childhood; a role he embraces, yet today.
Williams is outspoken in his belief that the Civil Rights Movement had its beginning in Clarendon County, South Carolina, and that South Carolina—especially his hometown of Orangeburg—played a critical and pivotal role on the national civil rights front, although its primacy and impact are little known and accorded scant recognition. Through publications, sharing his photographs, telling the stories—and most recently, creating a South Carolina Civil Rights Museum, Williams hopes to correct this oversight. The two-part documentary, The World of Cecil tells his story through glimpses of major events and people, illuminated by Cecil’s photographs. Along the way, we learn of the myriad talents and accomplishments of Cecil J. Williams, the man, who set out to help make the world a better place.
HISTORY IN A NUTSHELL SHORTS
These short-form "factoids" highlight various observances throughout the year, such as anniversaries, holidays, people, and more!
Native American “Code Talkers” played a crucial role in the allied victory in World War II. Coined by the U.S. Marine Corps, a “Code Talker” is the term given to American Indians who used their tribal languages to send secret coded communications on the battlefield. Although the tactic of using native languages to transmit secret messages was first tested in World War I, it wasn’t until World War II that the US military developed a specific policy to recruit and train Native American speakers as battlefield communicators.
While the U.S. Marine Navajo Code Talkers in the Pacific Theater are arguably the most well-known, members from at least 14 other Native nations served as Code Talkers during WWII. Being a Code Talker was an especially dangerous job in the Pacific Theater since Japanese forces were ordered to specifically target officers, medics, and radiomen.
Despite the heroic contributions of these Code Talkers during the war, recognition was slow even after the Code Talkers program was declassified in 1968. There was some recognition throughout the 1970's and 1980's - President Ronald Reagan recognized Navajo Code Talkers by naming August 14, 1982 as Navajo Code Talkers Day. On December 21, 2000, President Bill Clinton signed Public Law 106–554, 114 Statute 2763, which awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to the original 29 World War II Navajo code talkers and Silver Medals to each person who qualified as a Navajo code talker (approximately 300). The Code Talkers Recognition Act of 2008 further expanded recognition by honoring Code Talkers from both world wars. It was signed into law by Pres. George W. Bush on November 15, 2008.
The Navajo Code remains the only military code in modern history to never be broken by an enemy.
CAROLINA SNAPS
From small towns to southern icons, learn about South Carolina with these 60 second videos.
WHATWORKSSC
The Riley Institute at Furman and South Carolina Future Minds partner to present the annual Dick and Tunky Riley WhatWorksSC Award for Excellence to an outstanding education initiative in South Carolina.
FEATURED IN DECEMBER
During this season of giving, we hope you’ll take time to consider one additional gift that comes to us at this time of year—the gift of a little more time!
We hope you’ll take a little of that time to explore some of the SERIES and COLLECTIONS that are new to you on KnowItAll!
You can select the content in a number of ways:
- View our KnowItAll Series by Grade Level!
- View our KnowItAll Series by Subject!
- For your convenience, our Interactives are all located here!
We have a few suggestions to consider exploring during the holidays!
Artopia is a comprehensive web-based arts experience designed for middle school students, covering the visual and performing arts. Students will learn art history via animated one-minute movies, be guided on how to closely examine important works of art, and view videos of professional artists at work. This project was supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Knowitall has produced Q&A video profiles with national authors and illustrators who visit South Carolina. These interview opportunities are provided by partners like the South Carolina State Library.
Between the Waters is SCETV’s immersive transmedia website showcasing the culture and history of Hobcaw Barony, a 16,000 acre historic site on the coast of South Carolina. Located between Charleston and Myrtle Beach, Hobcaw is a crossroads representing every era of human history, providing a lens through which many threads of the nation’s story may be examined. Visitors to the Between the Waters website take a self-directed virtual tour of Hobcaw Barony, moving down the roads and rice canals, entering slave dwellings and grand houses, watching videos, examining photographs, and listening to historians and the first-person stories of former residents and relatives.
South Carolina ETV has a strong record of community service that includes civil rights programming, youth media literacy projects and technology training for teachers. In collaboration with Write/Right to Change of Clemson University's Strom Thurmond Institute, ETV American Graduate developed the ETV Civil Rights and Social Justice Youth Media Summit on March 1–3, 2013. Focusing on digital and social media as a strategy for student engagement, the Summit taught critical thinking and problem-solving skills to a select group of high school students assisted by mass communications mentors from Benedict College students, helping them to understand their place in history.
