KIDS FIRST! News

From Monday, October 5 – Friday, October 9, “Around Town with Cyberchase” launches on air with five awesome adventures, including two premiere episodes on October 5 and 6.  Each episode will tie to a special “Around Town” printable activity at Cyberchase Online. In the first new episode on October 5, “The Deedle Beast,” the Cyberchase kids chart the bizarre behavior of a pet Deedle Beast and uncover a bigger mystery than they bargained for.  In the premiere of “Spellbound” on October 6, the CyberSquad must discover how to use a grid to communicate what a spell-breaking symbol looks like and save Pompadoria from Wicked’s everlasting rule.

On Cyberchase’s new Facebook page, fans will get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the stars of Cyberchase making it all happen. Cyberchase is a production of THIRTEEN and Title Entertainment, Inc. in association with WNET.ORG – one of America’s most prolific and respected public media providers.

“We’re excited to give on-the-go kids and parents some great ideas on how to incorporate math into their outings around town, whether to the grocery store, the ballpark or the zoo,” says Sandra Sheppard, executive producer for Cyberchase.  “We developed ‘Around Town with Cyberchase’ to support critical STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) initiatives in local communities and to give kids and adults the tools to create their own math adventures where they live.  We’re also thrilled that the many fans of our Cyberchase For Real star, Harry, have an opportunity to see him in brand new web videos,” she continues.

Two new sets of web-exclusive videos, “The Harry Show” and “Math on the Street,” launched on September 21 at Cyberchase Online and feature Harry, played by actor Matt Wilson, encountering wacky math moments all around New York City.  The videos take place in fun spots like the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Central Park Zoo and feature real kids and adults.  All the videos are about 1 – 2 minutes long and are available for streaming or download Cyberchase Online.

“I love meeting kids and finding out how they approach math,” says Wilson.  “I’m really excited because in these web videos, Harry talks with real kids who probably solve problems the same way as many kids at home.”  He continues, “I’m always crunching numbers – leaving a tip, comparison shopping or estimating the time it’ll take to get to the front of a line.  Through these adventures around town, Harry shows kids that we encounter math everywhere, and everyone can be good at it – often without realizing it!”

Emmy Award winner Wilson has been the live-action face of Cyberchase for the show’s seven seasons.  He is also well known on stage and screen where he has worked with Pulitzer Prize, Tony and Grammy Award winners.  Currently he is performing in the World Tour of “The Circus, Starring Britney Spears.”

The PBS KIDS GO! video player will also stream full episodes and clips from the “Around Town” episodes, plus the web videos. Also beginning September 21, the new Cyberchase Facebook page will go behind the scenes with Matt Wilson on his “Around Town” adventures, featuring exclusive photos and behind-the-scenes footage from the taping of “The Harry Show” and “Math on the Street.”  Wilson will also bring fans into a promotional photo shoot and a voiceover recording session at THIRTEEN studios.  In addition, Facebook fans will be treated to a glimpse of Christopher Lloyd and Gilbert Gottfried recording their lines as the villainous Hacker and the lovable Digit for the new episode, “The Deedle Beast.” New footage will be posted daily leading up to the “Around Town” broadcast launch on October 5.

Cyberchase – the only math series for children on American TV – airs daily on PBS KIDS GO! across the country.  Check local listings at Cyberchase Online.  In the tri-state area, Cyberchase can be seen weekdays at 4:30 p.m. (beginning Sept. 7) and 8 a.m. on THIRTEEN, Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and Sunday at 8 a.m. on V-me and Monday-Friday at 7 a.m. on WLIW21.

A new neighborhood awaits preschoolers and fans of all ages at PBSKIDS.org/rogers with the redesigned “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” website, full of new activities, video clips and memorabilia. In addition, 26 favorite episodes will be part of the national PBS KIDS Saturday morning broadcast lineup beginning September 12 (check local listings) and will be available to stream online later this fall at PBSKIDS.org/rogers for fans to enjoy whenever they want. “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” also recently launched a new game on the PBS KIDS PLAY! subscription service (PBSKIDSPLAY.org) featuring Daniel Striped Tiger and will premiere a mobile application later this fall.

“Fred Rogers paved the way for children’s media more than 40 years ago, and we are proud to continue to work with Family Communications to ensure his legacy evolves alongside new developments in media and technology,” said Sara DeWitt, Senior Director, PBS KIDS Interactive. “PBSKIDS.org continues to increase in traffic, with an average of 9 million unique visitors a month. It’s clear that kids love our games, and that parents and educators view our content online as a trusted and fun learning experience.”

“At Family Communications, we continue to hear from adults about what “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” has meant in their lives,” said Kevin Morrison, Chief Operating Officer, Family Communications, Inc. “The core values of the series — kindness, civility, reassurance and inspiration — have helped many strive towards being the best they can be. We are excited to continue to infuse Fred Rogers’ values in new platforms with new generations of children.”

The new Web site features an expanded video inventory from “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” including virtual field trips with Mister Rogers to visit a penguin exhibit, a dinosaur museum exhibit, an art museum, a pediatrician’s office and cellist Yo-Yo Ma, along with the ever-popular factory visits. The site also encourages parent-child interaction with Parent Tips on every screen to help adults understand what their children are working on through their Web experience.

