Appu - The Yogic Elephant

Appu, the yogic elephant, can conjure anything by meditating, but he loves learning without magic. With Neena's help, he explores a fun STEM topic: levers. At first, Tiger, King, Queen, Igress, and Stretchy aren't keen, but once they see how useful levers are-even at construction sites-they're hooked. Soon they're all enjoying a see-saw, with Stretchy as the fulcrum.

Appu dives into a new STEM idea-weight and balance-during a sunny afternoon boat ride with Neena, Tiger, and the gang. Their boat tips dangerously, but Appu uses science to fix it, magicking up a simple scale to teach balance. Once steady, no one wants to row, so Appu creates a sail and a magic gust of wind to set them off.

The monkey couple easily swing between trees, and the Appu gang wants to join them for the view. They try lifting Stretchy with vines, but it doesn't work. Neena introduces the pulley, then a double pulley, making it much easier. Inspired, Appu suggests they build a tree house. Soon everyone is up in the trees, and Neena can even spot her apartment.

King and Queen Lee find a "musical instrument" and drum on it, puzzled by its single note. Igress says she's seen it ridden at the zoo. They try skating on mud, water, and grass, but it won't move. Neena explains and has Appu magic a ramp. With slopes and a half-pipe, the monkeys zoom, invent tricks, and master the skateboard, while Igress uses the ramp to avoid thorny bushes.

Just after they finish treating little Amanda Jean, King Lee swings in and bumps his head. His swelling grows fast, but Appu, Neena, and Tiger now know exactly what to do. Appu brings real first-aid supplies, and an ice pack quickly eases the bump. Queen worries, but King recovers, giving the gang real hands-on first-aid experience.

Neena sets up a domino run to show cause and effect. Appu knocks the first piece and a spiral collapses beautifully. A second setup ends with a ball landing in a cup, amazing everyone. They build a bigger jungle version, but zoo keepers arrive to trap Appu and the monkeys. While the others flee, Appu cleverly turns the simple machine into a trap that catches the keepers instead.

Appu, Neena, Tiger, King, and Queen Lee play tag, which leads to a chat about shadows. King even tags his own, thinking it's a person. Neena shows how shadows form using transparent, translucent, and opaque objects. The lesson ends with a shadow-puppet show at Neena's. When her mom checks in twice, Appu cleverly hides everyone's opaque bodies to keep their nighttime meetup secret.

A nut falls on King's head, making him wish things fell upward. Neena and Appu explain gravity with fun tests, showing why objects fall and birds stay up by flapping. After lots of jumping and tumbling, the gang accepts gravity. Inspired, Appu takes them to a place where everything floats, turning their gravity lesson into a thrilling adventure.

In a game of hide-and-seek, Appu and his friends explore camouflage. Stretchy's spots and Igress's stripes help them disappear, and Appu even makes Neena a grass suit. They learn how many animals blend into the wild. Suddenly the zookeepers appear, and everyone hides-except Neena and Tiger. The rest of the adventure is about how the two manage to stay almost unseen.

Appu's friends explore why some things float and others sink, with Neena guiding fun experiments. King and Queen are shocked when big objects float but a tiny grape sinks. In the middle of testing, the monkeys chase their apple into the stream and jump in-forgetting they can't swim! Appu quickly magics a float to save them, wrapping up the lesson.