Category Archives: Television

Tumble Leaf, an Amazon Studios Original Series, Entertains & Educates Preschool-Age Children & Older!

Preschool, Television, ,

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Amazon Studios. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and promotional item to thank me for participating.

Amazon Studios has a brand new show for preschool-age children called Tumble Leaf.  I’ve been an Amazon Prime member for years and buy more than 50% of our home goods on Amazon.com through my membership and didn’t realize Amazon Studios existed.  I’m really excited about it!

Here is a snapshot of the show.  Aren’t the characters adorable?

Tumble Leaf Amazon Original Preschool Series

My husband and daughter and I watched Tumble Leaf during breakfast the day after we received the screener DVD and even though Tumble Leaf is geared toward preschool age children, my 8-year-old daughter was fascinated by the colorful, vibrant show.  Within 3 minutes, she was engrossed in the  amazingly smooth stop-motion animation  and after the first episode I realized that she found the suspense of what special object Fig the Fox was going to find in his ‘finding spot’ next, too much to pass up.  I had to go to my office and work while she and my husband continued watching the series downstairs.   Poor me.  Apparently my daughter and husband found the rest of the episodes very funny because they were laughing out loud.

Tumble Leaf Amazon Series

About Tumble Leaf:

Each episode of Tumble Leaf follows a day in the life of “Fig the fox” who lives in a wrecked schooner ship by the sea and his best friend “Stick,” a caterpillar who lives in a tiny basket strapped to Fig’s forearm, as they discover adventure, friendship and love around every bend.  At the start of each day, Fig and Stick are eager to play and discover new things about his world, with his eyes, ears, mind and heart open to inspiration. By playing with an  object that he finds in his “finding place” in each episode, he learns about science, critical thinking and the world around him.

Watch the Tumble Leaf trailer

 

Tumble Leaf encourages critical thinking.  The star of Tumble Leaf, Fig the Fox, has a friend who happens to be a curious crab who places a simple object in Fig the Fox’s finding place every day.  Fig the Fox then brings the object on adventures with his friends and observes how the object works and how it can help solve problems.

Tumble Leaf, like all of Amazon’s children’s programs, is designed to inspire creative thinking through play. To ensure series are created to engage children while supporting educational goals, Tumble Leaf and all other Amazon kids preschool programs are developed with the support of an expert board of advisors led by Dr. Alice Wilder, one of the world’s foremost experts in educational and child psychology. Dr. Wilder is most well-known for her work as the producer and director of research and development for Blue’s Clues and Blue’s Room.

Watch the First Episode of Tumble Leaf FREE!

Watch the first episode of Tumble Leaf free HERE!  The first six episodes are now available for unlimited streaming on Prime Instant Video and an additional seven episodes will become available later this summer.   Prime members can watch Tumble Leaf on their iPad, iPhone, Amazon Fire TV, Kindle Fire, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation, Wii, and other connected devices.   If you are a member of Amazon Prime, you can watch the rest of the Tumble Leaf series.  If you’re not an Amazon Prime member, click here to get a 30-day free trial membership and get access to free two-day shipping on thousands of Amazon.com products, free shows and movies on Prime Instant Video, one free Kindle download every month, and more.

Tumble Leaf Android App ScreenshotGet the Free Android Tumble Leaf App!

Your child can play with the show’s characters in the free Tumble Leaf Android app featuring six games inspired by objects and activities from the show. Get the Tumble Leaf App now and start having fun!

More Amazon Studios Children’s Series Coming

Keep an eye on Amazon Studios for other children’s series coming this summer when Prime Instant Video will debut two more children’s series: Creative Galaxy on June 27, an interactive art adventure for preschoolers created by Angela C. Santomero (Super Why!, Blue’s Clues, Daniel Tigers Neighborhood), and Annedroids on July 25, a live-action adventure series for children ages four through seven about a brilliant scientist who just happens to be an 11-year-old girl created by JJ Johnson (Dino Dan) that stars AddisonHolley (Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood) and Adrianna Di Liello (Stage Fright).

 

 

Curious George: A Halloween Boo Fest, Airs October 28th – Mark Your Calendar!

Television, ,

Curious George: A Halloween Boo Fest

Madelyn is super excited about PBS KIDS’ first ever CURIOUS GEORGE Halloween special – CURIOUS GEORGE: A Halloween Boo Fest, airing next week!

During the one-hour special, George will unravel the eerie mystery of No Noggin: a ghost that appears in the countryside each Halloween, intent on kicking the hats clean off the heads of trick-or-treaters. But will George’s quest for the perfect costume interfere with his quest for the truth? Only the curious will find out!

Check out a clip from CURIOUS GEORGE: A Halloween Boo Fest here.

