PBS KIDS® and PBS KIDS GO!® Celebrate Halloween
Wednesday, October 7th, 2009
“Halloween is an exciting time for kids to explore new things – meeting new people and even taking on new identities – and to share these experiences with friends,” said Lesli Rotenberg, SVP Children’s Media, PBS. “Our Halloween content is filled with teamwork and sharing – critical growth areas for young children as they begin understanding the importance of friendship – and PBS’ children’s characters are perfect guides for this adventurous time.”Beginning October 9 on PBSKIDSGO.org, kids can watch their favorite Halloween-themed episodes on the PBS KIDS GO! video player at PBSKIDSGO.org/video. The themed channel will include clips from ARTHUR, CYBERCHASE, MARTHA SPEAKS and POSTCARDS FROM BUSTER. In addition, PBSKIDSGO.org will feature costume ideas, spooky games, e-cards and more. On PBSKIDS.org/halloween, preschoolers and their parents can see what’s inside SID THE SCIENCE KID’s mystery lunchbox, play counting games with The Count from SESAME STREET, share favorite Halloween stories on Dot’s Story Factory, or view clips from favorite Halloween-themed episodes of CURIOUS GEORGE, SID THE SCIENCE KID, DINOSAUR TRAIN and more.
For parents and caregivers, PBS Parents (PBSPARENTS.org) is offering a free exclusive costume pattern for “Buddy,” the T-Rex star from the new hit PBS KIDS series DINOSAUR TRAIN. The full-body sewing pattern, designed by the artists of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, is available in two sizes for ages 3 to 5.
PBS Parents is also launching a new crafting column, “Craft Apparent,” in early October. The first weekly column on October 8 will share some budget-friendly costume ideas, followed by a column on how parents and children can make a fun, festive Halloween treat bag together. In addition, parents can find tips and articles on having a fun and safe Halloween, alternative trick-or-treat giveaways, themed recipes, activities and Halloween book recommendations. Parents can also get great ideas and tips for a safe and happy Halloween from Twitter.com/PBSParents and from other parents on Facebook/PBSParents.
On October 30, PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! will offer a spooktacular array of Halloween-themed episodes where kids can join their favorite characters from CURIOUS GEORGE, SUPER WHY!, SID THE SCIENCE KID, DINOSAUR TRAIN, ARTHUR, CYBERCHASE, MAYA & MIGUEL and more as they celebrate Halloween with costume parties, trick-or-treating, and nighttime adventures while learning a few important friendship lessons such as sharing and teamwork along the way. A new episode from WORDGIRL will broaden kids’ vocabulary as WordGirl protects the holiday from Tobey and his Robots and helps save the day.
Friday. October 30 (check local listings)
On PBS KIDS for preschoolers:
CURIOUS GEORGE – “The Fully Automatic Fun Hat / Creatures of the Night”
The Fully Automatic Fun Hat – George wants to have a hat as fun as the Man with the Yellow Hat’s yellow hat. But picking the right headgear is hard, and no one seems to recognize him in a fedora or Bavarian fishing hat. After a day of unsuccessful hat shopping George takes matters into his own hands and makes a super hat from craft supplies and toys right at home. Using levers, pop-up techniques and some trial and error, George engineers the Ultimate Yellow Monkey Fun Hat – fully equipped with food dispenser, prop launcher, and animal inflator. But what will happen when the Man accidentally wears the monkey hat at his big presentation?
Creatures of the Night – George thought it was odd that all the food was gone from the bird feeder in a single night. Who or what is eating it all? Could the small animal tracks be a clue? Determined to solve the mystery George stays up all night and finds a baby possum who has lost his family. The two set off on a night journey to find the possum’s home and meet some other nocturnal animals (and some very tired “day animals”!) on the way. And because their night shadows strike a scary resemblance to the legendary Lake Creature of Lake Wanasink Lake – whose tale Mr. Quint is broadcasting to the entire town on this same night – the furry twosome cause quite a stir.
SID THE SCIENCE KID – “My Mushy Banana”
Sid wants to know why his beloved yellow banana has turned brown and mushy. After exploring how fruits and vegetables slowly change, Sid learns that it’s natural for his banana to ripen and turn brown and mushy. Over time, fruits and vegetables decay! In the live action segment, kids can see what happens when pumpkins start to go bad.
SUPER WHY! – “The Ghost Who Was Afraid of Halloween”
It’s Halloween in Storybrook Village and Pig is so frightened, he won’t go trick-or-treating with his friends! The Super Readers pay a storybook visit to Little Ghost, who’s a bit of a scaredy cat himself, to teach him there’s more to Halloween than meets the eye!
DINOSAUR TRAIN – “Night Train/Fossil Fred”
Night Train – Dad, Buddy and Tiny take a special ride on the Dinosaur Train at night, learning about animals that are active after dark, culminating at the Big Pond for a nature walk under the full moon.
