{"id":4490,"date":"2019-08-27T06:25:19","date_gmt":"2019-08-27T13:25:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/?p=4490"},"modified":"2019-08-27T14:08:44","modified_gmt":"2019-08-27T21:08:44","slug":"help-kids-first","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/2019\/help-kids-first\/","title":{"rendered":"Help KIDS FIRST! Expand Its Training and Audience"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"TS4.TomHanksPhotoBomb\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/341665806?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Never did we imagine that &#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>* <strong>Tom Hanks<\/strong> would photo-bomb one of our KIDS FIRST! Film Critics at the press junket of <em>Toy Story 4<\/em> during her red carpet prep.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Gerry.keefer.MorganF.LegoMovie.jpg?resize=225%2C154&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4500\" width=\"225\" height=\"154\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Gerry.keefer.MorganF.LegoMovie.jpg?resize=300%2C205&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Gerry.keefer.MorganF.LegoMovie.jpg?w=658&amp;ssl=1 658w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>* <strong>Morgan\nFreeman<\/strong> would choose one of our KIDS FIRST! Film\nCritics as his one and only interview at the premiere of his film <em>The\nLEGO Movie<\/em>. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>*<strong>\nOprah Winfrey <\/strong>would\nselect one of our KIDS FIRST! reporters to interview her on the red carpet of <em>The\nHundred-Foot Journey<\/em>.\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>* 100,000+ listeners would tune in weekly to our radio show on <strong>Voice America and IheartRadio <\/strong>to hear reviews of films and TV shows. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p> \u2026when we created KIDS FIRST! Film Critics, a project of the 30-year-old Coalition for Quality Children\u2019s Media (CQCM),<strong> a 501-c-3 non-profit.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Zoe.LinManuelMiranda.cropped.jpg?resize=165%2C161&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Zoe C. and Lin Manuel-Miranda\n\" class=\"wp-image-4499\" width=\"165\" height=\"161\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience\">Help us raise $15,000<\/a><\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience\"> <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>to expand KIDS FIRST!\u2019s training and educational opportunities for kids, both nationally and around the world. &nbsp;(Yes, we\u2019ve had requests to jump borders with KIDS FIRST!) There is no charge for a child to participate as a KIDS FIRST! Film Critic and every kid is a volunteer. However, KIDS FIRST! provides <strong>coaches, editors, technical personnel and equipment <\/strong>to help our youth reporters develop their skills, talents, dreams and goals. Additionally, we need to expand opportunities to reach a larger audience of kids and families. All those things take money and that\u2019s what we need help in funding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><a href=\"Donate at:  https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience \" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=113%2C113&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4515\" width=\"113\" height=\"113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?w=300&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 113px) 100vw, 113px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>At the heart\nof KIDS FIRST! is our commitment to putting kids, ages 8 to 21, front and\ncenter <strong>reviewing films, TV shows, DVDs and\ndigital media<\/strong>\ngeared for a youth and family market. Rather than having adults tell kids (and\nparents) what to see, hear and read, KIDS FIRST! invites kids to tell other\nkids what is, and is not, important, excellent, interesting, engaging and worth\nspending your own money on.&nbsp;An important part of our coaching is teaching\nour reporters how to think critically about the information they receive via\nmedia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Katherine.TomHanks.TS4_.jpg?resize=225%2C141&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4496\" width=\"225\" height=\"141\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Katherine.TomHanks.TS4_.jpg?resize=300%2C188&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Katherine.TomHanks.TS4_.jpg?resize=768%2C482&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Katherine.TomHanks.TS4_.jpg?w=900&amp;ssl=1 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>You know the\nimportance of learning to recognize excellence. You know the importance of\ncommunicating excellence. And you know the fundamental significance of being\ntaken seriously and recognized as a contributor in the entertainment world. We\ngive kids a voice! KIDS FIRST! trains kids to stand side by side with seasoned\nentertainment reporters and <strong>become\naccomplished critics, interviewers and influencers among their peers. &nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Nathalia.KC_.KajVanDerVoort.jpg?resize=169%2C225&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4498\" width=\"169\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Nathalia.KC_.KajVanDerVoort.jpg?resize=225%2C300&amp;ssl=1 225w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Nathalia.KC_.KajVanDerVoort.jpg?resize=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Nathalia.KC_.KajVanDerVoort.jpg?w=1125&amp;ssl=1 1125w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 169px) 100vw, 169px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>We would never have gotten to where we are without the help of kind people like you. Today I am asking you to help us <strong>amp up our training and publicity opportunities<\/strong> so we can help kids tell other kids how to choose media that enhances, not detracts from their lives. Our reporters speak honestly about the films, TV shows and digital media they view and we make sure that their reviews reach millions of kids and families every month.&nbsp; Donate at:  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience\">https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience<\/a>  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-medium-font-size has-very-dark-gray-color\"><strong>Know That: <\/strong>100% of your donation supports our KIDS FIRST! Film Critics training and implementation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Abigail.JustinTimberlake.Cropped.jpg?resize=225%2C166&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4492\" width=\"225\" height=\"166\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Abigail.JustinTimberlake.Cropped.jpg?resize=300%2C221&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Abigail.JustinTimberlake.Cropped.jpg?resize=768%2C565&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Abigail.JustinTimberlake.Cropped.jpg?w=962&amp;ssl=1 962w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Be a part of the future. KIDS FIRST! Film Critics are unique and a first in examining entertainment from a youth point of view. When the kids win, everyone wins! <strong><em>Smarter kids make smarter consumers.