♪♪ -This program was made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

Additional funding was provided by... -[ Playing upbeat tune ] ♪ Camp TV ♪ It's time for us to start ♪ From furry animal encounters ♪ To summer reading and the arts ♪ ♪ No matter what the weather ♪ We'll explore it all together ♪ ♪ It's a place for you and me ♪ It's Camp TV [ Flute plays march ] A red, white, and blue hello to you.

Welcome to Independence Day on "Camp TV."

Fireworks, food, friends, and family?

These are all great ways to celebrate America's birthday.

It's something we've been doing since 1776, when America first declared independence from England.

But there's another way I'd like to celebrate today.

The word independence means not being dependent on someone or something else and I think it takes a lot of courage to stand on your own two feet.

But when you do, don't you feel great?

Take, for example, tying your shoes for the first time, making your own breakfast, or riding your bike without training wheels for the very first time.

Can you think of some ways you became more independent this year?

I say let's celebrate it!

[ Fireworks exploding ] So, today I make an additional declaration.

[ Poignant tune plays ] A Camp TV declaration.

Celebrating all the ways you're becoming a more independent you.

Happy Independence Day, Camp TVers.

Off to your first activity.

A little birdie told me it's time to go wild!

-Hi, friends.

Welcome to the Memphis Zoo.

My name is Liz and I'm in the meerkat exhibit and today we're going to learn that even the ordinary can become extraordinary, under the right lens.

With a name like meerkat, you'd think that they were a type of cat, but they aren't even related to cats at all.

Meerkats are a type of mongoose and they are found in Southwestern Africa, in dry, open areas of scrubland and savannahs.

They are small and slender carnivores, [ Whimsical tune plays ] which means they eat meat, and are most recognized for their sentinel posture as they watch for predators.

Each meerkat plays an important role in the mob.

So, a group of meerkats is called a mob and they have an average of 20, but it can get all the way up to around 40 or 50.

Living on the savannahs of Africa can be dangerous, so, there's always a meerkat that is the lookout for any predators in the area.

They're called the sentinel.

If they see a predator, they will alert the rest of the mob with a special call and they will run into the burrow, where they are safe.

They will take turns being the lookout, so everyone in the mob has a chance to hunt and eat.

Meerkats live in a complex burrow underground that not only keeps them safe from predators, like jackals and birds of prey, but also protects them from the extreme heat.

These burrows can have as many as 15 entrances and exits, with several levels of tunnels and chambers.

The burrows have different rooms, such as bathrooms and bedrooms, just like our houses do.

Meerkats have claws that are just one inch long, on their front paws, that help them not only hunt, but dig these burrows.

Like meerkats, we can work together to help wildlife and be wildlife warriors.

Although meerkats don't live close to us, there's things that we can do here to help out them and other animals around us.

So, first thing you can do is make sure your trash ends up in the trash can.

Sometimes wind will pick up trash and take it into animals' homes and by putting it in the trash, we're making sure their homes stay beautiful and clean.

The next thing you can do is use reusable water bottles and bags.

And my favorite thing about this is that you can get them to look like whatever you want, so, people will be very jealous of how cool your reusable products are.

Some other small things that you can do are turn the water off when you're brushing your teeth and even maybe coloring on both sides of the paper before throwing them away.

And remember, we can work together and use our voices, just like meerkats, to be wildlife warriors.

I hope you had just as much fun learning about the meerkats as I did.

We learned that, not only do meerkats have to work together, but we have to work together to help wildlife.

And under the right lens, not only can the ordinary become extraordinary, but you'll learn how cool wildlife can be.

Bye, friends.

-Mmm.

-Hello, my name is Verveine and I'm 12 years old in America's Test Kitchen Kids.

Today we are going to be cutting an avocado and I'll show you how to find out how it's ripe.

Next, we are going to be making guacamole and trying it, which is my favorite part.

Let's begin.

Today we're going to be making guacamole.

We're going to begin this with our avocados.

So, I want you to take three avocados and test these out to see if they're ripe.

You're going to do this by holding one in your palm and feeling around it.

If it's a little soft, use it.

If you see it's a little hard, then throw it back in the fridge and see if you can find a new one.

Guacamole fact -- an avocado is a fruit, not a vegetable.

So, first, we're going to take our avocado and hold it lengthwise.

We're going to take a butter knife and this might be a little surprising to you, that we're using a butter knife for this, but that's all you need for this.

So, yes, you're going to have an avocado lengthwise and you're going to cut around it until you meet the other end.

