MeganW Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Anybody else looking for PBS shows by age & topic? I couldn't easily find this on the PBS website, so thought I'd post in case anyone else needed it. I would love your thoughts/reviews on these (specifically those for 6/7/8 year olds!). We don't watch much TV, but it is nice to have some decent things DVRd for the odd occasion. Caillou - preschool - imagination Mama Mirabelle's Home Movies - preschool - natural world/wildlife Sesame Street - preschool - early language & literacy Sid the Science Kid - preschool - science readiness The Cat in the Hat - preschool - science & math WordWorld - preschool - early literacy Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood - 2 to 4 - social skills based on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Mister Rogers - 2 to 5 - social skills Curious George - 3 to 5 - science, engineering, & math Dinosaur Train - 3 to 6 - scientific thinking - life science, natural history & paleontology Super Why - 3 to 6 - reading readiness Between the Lions - 3 to 7 - literacy skills Clifford - 3 to 7 - social, emotional, & moral messages Martha Speaks - 4 to 7 - vocabulary Arthur - 4 to 8 - interest in reading & writing; positive social skills WordGirl - 4 to 9 - vocabulary Wild Kratts - 5 to 7 - science / animal habitats Postcards from Buster - 5 to 11 - cultural awareness / ESL acquisition ZOOM - 5 to 11 - activities - science, engineering, & math Fizzy's Lunch Lab - 6 to 8 - WEB ONLY - healthy food Noah Comprende OR Oh Noah - 6 to 8 - Spanish Chuck Vanderchuck - 6 to 9 - music, ear training, & music composition The Electric Company - 6 to 9 - literacy Fetch! - 6 to 10 - science Wilson and Ditch - 6 to 10 - American geography / history / culture Maya & Miquel - 6 to 11 - diversity of cultures, perspectives, traditions, languages & experiences Cyberchase - 8 to 11 - math SciGirls - 8 to 12 - science & engineering Dragonfly TV - 9 to 12 - science Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeganW Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 The ones I know: Calillou - the whininess makes me insane! I don't think we've ever watched more than 2 minutes of that before it has to turn off. Sid the Science Kid - kids love it, seems like they learn a little WordWorld - kids love it, seems like they learn a little Super Why - kids love it, seems like they learn a little Between the Lions - kids love it, I love it - they learn a LOT! This was the fav in our house for a LONG time!!! Wild Kratts - kids love it, seems like they learn a little Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Nice list. Fetch! was definitely about more than science. That show just covered everything under the sun. We miss it. In general, I think you skewed your ages too high. While Postcards from Buster or Maya and Miguel are for "older kids" I can't imagine any 11 yos loving them. I mean, no offense to anyone with an 11 yo who happens to adore Maya and Miguel... I just don't find that's its key demographic. It's pretty simple. All their shows are really so there's very little complex storytelling or higher level teaching going on even in their "older kids" shows. The fact that there aren't any really appealing PBS shows for kids after about age 8 or so is one of my big complaints about PBS kids. :( Also, that they abandoned Reading Rainbow, a show about loving books, for inferior shows about reading mechanics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeganW Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 Nice list. Fetch! was definitely about more than science. That show just covered everything under the sun. We miss it. In general, I think you skewed your ages too high. ... The fact that there aren't any really appealing PBS shows for kids after about age 8 or so is one of my big complaints about PBS kids. :( ... I just copied them out of the show descriptions. :) That stinks that they don't have much that appeals to older kids. I was hoping somebody was going to tell me that some of these we haven't seen before were wonderful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Agree with Farrar. I miss the PBS kids shows, but DS, age 10, has pretty much outgrown them. He will still *very* occasionally watch Fetch!, but the sun has set on the rest at our house. We've not seen Dragonfly TV though.... Wonder what that's like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Ah. Well, Fetch! was well loved here. It was a faux reality show/game show where kids competed in weird challenges. They had to take trips all over the country to go learn about stuff and then answer questions about it to a cartoon dog. My kids learned about all kinds of stuff from that show. They still occasionally will tell me something and I'll be like, where do you learn that. Fetch. And Wild Kratts is okay - I have liked all the Kratt Brothers PBS shows (this is their third one). It was briefly enjoyed here. My kids tried to enjoy Cyberchase but found it weird and the storytelling was just disjointed. I count never quite see the learning element in the episodes I saw. Arthur is Arthur. I think it's a bit of a divisive show. There are some positive things about it, but it can also be very "lesson" based. It's like a constant pre-teen afterschool special in some ways. Dragonfly TV and Zoom are both good in small doses but my kids never really took to them. Also, they weren't aired here enough for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrunchyGirl Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 I've been really pleased with Word World. I think they do a nice job of helping kids understand that letters form words and words have meanings. Cute show. I feel decent about letting my pre-reading kit watch it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 That stinks that they don't have much that appeals to older kids. I was hoping somebody was going to tell me that some of these we haven't seen before were wonderful! My kids prefer Nova ScienceNow. They "outgrew" pbskids long ago as the shows keep repeating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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