<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;To inspire you, take a look at what some of our reporters and their parents say about KIDS FIRST! &nbsp;And below that, what the industry leader have to say about us. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"KIDS FIRST! Film Critics 2019\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/321607711?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>I found KIDS FIRST! by online research and never imagined it was going to be a total life-changing experience for my daughter. After a whole year, KIDS FIRST! is not just a way of living for us and is a great experience for all the other kids that are part of this organization. As a media member, I understand the hard work required to be a film journalist and to work in the entertainment industry. I&#8217;m grateful that Ranny gave us such a warm welcome. We share our love for films and she encourages us everyday to be better. Mariana Medina Cannella, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic parent <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><a href=\"Donate at:  https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience \" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=113%2C113&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4515\" width=\"113\" height=\"113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?w=300&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 113px) 100vw, 113px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>Thank you doesn\u2019t even begin to describe how thankful Nathalia and I are. What an amazing experience KIDS FIRST!&nbsp;has been for us. I highly recommend KIDS FIRST! to others interested in becoming a film critics.&nbsp;My daughter Nathalia\u2019s written and oral communication has developed and continues to evolve, with help from the KIDS FIRST! staff. Their training program has provided Nathalia the necessary tools to help her articulate her views, share and exchange her impressions and have fun while learning.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:#4912b0\" class=\"has-text-color\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/become-a-juror\/\">More about what KIDS FIRST! parents t<\/a>hink about their child&#8217;s involvement with KIDS FIRST! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, we could not do all that we do without the support of the industry professionals. All the major studios support our KIDS FIRST! Film Critics through invitations to press screenings, press junkets, red carpets and other special events including Disney, Fox, Universal, Paramount, Sony, Lionsgate, Paramount plus NCircle Entertainment, Shout! Factory and Wow Now Entertainment. Most studio employees are not allowed to give KIDS FIRST! a letter of support, but some have which you can see below as well as the terrific PR people who represent the studios. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>\u201cI like working with the KIDS FIRST! reporters. I have\nworked with them for some time- they do their research, are pleasant to be\naround and conduct good interviews. I hope to see KIDS FIRST! continue to grow\nand look forward to working with them again.\u201d Alan&nbsp;Meier, Paramount Home\nEntertainment<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdrise.com\/o\/en\/campaign\/helpkidsfirstexpandtrainingandaudience\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=150%2C150&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4515\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Donate-Button.png?w=300&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>The KIDS FIRST! team does an outstanding job with promoting\nour content through all of their online platforms, banner ads and social media\noutreach. &nbsp;I am very pleased with the lift in monthly impressions that\nNCircle receives as a result of the focused effort from KIDS FIRST! Mary Flynn,\nVP Sales, Content and Acquisitions, NCircle Entertainment <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>&#8220;We absolutely love working with KIDS FIRST! and their youth reporters. They are always reliable and professional and also steal the show (in a good way!) at our junkets and events. The entire KIDS FIRST! team has been a joy to work with for years, and it is so important to us to be able to engage directly with our audience for these films. Plus, they have reporters all over the country!&#8221; &#8211; Mandy Rodgers, VP, Client Services &#8211; Think Jam&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>\u201cKIDS FIRST! is an organization I wish I knew about sooner! Each young reporter astonishes me in the best way! They are all wildly intelligent, impressively polite, timely, and fun to be around! Kids and teens deserve more credit and KIDS FIRST! has made me excited for the future. I know each reporter will go far in any industry they desire!\u201d \u2013 Megan McRae, Family Publicity, TeamClick<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:#4415e0\" class=\"has-text-color\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/become-a-juror\/WhatMediaProfessionalsSay.html\">See what other  Media Professionals have to say about KIDS FIRST!<\/a>                               <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Help us raise $15,000 to expand KIDS FIRST!\u2019s training and educational opportunities for kids, both nationally and around the world. &nbsp;(Yes, we\u2019ve had requests to jump borders with KIDS FIRST!) There is no charge for a child to participate as a KIDS FIRST! Film Critic and every kid is a volunteer. However, KIDS FIRST! provides <strong>coaches, editors, technical personnel and equipment <\/strong>to help our youth reporters develop their skills, talents, dreams and goals. Additionally, we need to expand opportunities to reach a larger audience of kids and families. All those things take money and that\u2019s what we need help in funding. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5],"tags":[422,420,421],"class_list":["post-4490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-member-news","tag-entertainment-reporters","tag-fundraise","tag-support-youth"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paS5I2-1aq","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4490"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4490\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4556,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4490\/revisions\/4556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}