Oh,

my God.

I could talk about this forever.

You know, the idea...

I wrote a book called Preschool Clues, which is a green smoothie, right? Like this idea that when you're looking at media, you have to think about it as your...

I would like to think about it, and I did when my girls were little, about how to make sure that there's an educational and entertainment... you know, it's healthy green smoothie, but of course it has some fruit for sweetness.

It's got, it's got to have some more stuff because if kids, um, don't want to watch something, they won't.

We wouldn't have come up with that song ourselves, but now our kids can sing it.

What does that give you as far as an arc, a storytelling structure and the ability to connect with kids in that way?

Yeah, I think that there's a few things.

One is we thought actually at first it was a challenge because from a 22 minute episode of Blue's Clues, right? Then I went to Daniel and we did 11 minutes and I was like, I can't tell a story in 11 minutes.

And then we went to seven and I was like, oh my God.

And the original Super Why was 22 as well.

So really what it does for kids is to zero in on that specific lesson that we're teaching.

And then a specific villain or a specific story or a really specific character, funny moments are funnier.

How do you feel that the medium and the art form of animation is a hero, is kind of a superhero to someone like you who works in the industry and everybody else who gets to view the animation?

How do we use imagination to, to help our kids with that?

Yeah.

I think imagination is the tool.

It's imagination diffusing with humor.

It's the ability to, um, at a young age, start using your imagination to sol- to, to literally figure out either, A, to solve the problem, or as you get older, it's like, okay, what would happen if the worst happened, right? Like, when they're older and you can do that, like, the, the ability to imagine it and then realize it's not as bad, or this is the other direction you can take.

Like, that ability, just visual literacy to see it, what you're reading about or to see some solutions is really an important muscle, I think, to build, and imagination is what does that.

So there's a lot of times where people will think the dress up corner is nothing, or scribbling and whatever is nothing, but it's all imagination.

So how would you say that this one, Princess Penelope, how does that build on the work you've already done in children's media? Because I assume you've taken, like, as you said, you kind of put Blue's Clues in reverse, but you've taken a piece of this amazing, successful program and this successful program, and then how does Princess Penelope really build on all of that?

How would you say that parents can use stories with their kids to navigate emotions? And would you mind offering an example of what that might look like?

Yeah, of course.

I mean, I think that parents as the first teachers, right, is so, so important.

And everything that I do embraces what parents are doing, right? So everything that I work on, I also want to make sure that there's extended support.

play that you can take from the episode as a parent.

So for instance, Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, let's say you're dealing with big emotions, but have to go to the grocery store and get stuff done.

Like what are the kinds of things that we can do with a three-year-old or a four-year-old that's really simple to help them be engaged? in that exercise, in that activity a little bit.

So are you able to share, you know, types of feedback that you have received from parents about how the characters that you've created supported their kids' emotional journeys?

I love the name and I don't know enough about it yet because I haven't dove in, but I'm really intrigued.

Yeah, it's kind of the new show premiered on YouTube.

We have a beautiful set of books already available to you more coming out in November.

And it's kind of a culmination of everything I've been doing for 30 years.

And I thought, okay, I'm watching YouTube.

I'm watching all the kids on YouTube.

What would I do on YouTube that would... elevate the educational curriculum, elevate the participation and the learning.

Why is imagination such an important life skill, not just for kids, but, you know, for adults, too?

How has your work been interwoven so beautifully with the content that you create?

Thank you.

I come from a family of teachers, and I thought, well, what if I could put the very best curriculum on TV and reach millions of kids? Not to say that my father and my sister are not doing wonderful work.

It's the idea of what if we could put that work on blast, and what would that look like? And so I got my master's.

I'm a huge Fred Rogers fan, so I heard he has his master's in child development, so I kind of followed those footsteps.

And then when I started at Nickelodeon, which will blow your mind, in 1990, I started in the research department.

And that was just, it was Jerry Laybourne Times, who was a teacher and then ran and started this amazing place that we both worked at at Nickelodeon.

What are some of the parenting differences that you've seen in the last like 15 years or so?

But can you speak a little bit to why that's important and maybe give advice on how in today's day we can incorporate more of that?

Yeah.

I think imagination and curiosity is so important, and I agree.

As soon as they're handed the screens, it's so hard to then turn around and be like, "I'm never bored," right? Like, there's always something for me to do.

I tend to talk about view and do, right? So anything that we're doing in media is inspiring how to play it, right? So, like, a fractured fairy tale.

Like, you can read 10 different versions of a fairy tale.

You can go act out that fairy tale.

Do you think there is an increase in anxiety for children nowadays, and do you have advice on how to navigate that?

What about things like decisions, um, creativity, confidence, all of that? D- does that come into play, too?

Oh, yeah.

And it's higher order thinking skills, too, right? So yeah, it's that idea that we're, um, we're showcasing all of it, right? So in those little bitty moments, we literally are doing that.

Like, we're also thinking about the three things that are in the purse and having to, let's say, for Princess Penelope, remember what we're doing and what was in the purse.

For when we have another situation.

So, like, we're constantly adding to that.

There's expressive vocabulary in there.

Mm-hmm

Tell about what they find about the dragon.

Well, exactly.

I mean, two things.

One is, you know, about, um, Dragon's gotta do what Dragon's gotta do, so you don't wanna change Dragon, right? Like, we don't wanna change him for who he is.

That's who he is, but how can we use his fire for good? And I think, again, like, that metaphor is important for kids to think about how we can be helpful, ask the questions.

In later episodes, we have to ask Dragon a little bit more about why he's, you know, more fire-breathing today than normal.

Um, and as you said, you know, when you lean in empathetically and with kindness, even if it doesn't work the first time, eventually they'll be able to talk to you about what's going on.

Uh, if, if you would, tell me a little bit, and not me, just me, but our listeners about your new master class, 'cause that sounds so fascinating.

What do I wish the adults had done? But like, are you working with a ton of other child developments, like specialists? How are you balancing that with what I assume is like a creative story team? That's also like, yeah, but we want the kids to stay in gate, you know? How does all of that work? Yeah.

Yeah, I think that, first of all, it has to be a hit, right? Like it has to be something kids want to watch.

They want at their birthday party.

They want to wear as a Halloween costume.

Like it has to like be something that kids want to be part of and play and do and read and all those things.

Or else, as you said, like no one would be learning because they won't want to be watching.

So yes, I have a formative research department that I started, which means like it's lean and mean, three people when we started.

What does technology look like in your house? Like, how are you regulating it? Do you have advice for parents of younger children on what they should be doing? Because that is definitely one of the places that we're seeing our listeners and obviously all three of us are also kind of struggling to figure out like what should this look like there's a million solutions i'm wondering if you can tell us a little bit about what what what you're doing what you think we should be doing your thoughts