Oh!

Mine just popped open.

[ Jaunty jazz plays ] Okay.

So, then we're going to have our two palms on these, squeeze them out, and then open them up.

It's like a little surprise.

Okay, so then you're going to see the pit.

Ooh!

It just fell out.

[ Jaunty jazz plays ] So, you're going to squeeze them around.

One goes clockwise, one's going to go counterclockwise, and then you're going to open them up.

You're going to take a spoon and you're going to knock the pit into a bowl.

And then using that same spoon, you can knock the avocado into a separate bowl from the one with the pit.

Make sure that you're getting every bit of avocado there.

And then you can put the skin back in the bowl with the pit and do that with the other half as well.

[ Upbeat funk plays ] [ Fast-forwarding squeaks ] ♪♪ Okay, great job.

Next, we are going to make our guacamole.

So, we're going to begin by putting some lime zest into the bowl.

Then we're going to put in some lime juice as well.

So, we're going to take a whisk.

And the reason I like to use a whisk is because you're going to get a good amount of chunky guacamole, but it's also going to be smooth as well.

And this is your preference.

This is where you get to come in and decide do you want this chunky guacamole or do you want this more smooth version?

So, I personally like a little bit in between, but definitely more on the chunky side.

And so, you're going to do this, you're going to mash it up.

And there's no wrong way of doing this.

Just be yourself here.

Like have fun with this.

This is like a kind of a fun thing to do.

Okay, there we go.

Then you're going to add half a teaspoon of salt.

Okay.

I'm going to add that.

Next, you're going to continue mashing up.

Just showing you a little bit.

Again, so this how you like it.

Mash and mash and mash.

Next, we are going to use one tomato and cube it up and then put it into the bowl.

Then we're going to put in some cilantro.

And then scallion.

You're going to slice it thin.

Okay.

So, now you're going to mash it up a little bit with your whisk, but then you can set it aside.

Then you are going to use a rubber spatula and you're going to mix it all together so that it's all evenly combined.

You're going to fold.

So, you're going to fold a little bit and then you can mash down.

You don't need to do this too long.

So, I can show you.

Now, we have our guacamole and we're going to get to my favorite step of all -- we're going to try it.

So, you can get whatever chips you like and... [ Crunching ] Mmm!

So good.

You have that taste of the lime, but then you also have that chunky and smooth texture.

Thanks for watching.

Enjoy your guacamole.

-Welcome back.

Are you ready to make your mark in honor of America's birthday?

I say let's get messy.

Today we're going to be making a stars and stripes flag painting.

[ Whimsical march plays ] Care to lend a hand?

You will need some washable, nontoxic red, white, and blue craft paint; some paintbrushes; a light-colored piece of paper and a piece of red paper; a white paint marker; and a glue stick or some glue.

Start by painting a blue square on the palm of your hand, like this.

Then paint white and red alternating stripes down your fingers.

Hee hee, it tickles.

Ooh!

Ah!

♪♪ Hey, it looks pretty good.

Press your hand down onto the light piece of paper and hold it steady.

After a few seconds, carefully lift your hand up.

Hey!

After you've washed your hands and your painting has dried, add a star to the blue area, using the white paint marker.

Put some glue on the back of your hand print and mount your artwork onto the red paper, creating a lovely frame for your art piece.

And, finally, don't forget to sign your name.

♪♪ Happy birthday, America.

Ready for some math that counts?

-Hi, there, friends at home.

My name is Lily.

-Hey, everyone.

My name is Omar.

-Join us as we become number detectives.

[ Upbeat whistling tune plays ] ♪♪ Okay, so I have my detective hat.

I'm ready for some number investigating.

What number mystery are we solving today, Omar?

-Well, Lily; well, friends at home, today, we'll uncover secrets about hidden numbers, through a game called... [ Children cheering ] [ Dun dun dun music plays ] Here's how we'll play.

So, we'll pick a range of numbers.

It could be anything.

It could be between 1 and 5, 1 and 10, 1 and 50, 1 and 100.

And then, between me and you, we'll decide who will be the hider; and who will be the guesser, or the number detective.

-[ Gasps ] Ooh, can I be the number detective, please, Omar?

-Of course.

And that means I'll be the hider.

So, after you guess the hidden number, I'll give you clues.

-[ Sighs ] Ooh!

When I'm being a detective, I love solving clues.

So, what kind of clues, though, Omar?

Clues like the number is purple?

-Well, not exactly.

I'll share clues that tell us about the number's position on the number line.

