Week 4: "Everyday when you're walkin' down the street..."

This week's lecture on educational and prosocial media reminded me of the show Arthur on PBS Kids. How could I forget?! I loved that show! I watched it everyday after school! During our discussion, we discussed a couple of things that the show teaches kids. This discussion was very intriguing to me because I never thought about those things when I watched it. As a kid, I watched it because I loved the characters and was entertained. I loved how despite their unique quirks, they were included and appreciated as part of the friend group. 

Now that I'm older, and studying Human Development, I can look at the show through a more objective perspective to see what value it adds to kids' development. 

One of the first things that came to mind when I think about what the show teaches kids is the variety in family situations there is. Some of the characters go home to two-parent homes, others have single parents. Some kids have step-parents and some are raised by their grandparent(s). I feel like this helps kids feel like each family has potential for happiness and challenges. 

Another thing this show teaches very well is social skills. With so many different characters come so many different relationships- parent-child, siblings, teacher-student, friends, and neighbors. Keeping up with so many relationships naturally means keeping up with various conflicts. I think this show ultimately teaches kids that it's always worth talking about feelings, apologizing, and forgiving. It teaches the importance of cultivating healthy relationships. 

What a great show. Thank you, Arthur.