The Halloween fun doesn’t stop there, PBS KIDS has more Halloween programming all week long, including episodes from SUPER WHY, DINOSAUR TRAIN and the newest show, PEG + CAT.

You’ll find more information on PBS KIDS’ Halloween programming and a full list of episodes here.

Be sure to tune in on Monday!

Here’s PBS Kids’ Halloween Programming Line-Up!

New posts, Television,

My daughter loves PBS Kids and you have no idea how happy I am about that.  With all the other ‘kids’ programming available, I’m glad she still finds PBS Kids fun to watch considering she’s 7.  She’s very excited, as am I, about the upcoming Halloween shows on PBS.  Holiday specials always remind me of my childhood.  We didn’t have characters like Arthur when I was young but she’s grown up watching Curious George, Arthur, and The Cat and the Hat (which I did read.. I’m not that old) and she loves it when they have holiday specials.

This October, PBS KIDS features an array of exciting Halloween programming, including an all-new one-hour special, CURIOUS GEORGE: A HALLOWEEN BOO FEST, new episodes from THOMAS & FRIENDS and PEG + CAT, as well as encore presentations of Halloween episodes from all of your favorite PBS KIDS series.

PBS Kids Halloween specials

Here is a full list of PBS KIDS’ 2013 Halloween programming, along with air dates.

CURIOUS GEORGE: A HALLOWEEN BOO FEST
Premieres October 28, repeats October 31

PEG + CAT
“The Parade Problem/The Halloween Problem”
Premiering October 22, repeating October 26, 27, 28, 31

THOMAS & FRIENDS
“Spooky Charms”
Premiering October 22, repeating October 28 and 31

ARTHUR
“What Scared Sue Ellen?/Clarissa Is Cracked” – October 28
“Tales of Grotesquely Grim Bunny/Pet Projects” – October 8, 13, 29
“Fernkenstein’s Monster/D.W., Dancing Queen” – October 30
“Hic or Treat/Mr. Alwaysright” – October 31

CAILLOU
“After Dark!” – October 28
“Fall Is in the Air” – October 23, 31

THE CAT IN THE HAT KNOWS A LOT ABOUT THAT!
“Aye Aye!/Trick or Treat” – October 31

CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG
“Clifford the Scary Puppy/Things That Go Bump” – October 30
“The Halloween Bandit/ An Honest Spin” – October 11, 28, 31

DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD
“Katerina’s Costume/Dress up Day” – October 28, 31

DINOSAUR TRAIN
“Haunted Roundhouse/Big Pond Pumpkin Patch” – October 26, 27, 28

MARTHA SPEAKS
“Martha Gets Spooked/ Martha Changes Her Luck” – October 24, 30
“TD’s Magic/Scaredy Cat” – October 28, 31

SID THE SCIENCE KID
“Halloween Spooky Science Special” – October 22, 28, 31

SUPER WHY!
“The Ghost Who Was Afraid of Halloween” – October 22, 28, 31

WILD KRATTS
“Secrets of the Spider’s Web” – October 17, 30
“A Bat in the Brownies” – October 22, 31

WORDGIRL
“Tobey’s Tricks and Treats / Escape Wham” – October 28, 31

WORDWORLD
“A Kooky Spooky Halloween/Sheep’s Halloween Costume” – October 25

 

The PBS Kids website has lots of fun halloween activities for kids like the Maya and Miguel Halloween Card Creator where Madelyn created this halloween card:

PBS Kids Halloween Card Creator

..and printed this coloring page to color!  Here is a Arthur’s Halloween activity page on PBS Kids.

PBS Kids halloween coloring pages

 

I love that my 7-year-old doesn’t feel too old to watch PBS Kids.

Alicia, The Mommy Insider blog author

Now We Have More Ways To Watch PBS Kids! PBS and PBS KIDS Launch on Roku

Television, ,

New Channels Offer Hundreds of Videos On-Demand, Including NOVA, MASTERPIECE, FRONTLINE, SUPER WHY!, CURIOUS GEORGE, and Video from Local PBS Stations

PBS Kids on Roku

PBS and Roku® announced today that videos from favorite PBS and PBS KIDS programs, as well as favorite programs from local PBS stations, are now available to consumers via the Roku streaming platform.

In addition to national and local PBS programming, viewers can access web-original video from PBS Digital Studios, winner of five 2013 Webby Awards.

Roku users will access and personalize their PBS experiences by choosing their favorite local station. This will provide viewers with content from their local PBS station, along with signature PBS programs.

“This launch is an important next step in our strategy to make PBS content available through a variety of platforms, while maintaining the connection between the viewer and their local station,” said Jason Seiken, PBS SVP and GM, Digital. “We are happy that this partnership with Roku will deliver consumers both national PBS and PBSKIDS programs, as well as favorite video from their local PBS station, all on demand.“

The PBS Channel will include hundreds of videos from PBS stations, including episodes from new primetime programs as well as the PBS archives, with new national and local content updated daily. Programming includes video from AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, ANTIQUES ROADSHOW, FRONTLINE, MASTERPIECE, NOVA and SECRETS OF THE DEAD, as well as video from PBS Digital Studios.