For example, a clue I might give could be my number comes after 7 or my number is greater than 20 or my number is 7 more than 27.

-Okay.

I think I get it.

Clues about the position of the number on the number line.

Okay.

I am ready to play!

-Let's go.

You have your detective hat on?

-You know I do.

-Here we go.

So, first, we have to choose a range.

How about a range of...1 to 50?

-Sounds great to me.

-Okay.

So, I have to pick a number between 1 and 50.

Okay, I have it.

I'm going to write it on this sheet of paper... ...and then I'm going to hide it.

[ Paper crackling ] Now, Lily, guess a number to get us started.

Friends at home, play along with us.

A number between 1 and 50.

44.

Good guess, Lily.

But my number is less than 44.

-Hm.

Okay, so, if it's less than 44, I can deduce that it's not 44.

[ Chiming ] It's not 45.

It's not...

It's not...

It's not... Hm.

Less than 44.

Is your number 29?

-Interesting you picked 29.

So, my number is not an odd number, so it's definitely not 29.

-Mm.

Not an odd number.

That means it must be an even number.

Okay, so, looking at our number line, it can't be [ Chiming ] So many more.

[ Chiming rapidly ] Hm.

Is it 22?

Oh, Lily, you're getting so close.

My number is 4 fewer than 22.

-Hm.

[ Chime ] 4 fewer than 22.

I might count down to solve that, Omar.

21, 20, 19, 18!

It's 18!

[ Fanfare, tinkling tune play ] -You got it, Lily!

Good job!

My secret hidden number is 18.

-Omar, that was so fun and it makes me want to celebrate.

It makes me want to dance.

Is there a way we can make a dance about 18, today's secret hidden number?

-Well, there are a lot of numbers inside of 18.

What if we broke 18 apart?

We could do 10 movements and 8 movements, which, together, make 18.

We could do... 10 scoopety scoops.

-Ooh!

And 8 crissy-crossies.

-Let's do it.

[ Mellow tune plays ] Ready, Lily?

-Yes.

-10 scoopety scoops, first.

[ Upbeat hip hop plays ] -♪ Go ♪♪ -Okay now, 8 crissy-crossies.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Ooh, that was a fun 18 dance, Omar.

So, what materials can friends at home use, if they want to make a number line, if they want to play Secret Hidden Number?

It was helpful for me, as I did my detective work, to see the numbers as we played.

-Well, you could draw a number line; you can make number cards and lay them in a number line; or you could line cups or bowls, number the cups or bowls, and hide something under one of them.

-Ooh, cool!

I can't wait to play some more and make different number lines.

-Lily, it was so great playing with you today.

And, friends out there, hope you have fun playing, too.

See you later, number detectives.

-A little birdie told me it's time to go wild!

[ Whimsical tune plays ] -I'm Jenny.

I'm at the San Diego Zoo and we're here today with a brand-new mandrill baby.

We knew that Kesi was pregnant, but we weren't sure when, exactly, she might deliver the baby, so, I was actually fortunate enough to be the late keeper the night before and came in in the morning and discovered that she had had a baby.

She was carrying it.

Everything looked like it had went well.

To actually see it was pretty incredible, especially since she came in so quietly and just like a typical morning and just happened to have a baby with her was even more exciting.

For both Kesi and Jasper, it's their first offspring.

It's amazing to me, how well everyone's doing.

Jasper, his normal temperament is very mellow demeanor and it's just been consistent this whole time, so, he's acting like an appropriate father.

He's just there to protect them, if need be, but not really hands-on with the baby, so it's pretty much all up to Kesi.

♪♪ So, mandrill infants tend to stay with their moms for at least three to four years, so, the soonest we could see another baby from Kesi would probably be when the baby is at least four.

He'll develop that full coloration, hopefully, around that age and look just like his dad -- big, bright, and beautiful.

So, we haven't had mandrill babies since 2002 here at the San Diego Zoo, so, this is a pretty momentous occasion.

And to have two parents and it's their first offspring and they're both acting completely perfect is pretty incredible.

-You took the words write out of my mouth.

["right"] -♪ Ay ay ay ay ay ay ay ♪ Oh, hi, I'm a pop star.

[ Laughs ] I love to sing.

♪ Oh oh oh oh ♪ ♪ Hee hee hee hee hee [ Snapping fingers ] ♪ Zweebadubah ♪ Zweebadubah dubah dubah But did you know that not everyone does?

There was once a town called Perfectly Perfect Nothing Is Wrong Town, where singing was considered [ Gasps ] imperfect.