Fossil Fred – Buddy, Tiny and Don play “detective” and search around the Big Pond for fossils. The kids end up finding an entire skeleton of a Jurassic dinosaur.
WORDWORLD – “A Kooky Spooky Halloween / Sheep’s Halloween Costume”
A Kooky Spooky Halloween – The WordFriends get their share of scares the night before Halloween when Pig sleepwalks and everyone thinks he’s a ghost!
Sheep’s Halloween Costume – It’s Halloween – Sheep’s favorite day of the year. Sheep likes nothing more than to dress up, so she always goes out of her way to make herself a special costume. But what will she do when her WordFriends need pieces of her costume for their own costumes?
BARNEY & FRIENDS – “Guess Who / Sweet Treats”
Guess Who – BJ and Baby Bop decide to get Halloween celebrations underway with a costume party. But when it comes to picking costumes, Riff just can’t decide! That night, as the festivities get underway, Riff makes a grand entrance proudly wearing a costume that suits him perfectly!
Sweet Treats – Barney and his friends go trick-or-treating in the park. One of Barney’s friends discovers all his candy is gone…he has a hole in his bag! BJ shares his candy and everyone learns how nice it is to share with friends!
CAILLOU – “After Dark”
Things get a little scary today. Caillou and his new neighbors, Jason and Jeffery, are playing hide-and-go-seek in the backyard, until dusk brings out the shadows. A flashlight and Mommy help chase the shadows away. That evening, Caillou can’t fall asleep when he hears scary “scratchy monster” noises and thinks there’s a monster in his room. Daddy shows him that a tree branch brushing against the window is making the noises and the only monster in Caillou’s room is Gilbert. Later, a bad dream about a scary monster leads to a restless night for Caillou. Mommy and Daddy help him learn to fall asleep safely in his own bed. And, finally, when Caillou sleeps over at Leo’s house for the first time, he has fun until it’s time to go to sleep. A phone call to Mommy reminds Caillou that Teddy was looking forward to spending the night. Together they rest easily.
On PBS KIDS GO! for early elementary school children:
WORDGIRL – “Tobey’s Tricks and Treats / Escape Wham” (NEW)
Tobey’s Trick and Treats – After losing the costume contest at school, Tobey sets his Robots on a candy-stealing spree and vows to ruin Halloween. Becky and Violet (in her WordGirl costume) plot to save the holiday… and the city.
Escape Wham – When both Chuck and the Whammer attempt to steal famous, priceless Henry VIII artifacts, WordGirl assumes they’re partners in crime. But instead of working together the two villains end up battling each other. Wham!
CYBERCHASE – “The Halloween Howl”
The annual “Halloween Howl” bash in Castleblanca promises to be spooktacular…until Hacker takes over the Mayor’s Castle and brings its seven stone gargoyles to life. Obeying Hacker’s every command, the gargoyles capture the Mayor and imprison him in the dungeon. To gain control of the creepy creatures, the CyberSquad must figure out how to use division to evenly split up bunches of garlic and rock candy. But can they do it in time to rescue the Mayor and save The Halloween Howl?
ARTHUR – “Hic or Treat / Mr. Alwaysright”
Hic or Treat – D.W. gets a case of the hiccups that just won’t go away. No matter how much advice she gets from Arthur and his friends, she just can’t find the right cure. (Well, at least her Halloween costume as “Hiccup Girl” is all set…) Will D.W. ever get relief – or will she have the hiccups for the rest of her life and set the world record?
Mr. Alwaysright – It seems that Brain is always right about everything and it’s really starting to get on Buster’s nerves. But Buster is convinced that someday Brain will make a mistake – and when he does, Buster will be waiting. But is friendship really about being right or wrong?
MAYA & MIGUEL – “La Calavera”
When Maya wants to add some oomph to her presentation about Mexico for school, she consults her Abuela Elena, who allows her to borrow a prized possession: a calavera, or skull made of sugar, that is used in the yearly Day of the Dead celebration. Maya promises to let nothing happen to this special calavera. Her presentation goes well, but Maya loses the calavera! After Theo, Maggie, Chrissy and Andy each share their fantastical ideas about how the lost calavera will make Abuela feel, Maya herself feels horrible. She promised her Abuela that she wouldn’t let anything happen to it! Then, as luck would have it, Maya discovers that she accidentally switched backpacks with another student, and the calavera is recovered. An excited Maya can’t contain herself, and while jumping up and down, breaks the calavera! Maya is determined not to let her Abuela down, and goes to great lengths to have the calavera re-made. Unfortunately, this too is a disaster. When Abuela is finally told the truth, Maya is surprised – Abuela is happy! Not about the calavera, but about Maya’s good grade on her presentation. And though Abuela misses the calavera, she thinks that rebuilding it together would make her even happier.