The PBS KIDS Channel will include more than 1,000 videos from more than a dozen PBS KIDS television series, including CURIOUS GEORGE, THE CAT IN THE HAT KNOWS A LOT ABOUT THAT!, DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD, DINOSAUR TRAIN, SUPER WHY!, WILD KRATTS and SESAME STREET.

Both PBS and PBS KIDS are available immediately for all Roku players in the U.S., and can be found in the Movies & TV section of the Roku Channel Store.

More information can be found at pbs.org/roku.

PBS Kids Premieres Dinosaur Train “Submarine Adventure” Special Feb. 18th

Age 3-5, Age 5-7, Music & DVD, Television, ,

What will you be doing February 18th?  Well, I have something for you to add to your list.  Watch DINOSAUR TRAIN on PBS Kids!

Everyone’s favorite Pteranodon family rides the DINOSAUR TRAIN Submarine to meet sea creature friends in an all-new science special airing February 18th on PBS KIDS.

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Everyone’s favorite Pteranodon family will dive into an underwater adventure in “Submarine Adventure.” The one-hour program will feature four new stories about sea creatures that lived during the “Age of Dinosaurs.” Preschoolers will meet new friends along the way – from Otto Ophthalmosaurus to Archelon turtles – as they learn about natural science, natural history and paleontology. As part of this multiplatform event, DINOSAUR TRAIN will also feature new content online and on mobile this February. The special will also be available on DVD starting February 19th.

“PBS KIDS strives to use media to light a spark – a thirst for learning that will empower kids to actively pursue their interests long after the screen is turned off,” said Lesli Rotenberg, General Manager, Children’s Programming, PBS. “DINOSAUR TRAIN leads kids on this path of exploration with content that is fun and educational, like the ‘Submarine Adventure’ special, which will engage kids in learning natural science and paleontology concepts, while also inspiring them to embark on their own learning adventures in the world around them.”

On-air Special Program Descriptions:

“Otto Ophthalmosaurus”

When the Pteranodon family takes the Dinosaur Train under the sea to visit their friend Elmer Elasmosaurus, they learn that the Elasmosaurus family is leaving the station to follow their food – the fish. Buddy wants to follow, but the train tunnel doesn’t go that way – so Mr. Conductor decides to take the family in a brand-new invention, the Dinosaur Train Submarine! On their journey, they meet a marine reptile called Otto Ophthalmosaurus, who guides the submarine deeper than it’s ever been, and even helps them find their way out of a sea cave.

“Shoshana Shonisaurus”

The Pteranodon family goes under the sea again to ride the Dinosaur Train Submarine – this time they go to meet Shoshana Shonisaurus, an enormous marine reptile that’s something between a dolphin and a whale. Since Shoshana loves to dive very deep, Shiny has a problem with following her to the bottom of the sea. Shoshana kindly helps Shiny get over her fear of diving deep.

“Maisie Mosasaurus”

The Pteranodon family goes back underwater in the Dinosaur Train Submarine and meets Maisie and Marvin Mosasaurus, a daughter and father who are huge, fast-swimming lizards with flippers. Maisie and Shiny bond when they discover neither likes to go deep in the water. The Pteranodons and Mosasaurus have a great time near the ocean’s surface, each family showing the other how they hunt and catch fish to eat.

“A Sea Turtle Tale”

The Pteranodon family is on the beach watching small eggs hatch and baby Archelon turtles emerge and start to swim away.  The family and Mr. Conductor get into the Dinosaur Train Submarine and follow the baby Archelons, who discover their own facts of nature – that their mother doesn’t stay with them after they’re born and that they will grow up to be giant-sized sea turtles.

Take a fun DINOSAUR TRAIN Facebook quiz and test your dino knowledge!

Dinosaur Train submarine adventure quiz

Online and Mobile Content:

Both full episodes and clips from “Submarine Adventure” will be available on the PBS KIDS Video Player at PBSKIDS.org/video and on the PBS KIDS Video App beginning February 19th.

DVD:

PBS Distribution will release DINOSAUR TRAIN “Submarine Adventure” on February 19, 2013. The DVD is available for preorder now on shopPBS.org.

From the renowned Jim Henson Company, the hit DINOSAUR TRAIN series encourages scientific thinking and other skills as it teaches children about natural science, natural history and paleontology. The series is part of PBS KIDS’ ongoing commitment to prepare kids for success in school and in life, with cross-platform content that supports learning in key areas such as science, math, and literacy.