Let me tell you the story.

♪ Once upon a time -...where singing is illegal.

♪ La la la la ♪ La -Hello, Sophia.

-♪ Hi, Mr. Mayor -What did you say?!

-♪ I mean Hi, Mr. Mayor.

-Everyone in town called Sophia a... -Weirdo.

-...and... -[ English accent ] Uncivilized.

-And singing is so loud!

-[ Whispering ] And citizens of Perfectly Perfect Nothing Is Wrong Town talk very quietly in a whisper.

-What?!

-[ Whispering ] And citizens of Perfectly Perfect Nothing Is Wrong Town talk very quietly in a whisper.

-Huh?

-[ Whispering ] And citizens of Perfectly Perfect Nothing Is Wrong Town talk very quietly in a whisper.

-Yeah, I'm really going to need you to speak up.

-One day, Sophia held a town meeting.

-Citizens of Perfectly Perfect Nothing Is Wrong Town, I hereby call this town meeting.

It's me, Sophia.

-Who?!

-Who?!

-Hadn't heard of her.

-Most of you know me as Weird Girl.

-Oh.

-Oh!

-Oh, I have heard of her.

-And I wanted to tell you that, when you call me names, it hurts my feelings and it's imperfect to do so.

-[All] Gasp!

-We didn't know it hurt your feelings.

-[All] We're so sorry, Sophia.

-Seriously, my bad.

-I forgive you guys.

But how many other people love to sing, to dance, to play, and just get messy?

-I do!

-Me!

-I love getting messy.

-Well, I guess the only logical thing to do is... -[ Whispering ] Stop whispering and start ♪ Singing!

-No, I was going to say rename this town Sophia's Valley!

[ Triumphant music plays ] -Really, Mr. Mayor?

Thank you so much.

I mean, thank you so ♪ Mu...ch -And from then on, the town was neither perfect nor imperfect.

It was both.

-[All] Hooray!

-Hooray!

-[ Whispering ] Hooray!

-What?!

-♪ The end -Welcome back!

You sure have had a busy Camp TV day, so far.

How about we cool down with a nice, refreshing, festive fruit drink?

You will need... ...either fresh or frozen.

...some... Stir together the berries, orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar, until the sugar is dissolved and some of the berries have broken down.

[ Sniffs ] Mmm, smells good.

[ Upbeat funk plays ] Let it stand for about 10 minutes and do your best to wait patiently.

♪♪ [ Sighs ] ♪♪ Finally!

Add some fizzy water and serve over ice.

Cheers!

Mmm!

Yum!

It's like a flavorful fireworks show in my mouth.

Daytime or nighttime, it's always time for storytime.

Doesn't it feel great when you're able to do something you haven't been able to do before?

But sometimes, it can take time, practice and a whole lot of patience.

I find it really hard to accept when things don't happen immediately.

It can be so frustrating.

Here's a book about just that.

Introducing... [ Whimsical tune plays ] If you've lost, or failed, or cried (just a bit), you're tired of waiting -- ready to quit.

Then, when you thought you were on the right track, you popped a wheelie and fell on your back.

Don't give up now!

There's a major game changer -- a most amazing thought rearrange-er!

Someone to show you how good you can get: Now introducing... With this Yet's magic, you can begin to see that you're going -- beyond where you've been.

Yet's a dreamer, a schemer... And Yet knows you will, when you think you won't.

Like that shiny, new bike that you couldn't ride -- hop right back on with the Yet by your side.

Yet knows there's mistakes -- some big and some small.

With Yet you're sure to get over them all.

Play the kazoo or play the bassoon -- jam with the Yet, and you'll soon be in tune.

This Yet can get to the championship!

Be patient.

Yet can't do it all overnight.

Some things take days, months, or years to get right.

But if you keep leaping, dreaming, wishing... ...with the Yet as your guide, along the way, you'll do all the things you can't do today.

Now you're bolder, braver -- starting to see... You finally did it!

But don't stop now -- you've got so much to do!

The good news is, this Yet grows with you.

So, remember -- the next time you can't get something on your first try, keep working at it.

It's only a matter of Yet.

♪♪ ♪ Camp TV ♪ It's time for us to part ♪ From furry animal encounters ♪ To summer reading and the arts ♪ ♪ No matter what the weather ♪ We'll explore it all together ♪ ♪ It's a place for you and me ♪ It's Camp ♪ T ♪ V -This program was made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.

Additional funding was provided by...

Content provided by these institutions... ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