The MUSC Public Information and Community Outreach Initiative (PICO) staff have collaborated with SCETV on several television broadcasts on the topic of Climate Change.
CNN’s John King hosts an expert panel as they examine the challenges and impacts of climate change. Extreme conditions, drought, floods, rising seas and hurricanes are part of the conversation. Patrick McMillan takes viewers from the sands of Hunting Island State Park to other communities along coastal South Carolina and Georgia, exploring diverse perspectives on the impact of sea level rise on the Eastern Seaboard.
Conversations with Crescent is an animated educational series created by Black female students in South Carolina. In the series, Crescent invites viewers to extend the conversations that take place in her world and among her friends. Episodes are standard aligned and primarily lend well to learning activities in ELA and Social Studies.
The objectives of the series are:
1. To model courageous conversation
2. To promote social awareness, inclusivity, and cultural competency
3. To provide examples of Black excellence
A series with Dr. Ray Davis, Scot Hockman from SCDE, and South Carolina artists from eight career clusters. The first series features a Panel Discussion with the artists, and the second series consists of bios of each artist. Both series reveal numerous details about these careers in the arts, as well as the educational requirements, and the technology and soft skills utilized in each field.
Panelists in careers related to media arts discuss the education and experiences that attracted them to a career in this field, and describe the path that led them to their chosen profession. They also discuss skills that are utilized in their job each day, describe a typical day, and give advice to students considering a career in media arts.
The “diSCovering science” series features interviews with scientists and researchers from South Carolina’s colleges and universities. These scientists explain the societal impacts of their work and describe their day-to-day jobs. “The series focuses on a broad range of scientific subjects including biology, chemistry and physics and multidisciplinary fields such as bioengineering, chemical engineering, high performance computing, and nanotechnology.
Marcus Lattimore from First Choice Community Center in Columbia demonstrates fun and easy exercises that can be done at home.
From the Sky is a digital series that offers viewers a glimpse into the cities and towns of South Carolina from a “not often seen” vantage point…from above.
From the mountains to the midlands to the coast, there's always something new to discover in South Carolina. Discover SC's Devyn Whitmire will experience some of the most unique and iconic experiences the Palmetto State has to offer.
In the past, people have described the Gullah culture as quaint and the language as unintelligible. A closer look reveals a complex history and language with direct links to West Africa that survived slavery and thrived on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia. The Gullah experience has many variables that make it unique to each family and community.
GullahNet along with its host, Aunt Pearlie Sue (Anita Singleton-Prather), was designed to introduce Gullah culture and language to children on the web.
Join our cartoon host as he takes viewers on journeys through significant historical events in World History - In A Nutshell!
The place for hands-on math and science activities and games.
Kids Work! is a virtual community of workplaces designed to give students an interactive job exploration experience that connects school work to real work.
View profiles from real professionals.
Check out virtual reality tours of some of South Carolina’s most interesting historical sites on your desktop computer or the Matterport App. Each tour includes an overview video and photo gallery.
Using career profiles and 360 videos, Let's Go! CAREERS brings students virtually inside the work environment, especially in areas that need skilled workers.
Find award-winning science, math and technology videos and interactives for grades K-12 produced by NASA and provided for distribution to South Carolina ETV's Knowitall.
A Natural State explores how people express a love for nature by shaping, twisting, carving, and weaving materials collected from the landscape. Some of the arts and crafts featured in A Natural State reveal the cultural heritage of South Carolina, while others employ concepts from the world of modern art. For more about this project, visit the credits page.
TO GET STARTED: Click on a landform region below to learn more about these artists and how they use the uniqueness of their environment to enhance their artistic vision. To learn more about each landform region, visit the Where Am I? section.
Reconstruction 360 uses a 360 degree video platform as a storytelling device that lets the audience step inside pivotal Reconstruction events. By clicking on icons within the 360 video the user can access short documentaries that offer the perspectives of multiple characters. Reconstruction 360 also includes lesson plans, primary documents, and curriculum standards.
RiverVenture is the story of South Carolina's cultural and natural landscape as told by its rivers. RiverVenture will take you on a virtual "float-trip" across South Carolina, following the Saluda, the Congaree, the Santee, the Cooper, and the Catawba Rivers.
