Granny Ranny's Coming Attractions

On April 28 Family Communications welcomed Nancy Steingard and Michele Fowble of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, who discussed the Academy’s Fred Rogers Memorial Scholarship and introduced two recipients of the award to more than 150 guests.

Michelle Tessier told the group she has had a framed quote from Fred Rogers next to her desk since she began animating films for children. The quote reads “If it’s for the children, it needs to be the best.” While pursuing an MFA degree at UCLA’s film school, Michelle created films that offer messages of empathy, friendship and hope. In 2005, she became the first recipient of the Fred Rogers’ Memorial Scholarship. The award helped her complete production on “Camp Bean: All Things Woodsey,” Michelle won an Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Student Emmy for “Camp Bean.”

Sabrina Connell recently graduated from the University of Connecticut with a Master of Arts in puppetry. With the Fred Rogers Scholarship, she is working to develop educational children’s media for the Haitian Health Foundation, an organization that provides healthcare to 200,000 people in rural Haiti. Two films in progress address proper hand washing and safe water handling and will be aired in clinics and remote villages in Haiti. In addition, she is working with the Haitian Health Foundation to help establish local youth puppet clubs for the dissemination of health information. Her desire is to continue to produce educational media for organizations serving the needs of children in the developing world.

Since 2004, the Academy of TV Arts & Science Foundation, with the generous support of Ernst and Young, has been honoring Fred Rogers’ contribution to children’s television with these scholarships. In addition to the monetary award, the recipients are mentored by children’s programming professionals to support and encourage television careers that further the values and principles of Fred Rogers’ work.

For more information on the scholarship, visit the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences website.

The Muppets of Plaza Sesamo and Mexican celebrities are addressing the new flu emergency in a series of pubic service announcements (PSA) aimed at kids. Sesame Workshop and Mexico’s Grupo Televisa have produced four PSAs featuring the Plaza Sesamo Muppet’s Pancho and Lola as well as celebrities Lucero, Jorge Poza and Adrian Uribe, which empower kids with things they can do during this period. The PSAs, which have already begun airing on Televisa, encourage kids to tell a parent if you feel sick, and if you are sick don’t go to school or outside, cover your mouth with a tissue or arm if you sneeze or cough and throw away that tissue in a covered trash can, and of course, wash your hands with soap and water several times a day for at least 20 second. Plaza Sesamo’s Education and Research team worked with Mexico’s Ministry of Health to develop the PSA scripts. The PSAs are being offered to several government organizations to extend the message in Mexico including the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, the Government Workers ‘ Social Security and Services Institute (el ISSSTE) and Mexico City’s public transit system. (from Cynopsis: Kids)

News from the American Academy of Pediatrics:

Health risk behaviors have increasingly been linked to psychological distress in children and adolescents. As part of the 2003 Scottish Health Survey of nearly 1,500 children aged 4 to 12 years and their parents, researchers from the University College London looked at the association between television/screen entertainment viewing time, physical activity levels and psychological distress. Higher amounts of TV/screen time were associated with lower physical activity rates. Both higher screen time and lower physical activity rates were linked with higher odds of psychological distress, including emotional symptoms, conduct problems and peer relationship problems. The authors concluded that public health policy should focus on reducing sedentary time and maintaining sufficient physical activity levels in younger children.

AAP INVITES CHILDREN TO ENTER 2009 ART CONTEST
“Protecting children from tobacco smoke” is the theme of the American Academy of Pediatrics 2009 art contest for children. Children in grades 3 to 12 are invited to submit original pieces of art for a chance to win cash prizes and a trip to the 2009 AAP National Conference & Exhibition in Washington, DC, on October 17, 2009. First-place winners will receive a $500 prize, with $500 for the child’s school, and a trip to Washington, DC, for the child and his or her guardian. The second-place winners will receive $250, with $250 for the child’s school. Winners will have their artwork featured on AAP’s Web site and in other promotional materials. Entries should be mailed to American Academy of Pediatrics, Art Contest, 141 Northwest Point Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007. All entries must be postmarked by Friday, July 31, 2009. Entry form, rules and guidelines are available at http://www.aap.org/artcontest/

SUMMER SAFETY TIPS – PART 1
Keep your family safe this summer while you enjoy the outdoors. The American Academy of Pediatrics offers tips on sun exposure, heat stress, swimming, bugs, playground dangers, bicycling, skateboards and scooters, and lawn mower safety. Tips are available in English and Spanish at http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/summertips.cfm

For more information on children’s health, visit the AAP News Room at: http://www.aap.org/newsroom/

Every other day of the week, Lincoln, Nebraska, pop. 250,000, is the pride of the Central U.S. On Wednesday, April 22, 2009, however, Lincoln was the pride of the nation.

Coverage of the event, which was broadcast statewide, included CNN affiliate KETV in Omaha. CNN will also feature the story nationally in a special segment of “CNN Weekend News,” hosted by Betty Nguyen.

Footage of the coverage can be viewed at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgVbIFltvbQ
http://www.ketv.com/news/19255091/detail.html

“Dear President Obama,” a full-color, large-format trade paperback published by Beckham Publications Group, Inc., was compiled and edited by New York journalists Bruce Kluger and David Tabatsky, and features nearly 200 letters and drawings created by 178 children, ages 4 through 18, from 29 states.

But on Wednesday, the Lincoln dozen were arguably the stars of the book. Clinton Elementary principal Mona Manley arranged a 2:00 PM assembly in the school’s gymnasium, where the young author-illustrators proudly read their letters and described their drawings before a packed and often emotional crowd. After the event, the media swarmed around the children to conduct interviews and meet five-year-old Jason Phan, who drew the picture of the president that appears on the book’s cover.

“I’m going to show [the book] to all of my friends and all my family,” said Anthony Nguyen, 9, who contributed a letter and drawing to the book. Taylor Lengel, 7, was more than happy to repeat a line from his letter that has now become the book’s slogan: “Dear President Obama. You are the best president on Earth. You should be on all the dimes in the world.”

Clinton kindergarten teacher, Trisha Hoppmann, looked beyond the excitement of the day to ponder the impact it could ultimately have on the children’s lives. “Sometimes, all it takes is one positive event like this,” Hoppmann said, “to move a child toward a positive and enduring goal.”

Visit the “Dear President Obama” web site at http://www.obamakids.us./

Beyonce is lending her voice to Nickelodeon’s animated kids’ show, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, playing Shine, the lead singer of the The Wubb Girls, in four episodes beginning April 27. Beyoncé is guest starring in episodes of the Nick Jr. animated preschool comedy series, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! in a special week-long “Wubb Girlz” celebration, Monday, April 27 through Thursday, April 30 on Nickelodeon at 10 a.m. (ET/PT). The appearance marks her voiceover debut and first-ever children’s project.

Beyonce composed and performs “Sing a Song,” which will be available on iTunes and other digital outlets on April 21. After four music-filled episodes, the week culminates with an hour-long “Wubb Idol” movie on Friday at 1 p.m. (ET/PT).