PBS Launches Resource for Parents

Posted on November 1, 2002

PBS made one of its biggest website launches in years with the launch of PBS Parents. PBS Parents combines the resources of PBS and local public television stations across the country, to offer features, advice and educational activities to parents and caregivers. Mister Rogers answered parents' questions in the site's debut month.

A highlight of the PBS Parents site is a comprehensive activity search tool, correlating thousands of educational games, booklists and projects. The PBS Parents site also offers a number of ways to connect parents and caregivers to their local communities and local PBS stations. By entering their zip code on the site, visitors will have access to TV schedules from their local PBS stations, as well as updated community information. Users can learn when their local PBS stations are sponsoring children's events and parenting seminars in their communities, and link directly to local stations' websites.

Additionally, PBS Parents offers a weekly email newsletter detailing personalized programming information, community events, links to local PBS stations, activity ideas and parenting advice. Parents can also sign up for daily activity updates and get games, projects and more tied to the programs their children are watching on PBS KIDS each day.

Other features of the PBS Parents site include:

Comienzo Rapido -- Spanish-speaking audiences can get an introduction to the site, as well as a list of Spanish resources throughout PBS Parents.
TV Program Info -- Learn what each PBS KIDS program is all about, including characters, target age ranges, educational philosophies and more.
Together-Time Tips -- Producers of PBS KIDS shows and leading experts in child development have assembled ideas for parents, suggesting how to make the most of the time they spend with their children. Find out how kids grow with art, music, games and stories in age-by-age timelines.
Parent Helpers -- Solve life's little challenges, like settling down for bedtime or beating boredom, with these activity packages.
Video Clips -- Streaming video clips give parents suggestions on dealing with numerous parenting challenges, from going to the doctor to discussing death with children.
Booklists from the American Library Association -- More than a dozen booklists, including books for kids and books for adults, organized around the topics on PBS Parents (Behavior & Development, Communicating, Disabilities, Health & Safety, Media Awareness, Reading & Language, School & Education, Work & Family) and others like multiculturalism and family reading.
Media Literacy Resources -- Discover how TV, computers, videogames and movies can shape children's development.
ShopPBS for Parents -- ShopPBS features a Parents' Boutique, offering products related to PBS KIDS shows and also to other PBS shows of interest to parents and caregivers.
Parent Idea Box -- Submit ideas and share with other parents the successes, challenges, and the joys of parenting.

The PBS Parents site is funded in part by a Ready To Learn cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Education. PBS, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, is a private, nonprofit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation's 349 public television stations.