See bison, elk, wolves, big horn sheep, coyotes, and grizzly bears in their natural habitat. Watch smoke jumpers fight fires and see helicopter rescue training. You'll discover the source of the "Old Faithful" geyser, and learn about nature and ecology from Yellowstone rangers.

This video is an adventurous exploration of Yellowstone National Park.  The information is fascinating and the sights are breathtaking.  This is an excellent way to get your child hooked on nature.  Information is provided about thermal features like the hot springs, and geysers that exist throughout the park, as well as facts about the rivers, lakes, and animals that flow and live within Yellowstone.  Each new topic is introduced by colorful words that flash on the screen to help children associate the things and activities with the appropriate titles.  There are lots of portions that involve children exploring the park with a guide, and the narration is done by a child.  This video introduces children to the beauty of the wild world and also informs them of some of the challenges that are faced in nature.

As your child watches this video they will become significantly more knowledgeable, and curious about the natural world in some of the country's national parks.  You may discover that it is time to plan a family trip to see some of the parks in your area, or perhaps it is time to make the journey to Yellowstone.  The facts that your child will learn will likely lead to more questions.  You can indulge your child's desire to learn by answering their questions or researching the answers together.  This can provide some special bonding time and lead to some fun activities for the two of you.

When I was younger, I remember visiting many national parks with my family.  Most of the time we would camp, and I remember setting up the camp site and then wondering around, pretending to be an explorer discovering new territories. I loved sleeping in a tent and listening to all the sounds of nature. I especially liked when it rained at night, because it was so fresh and green in the morning. I watched this video with my friend and her son Harry.  I told him about my experiences as a child, and he has decided he wants to visit every national park "in the world." I promised him that this summer I would take him to at last one park, and we would camp overnight. He is so excited and is making his mother put together a list of all the things that we are going to bring with us.

--Kendall

Filmmaker William VanDerKloot was watching kids' videos with his children. He was disappointed with what he saw... and what he didn't. With a few notable exceptions, most children's videos were poorly done and overly simplistic. "It seemed as if very little effort was put into the research or production of those products," said VanDerKloot. "Many looked like amateur home videos."

Then he got an idea.... A Peabody award-winning director/producer, VanDerKloot decided to produce one himself. The first subject came to him while driving past the Atlanta airport in a car full of children. As they drove down I-75, a giant plane took off overhead. Immediately VanDerKloot was bombarded with questions from the kids, "What kind of plane is that?" How fast is it going?" "How many passengers are in it?" The Big Plane Trip, the first video in The Big Adventure Series®, was born.

But VanDerKloot did not want to make a simplistic video "just for kids." Each subsequent video in the series, is constructed with various levels of information so that an entire family, from the youngest to the oldest, can enjoy and learn something new with every viewing. "There is something that happens when you become a parent," says VanDerKloot. "You begin to look at the world through the eyes of a child. Suddenly the normal becomes the extraordinary and you see things in a whole new way."

The Big Adventure Series® shows how things work with a child's sense of wonder. And who better to critique an adventure-in-progress than kids themselves. The team at Little Mammoth holds a number of screenings for children's groups while videos are in their rough edit stage. Utilizing the input, the videos are modified. The results are productions that have received national acclaim from the critics, and most importantly, from families and children.

This hard work has paid off. The BIG Adventure Series®, which is now sixteen titles strong, has received dozens of awards and citations from such organizations as Parent's Choice, Kids First!, Video Librarian, CINE, and International Monitor Awards.