Turning your TV Time into Quality Time
April 1, 2008 Issue #4
Christine L. Pollock, Editor Ranny Levy, Publisher
By subscription only!
Christine L. Pollock, Editor |
Ranny Levy, Publisher Granny Ranny's Addenda |
Plugged In Parents/Educators
Little Mammoth and the Big Freeze
Producer Bill VanDerKloot is cold…and loving it! Fans of “The Big Space Shuttle” and “The Big Aquarium,” brace yourselves for Little Mammoth Media’s newest adventures in discovery. This year, two new titles are coming your way, “The BIG Breakfast” and “The BIG Freeze.” Both videos are part of the new BIG Adventure EARTH Series, which tells about the world around us and how connected we are to the natural world.
“The BIG Freeze” tells about ICE. Since 2008 is the International Polar Year, VanDerKloot and his gang look at all sorts of things that freeze from icebergs to ice sculptures; snow sculptures to glaciers. They also go up to the arctic and follow scientists who research the ice packs and learn about all the wildlife that lives on the ice.
“The BIG Breakfast” tells the story behind a child’s breakfast of orange juice, blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, hot chocolate, and more. They travel to orange groves, dairy farms, wheat fields, and even pineapple orchards! Young audiences learn how food is grown and how important good food is to growing bodies.
Over the fifteen plus years Little Mammoth Media has been around, they have noticed a huge increase in the number of shows embracing “branded children’s entertainment.” Little Mammoth believes a good program can stand on its own, without the merchandizing aspects. VanDerKloot says, “I have always subscribed to the philosophy that you touch one person at a time."
Joining the KIDS FIRST! team further emphasizes Little Mammoth Media’s dedication to children and families. VanDerKloot believes children absorb so much information, it is so important that it be good information, and KIDS FIRST! is an organization at the forefront of that effort. Little Mammoth has been a proud member for many years.Entertainment Insider News
Producers as KIDS FIRST! Jurors 
Why would a producer want to become a KIDS FIRST! juror? Perhaps to gain more insight into the minds of children, stimulating their own creativity and making their own productions more appealing to families according to producers and KIDS FIRST! jurors Liz O'Connell and Lee Armstrong.
O’Connell, who produces natural history programs for WonderVisions, appreciates the fact that kids in her jury are frank and don’t know how to “massage the message” yet, so you will get honest opinions in your reviews. She states, “Some of the children have become my fans and supporters. We talk together on a different level than just adult/child. We talk about media.”
At Images In Motion, Armstrong and her team specialize in quality puppetry for TV and film. Since becoming a juror, Armstrong finds that she spends more time trying to see her production through the eyes of a child and that being a juror has given her ideas for projects and insights that she didn’t have before becoming a juror.
KIDS FIRST! Jury Manager, Lauren Longworth, finds that good producers of children's media are always on a mission to help improve the overall quality of children's media available to the public. Producers find the jury process particularly enlightening and fun, seeing what other producers are "putting out there."
For more information on becoming a juror, go to www.kidsfirst.org/become-a-juror/. Member producers who become jurors receive one free full endorsement application, after completing their training and reviewing six dvds, films, interactive media or cd's in their first six months. The $40 application fee is also fully refundable at that time. The training is fun and can be done from home in your spare time. Teachers interested in becoming jurors also get a great incentive. Pay $20 for the training (half off) and we
pay the full $40 back once you complete the training and review 6 titles. Details are on the page linked above.
Blogs: Up-to-Date News from our President and VP
Granny
Ranny's Addenda
New Releases, Kids Choice Winners, The Mom Song
Alvin and the Chipmunks" will be released to DVD on April 1st. Funny, mischievous and very adventurous, Alvin, Simon and Theodore ... - Read It!
Hip Hop Harry - Your Friend and Mine
Hip Hop Harry is a preschool, dance, musically - based, and live action program designed to entertain, educate and inform children ... Read It!
Ann's Marketing Memes
Recycle Unwanted Electronics and Get Money for Being Socially Responsible!
MyBoneYard® was created to help people like you recycle electronic devices such as cell phones and laptops in a smart, responsible and ...
- Read
It!
KIDS FIRST! Juror/Jury Blog
Get Paid to Become a Juror!!
Special ongoing incentives are being offered for new jurors. An educator incentive allows educators to pay $20 for their juror appli... - Read More!
ABOUT CQCM AND KIDS FIRST!
The Coalition for Quality Children's Media is a national, nonprofit organization founded in 1991 whose mission is to teach children critical viewing skills and to increase the visibility and availability of quality children's media. More.
