PBS KIDS has unveiled its plans for a back-to-school campaign, also marking the 10th anniversary of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.
As kids reluctantly end their summer holidays and make their way back to class, PBS KIDS says it has created new content and online resources to help students, teachers, and families as they make the transition back to school.
The kid’s division of public broadcaster PBS says the offerings include a range of tools for building confidence and social skills, as well as award-winning series with important life lessons for school-bound young viewers — from making friends and managing feelings, to persevering through challenges and supporting new routines.
“Every school year marks a new beginning filled with possibilities for making friends, having adventures, and developing new skills,” said Sara DeWitt, Senior Vice President and General Manager, PBS KIDS. “Going back to school is a big transition for young children and their families, as well as the nation’s teachers, and PBS KIDS is committed to supporting them with the resources they need to ensure the best possible start.”
PBS KIDS says viewers will get a chance to stream their favorite series that entertain while imparting important life lessons and reinforcing key developmental skills. This includes:
- Shorts from XAVIER RIDDLE AND THE SECRET MUSEUM (now available), which explore themes including perseverance, compassion, honesty, courage, responsibility, gratitude, curiosity, and creativity.
- New episodes from the Emmy award-winning, PBS KIDS Talk About, the series featuring real parent-child conversations on a wide range of timely subjects. These will stream free on PBS KIDS starting on Aug. 4 (Friendship), Aug. 11, 18 (Perseverance, in English and Spanish), Aug. 25 (Scary Things), and Sept. 1 (Celebrating Family).
This year also marks the 10th anniversary of DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, one of PBS KIDS’ most popular series from Fred Rogers Productions.
The network is planning a celebration beginning Sept. 3 with a special “Top Ten Tiger Tales” marathon of ten episodes as voted on by fans. The marathon will lead into the Season 6 premiere of the Emmy-winning series on Sept. 5, with a week of new episodes that focus on trying new things and having new experiences. The episodes will stream free on PBS KIDS starting Sept. 5.
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Other programs are focused directly on kids going back to school, and helping parents and children with the transition.
Parents and caregivers can visit the back-to-school hub on PBS KIDS for Parents for age-appropriate tips, activities, and printables that help children create routines, manage their emotions, and build new friendships.
New resources like How to Prepare Your Child for a New School and Setting Goals for a New School Year support parents in preparing their kids for new experiences. Additional articles and activities – like building a family fort and making a back-to-school time capsule – will be available throughout August and September to offer conversation starters and opportunities for reflection in kicking off the new school year.
For teachers, the back-to-school collection on PBS LearningMedia offers curriculum-aligned resources that can be customized to meet the unique learning needs of each student.
New this school year are classroom posters, available in English and Spanish, along with the Teach Your Way calendar and Spark Learning with DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, a self-paced learning course for PreK-2 teachers.
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