Pop over to https://learningmole.com/pricing/ to subscribe and access over 3,200 fabulous educational videos AND we offer the first 6 months of subscription for just £1.99 p/m on all our student and teacher plans. You can also discover us in the Kidovo app - https://www.kidovo.com/creators/learning-mole What are tsunamis? What might cause a tsunami to happen? Are there any signs for tsunamis out there that could warn out people? There are lots and lots of tsunami facts for kids which could teach them more about this natural disaster. What actually is a tsunami? Tsunami is a large ocean wave that is caused by underwater earthquake volcanic explosion. A lot of people think that tsunamis are tidal waves but they are not because tidal waves are caused by the forces of the sun, moon and planet tides, as well as the wind as it moves over the water with typical waves, water flows in circles. This is different with a tsunami because in the case of tsunamis, water flows straight and that is why they cause so much damage. How is the tsunami formed? That's part of understanding tsunamis and knowing why they are formed, how and what are the consequences that they might cause. Tsunamis are formed when something called tectonic plates in the earth's crust are formed, they are usually referred to as crying together and sometimes these plates get stuck and the pressure gets up and soon they slam into a new position which eventually causes an earthquake that is the main reason behind tsunamis. The reason why earthquakes end up being the main reason goes back to the position of this earthquake which might eventually leave part of the ocean lower and the water above rises and starts spreading across the ocean causing a tsunami. Underwater landslides and volcanic eruptions could also lead to the occurrence of a tsunami. What does the word tsunami mean and where did it actually come from? Tsunami means "a great harbour wave" and it comes from the Japanese language - for the people around the world, it might sound a little bit funny for the kids but it actually carries its meaning which originally comes from Japan. A tsunami is actually a threatening experience and the ones we have heard of before brought out losses to the countries they appeared in. Four out of the five tsunamis that happened before were actually in the ring of fire, a zone in the pacific ocean where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions take place. How hard or big could a tsunami get or reach? That's a good question to ask after knowing what tsunamis are and how they are formed. Out in the open ocean, tsunami wave one meter high because the water is deep but as the water becomes shallow, the waves slow down and become bigger and bigger, they could rise to 35 meters or even higher. A tsunami in general is a scary thing and the scariest might be the wave length because it determines how far inland it can travel. A large wave might have a wave length above 150 meters but a tsunami could actually reach 1,000 km. Tsunamis are also fast, they could race across the ocean at an incredible 970 km per hour. It is hard to take the precautions needed because one never knows how hard a tsunami will end up being and not just that, but also the signs might just appear seconds before the tsunami hits. Before a tsunami hits, a huge vacuum effect sucking water from harbours and beaches, and that is when people can see the ocean floor littered with flopping fish and other sea animals, also a wave blasts onto the shore minutes later then another and another for two hours or even more, and there might be one hour between the waves. We have heard of different tsunamis that happened before and the deadliest of them is the one that started in the great Indian ocean in 2004, where more than 150,000 people were dead or missing and millions were homeless in 11 different countries. Talking about natural disasters, there are other things which kids should be educated about, such as the earthquakes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu_PBjBIFKI), tornadoes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWA9dpLtNrU) and hurricanes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye0wWBOKIZY). These are all believed to be part of the weather conditions and that is why kids should also know about thunder and lightning as well which is one other scary weather conditions for kids to know about (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i8hYEkiqSE). Enjoy the video and tell us your feedback :-) Visit www.learningmole.com for more educational lessons and videos in Maths, English, Crafts and Cooking. LearningMole focuses on educating children of all ages. We offer advice and practical, interactive ideas to help parents challenge, homeschool, teach and develop their children’s skills at home.