Road Trip! Through South Carolina Civil Rights History was designed to help teachers and students to learn about the people and the events, and the importance of the civil rights movement in South Carolina from the 1940s to the early 1970s. Questions to think about:
Which Civil Rights activists impressed you? What contributions did they make to the Civil Rights Movement in SC?
What struggles, dangers and hardships did people face during the Civil Rights Movement?
If you had been a student activist at that time, what would you have done?
Take a virtual field trip to a South Carolina cove forest and a salt marsh. These virtual field trips were produced in collaboration between Clemson University's SC LIFE Project and South Carolina ETV. The virtual field trips were designed specifically for schools lacking easy access to natural areas. The target grade level of the SC LIFE Virtual Field Trips content is middle school.
Girls tend to lose interest in science and technology during middle school. For three-years, ETV coordinated a pilot project called TECH TEAM. To conclude this three year project, ETV partnered with the National Science Foundation, the Girl Scouts of America, and community schools and groups, to host an all-day science festival that stimulated and encouraged middle school girls' interest in science, technology, engineering and math careers. The 2005 Science Splash was a girl's odyssey of hands-on science and math activities, speakers, shows and exhibits—all designed to educate, inspire, stimulate and entertain middle school girls ages 10-14.
Smart Cat is the official mascot for SCETV Kids. Exercise with Smart Cat by checking out the videos and following along!
Rivers touch some aspect of our lives every day, quietly serving a need for drinking water, farming, power, industry and recreation. In the spring of 2008, educator Ian Sanchez kayaked from the mountains to the sea, making connections between our cultural and natural landscapes.
Web of Water includes videos shot on location of Ian's three week adventure, teacher and student resources, map and diagram collections, and additional streaming video from the broadcast documentary. "Webisodes" provide an inspiring look at Ian's special brand of outreach and environmental education, and insight into how rivers, landforms and landscapes of South Carolina shape who we are, where we live and why we live there.
Experience the wonder! Explore the spectacular! What’s Wild features South Carolina’s rarest wildlife and the amazing people who protect them.
South Carolina ETV has a strong record of community service that includes civil rights programming, youth media literacy projects and technology training for teachers. The SCETV American Graduate Youth Media Institute, focusing on health and community engagement, was held at SCETV from June 8 – 12, 2015. Students used their video and reporting skills to create short documentaries on healthy food, farms and gardens. By focusing on sustainable food production and nutrition, the Youth Media Institute helped students make the connection between a healthy lifestyle and their own educations.
Does sustainable farming or gardening interest you? How about the health benefits? Even a small garden could substantially change your life for the better!
Footage from the world renowned Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens is utilized in each segment with an opening that points out habitat and scientific name. These segments are perfect for any school news program, and they are suitable for all ages. From tiger to tortoise, ostrich to slippery snake, facts about these fascinating creatures are explored in Zoo Minutes.
MONTHLY OBSERVANCES, WEEK-LONG OBSERVANCES AND ONE-DAY OBSERVANCES CAN BE FOUND IN EACH MONTH’S KNOWITALL FACTOIDS!
View these each month to find out about Collections we’ve developed on topics you may never have considered we’d make available on KnowItAll.org!
- View the December Factoids page!
- You can also view the KnowItAll Factoids for the full year here!
BE SURE TO CHECK OUT THESE AREAS EACH TIME YOU VISIT KNOWITALL.ORG!
If we were able to spark your curiosity with the resources listed above, please visit these additional areas on KnowItAll.org!
Knowitall.org features over 9,000 mobile-friendly videos, worksheets, and interactives for preK-12. Now you can drill down to the specific Topics and Subtopics you’re interested in.
Find topical content and lessons grouped together for your convenience. These are available all year long for your planning purposes.
Lesson plans for teachers that meet South Carolina standards.
Be sure to review our KnowItAll blogs! They provide dates and links to resources each month. You may be surprised by all the topics you'll find!
From the top of the home page, click on the magnifying glass, and when the search box opens, click on the magnifying glass again, and the results will come up, showing all of the assets available on KnowItAll.org. The newest content will appear at the top of the results. Just scroll down to view all of the content that is new to you! Visit often, so you won’t miss a thing!
We welcome your questions and comments! We would love to hear from you!
Wishing you much happiness this holiday season and throughout the New Year!
The Learning Continues on KnowItAll.org!
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