When the Wiggles WAKE YOU UP!

My kids loved the Wiggles in their day (at 8 and 6 they seem to be passed that now). Now that Greg is retired I don’t know if they are as good as they were.

We are fans of The Wonder Pets for young children. At first, I found the “photo-puppetry” animations to be kind of creepy until I got used to them, but the music quickly won me over! Much of the dialog is sung and each show has a different musical style. The episodes are each about 10-12 minutes (great for short attention spans) and usually provide a good lesson where teamwork is a major theme.

Gina, I love the Wonder Pets, too. But now I have that theme stuck in my head, what’s gonna work? TEAM WORK. What’s gonna work? TEAM WORK. argh.

Backyardigans - no question.

Ernie from Sesame Street said it best when he said, “Everything’s better with music!” Sesame Street is entering it’s 40th year of children’s educational programming and I think that their curriculum coordinators and writers are still on the money when it comes to using television as a medium for teaching. Songs are still engaging, stars who appear move with the times, segments are based on today’s most popular shows, and concepts are necessarily dumbed down. Since PBS is no longer the only option for good kid shows, I’d give a shout out to The Upside Down Show, another Sesame Workshop production, which features the Umbilical Brothers; Hi-5 on Discovery Kids, Wonder Pets and Backyardigans.

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is awesome! It is educational and entertaining. I’m in agreement that music is a big attention grabber, and the upbeat, silly tunes on this show are great. Plus, the characters dance in a funny, animated way.

Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggety dog..It’s the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!
Why is that tune so infectious?

I will definitely second The Backyardigans. There is such a wide variety of musical genres in the show that makes it tolerable. My little guy loves the music, so bath time is enhanced with their CDs. But, I have to throw some props up for Jack’s Big Music Show. At least when the songs from these shows get stuck in my head they aren’t nearly as maddening as that free credit report commercial song.

The Backyardigans are excellent. Very catchy tunes without being annoying. Every show has a different musical style as a theme (They even had Alecia Keys sing as a guest on one show) so it doesn’t get boring. Also, the imaginative play is interesting and fresh, so it’s definitely worth letting your kids watch.

Also, although it’s not very musical, I have to mention “Little Bear”. A truly sweet show that emphasizes kindness and cooperative play. Check it out – after the other kids programs, it’s like a breath of fresh air.

Backyardigans, The Upside Down Show, Super Why, Word World, Little Einsteins & Mickey Mouse Clubhouse are the favorites with my two boys @ 5 & 3. I like Backyardigans & The Upside Down Show, the otehrs I might leave the room…