In the all-new Neighborhood of Make-Believe area, children can explore two new environments — inside Lady Elaine’s Museum-Go-Round and Daniel Striped Tiger’s clock.
In the Museum-Go-Round – never depicted before on TV or the Web – children can create artwork of their own, make a kaleidoscope, or just delight in the simple joy of discovery as they make things spin and go up and down.
Inside Daniel’s clock, Daniel Tiger is getting ready for bed, offering an open-ended activity which gives children an opportunity to reflect on their own feelings about bedtime and separation from the ones they love.  As they turn out Daniel’s lights or get him his blankie or teddy bear, they can listen to a Mister Rogers bedtime song or hear Mister Rogers tell a bedtime story.
And for fans of all ages, the all-new “Neighbors of All Ages” section invites kids and adults to share their memories of growing up with the Neighborhood and provides tools through photo sharing site Flickr to post photos and letters.

Working in creative collaboration with PBS KIDS and Family Communications, Inc., the award-winning, Boston-based educational media developer FableVision produced the new site. FableVision President Gary Goldberger notes, “FableVision feels honored to extend Fred Rogers’ mission to a new generation of parents and children. This new media-rich site supports and guides children as they navigate their way through life.”

Parents and teachers can also continue to access content and resources that support essential childhood themes in “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” through PBS Parents and PBS Teachers.  PBS Parents offers articles, activities, tools, recipes and printables that parents and caregivers can use to extend the learning at home.  PBS Teachers provides classroom resources from the series that educators can download and use to support education in community engagement, the arts, mental and emotional health and many more topics.

In addition to the Web re-launch, PBS KIDS and Family Communications selected the top 26 favorite “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” episodes to air on PBS KIDS Saturday mornings this fall.  These episodes will also be featured on PBSKIDS.org in the coming months. The 26 iconic episodes feature classic moments including:

Appearances by Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Dance Theater of Harlem and performers of STOMP;

Visits with author-illustrator Eric Carle (best known for “The Hungry Caterpillar”) and beloved folksinger Ella Jenkins;
Favorite visits to factories showing how people make everyday things like crayons,  construction paper, erasers, flashlights, macaroni, and zippers;
Field trips to a recycling center and the zoo, as well as a ride on a school bus and a visit to the pediatrician’s office;
Two operas, “Windstorm in Bubbleland” and “Spoon Mountain”;
Songs, Make-Believe stories, and conversations about kindness, anger, frustration, making mistakes and even the most difficult feelings surrounding divorce.

“Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” can also be experienced at PBS KIDS PLAY!, an award-winning subscription service that includes curriculum-based games featuring characters from the Neighborhood of Make-Believe. A new Mister Rogers game, Daniel’s Musical Band, launched on PBS KIDS PLAY! in August. The first “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” mobile application, My Journal, will also debut this fall. The application will encourage children to identify and talk about their feelings about their every day experiences like school, playtime and friends. Both the new game and the application feature an animated version of the Neighborhood of Make-Believe character Daniel Striped Tiger.

Brittany Curran stars in the KIDS FIRST! title, Legally Blondes, which airs on ABC Family on August 2nd, 8pm.

Check out her new web-site if you want to take a peek! http://www.brittanycurran.com/Brittany_Curran/Welcome.html

Through a workshop especially designed for classrooms, Dog & Rooster Productions brings you “Hollywood and the Art of Puppetry.” Renowned puppeteer Greg Aronowitz educates kids on the history of animatronic puppets in filmmaking, and then shows them step-by-step how to make their own puppets with simple art supplies. Ideally suited for children ages 5-12.
The Labou team has completed over 50 of these workshops to much critical success with several non-profit organizations including Easter Seals as well as local schools, museums and libraries across the nation.

The workshop is now downloadable for free from www.LabouStuff.com under “Free Stuff”.  It has a video that teaches kids about the history of puppets in Hollywood, and the accompanying puppet cut-out sheets.  The kids love it!

In response to the phenomenally successful first round of quboPic premieres that aired this past winter, qubo, the TV and online entertainment service for children and families, will debut a second round of user-generated animated short films on qubo Channel as well as on qubo’s broadcast blocks on ION Television, NBC and Telemundo beginning Thursday, July 16.

Thousands of young animators from across the country logged on to qubo.com to create short animated films using an innovative storytelling web application called “Zimmer Twins”.  qubo selected fourteen films to be to be converted into fully animated mini-movies for national broadcast.  qubo producers will re-master each film, converting it to high-resolution video with broadcast quality color, music and sound effects.  qubo has also enlisted character actors to record the dialogue  and narration written by the animators in their text bubble scripts.

The “Zimmer Twins”, Edgar and Eva, are animated characters featured in interactive cartoons that kids can create from scratch, modify and share with their friends in a rich, safe web environment. The “Zimmer Twins” section on qubo.com includes storytelling tools, pre-made animated clips and simple editing instructions that tap into kids’ inherent love of stories.  The clips and storytelling prompts explore classic kid themes like science, animals, magic and adventure.  The animation interface is designed around the basic elements of sentence structure, and reinforces reading, grammar, and writing techniques. After creating their stories, users can post and share their creations and even vote for their favorite user-created submissions online.  In 2007, the “Zimmer Twins” won the International Interactive Emmy® Award.

“We were thrilled with the response to our first round of quboPic premieres and can’t think of a better way to honor and thank our viewers than by launching a second effort, “said  Rick Rodriguez, president and general manager, qubo.  “We are proud to showcase the creativity of these talented children on our air. The “Zimmer Twins” helps reinforce qubo’s mission of engaging children’s minds while promoting reading and literacy.”