Nurdle Patrol (English)
Provided by: Tumble Media|Published on: June 25, 2026
Grades: 3, 4, 5
Type: Podcasts
Subjects: Science
Authors: Tumble Science Podcast for Kids
Region: Global
Languages: English
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This eight-part audio course casts students as special agents on Nurdle Patrol, a mission to find and track nurdles—small plastic pellets that serve as the building blocks for plastic products.
- Students learn what nurdles are and how they are made, train to identify them by size, color, shape, and texture, conduct a field survey, report their data to a global database, and consider how to prevent plastic pollution.
Teaching Materials
Materials:
- To embark on this mission, students will need:
- Printouts from the audio course resource list
- Clipboards or notebooks
- A GPS-enabled device or access to Google or Apple Maps
- A timer
- Gloves
- Collection containers, varied sizes
- Spoons (optional game)
- Bag of rice (optional game)
- Bottles (optional game)
Classroom Implementation:
- This course is a great fit for a hands-on Earth Week unit but can also be spread out over multiple weeks; see the facilitator guide for tips about pacing.
- Use a Nurdle Patrol-related call-and-response attention signal, such as "Nurdle Patrol?" "Mission ready!"
- Pre-select key moments in the audios to pause and have students turn-and-talk or discuss guiding questions as a group.
Differentiation:
- For multilingual learners who would benefit from hearing the audio in Spanish, check out the Spanish version of this course.
- There is no transcribed version of the audio content, but teachers may auto-generate transcripts by using online tools and linking them to the Spotify course playlist.
Climate Change Connection:
- This course connects to climate change through the lifecycle of plastic, which is derived from fossil fuels and drives global warming.
This eight-part audio lesson educates students about plastic nurdle pollution before tasking them with conducting nurdle surveys in their environment. Each audio lesson is accompanied by several documents, all of which are clear and wholly factual. Also included is a call for students to think about how they can reduce plastic pollution. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
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