The Cat is Back! Which Cat you ask, the Cat in the Hat of course!
Random House and PBS KIDS have joined forces to support science learning for preschoolers with the nationwide premiere of The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That this Monday, September 6th. The Cat, voiced by award winning actor Martin Short, will be embarking on awesome fun-filled learning adventures with Sally and Nick when they pose a question such “Where does honey come from”. Of course there will also be a little help from the Fish and don’t forget Thing 1 and Thing 2. Their adventures are filled with classic Seuss silliness that will engage preschooler’s natural curiosity to learn about the world around them.
I am a huge fan of PBS Kids both programming and website content and also Dr. Seuss so I was excited when we were given a preview DVD of The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That. My newly 5 and 7 year old stayed quiet the entire time which is a huge accomplishment. I was really impressed with how they broke down the facts in a really easy to understand format for kids and still kept it fun. I made sure to ask questions after the show such as what is the secret ingredient to honey and my sweet little Pre K boy knew the answer, Nectar.
Our family has always been really science oriented, so this is right up our ally. But unfortunately not all families embrace the love of science like we do. In fact, did you know that science is the subject that preschoolers are the least prepared for when they enter kindergarten and first grade. That is unfortunate. Science is, in my opinion, the most fun subject.
We are very lucky that Random House and PBS KIDS reacted to these statistics by consulting with early childhood education and science experts in creating the curriculum for the first 40 episodes of the show. They have also created an activity filled website to supplement the series at www.PBSKIDS.org. After your kids explore such things as beehives, giant sea worms, and rain forest animals with the Cat, Sally and Nick they can continue their fun with character driven exploration of science concepts at their website. There are even parent resources at www.PBSPARENTS.org to continue the fun off of the computer. Random House will also be releasing a full line of series tie-in books.
Be sure to check out The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That this Labor Day weekend. Your preschooler will love going on adventures with the Cat and having lots of fun learning about the world. You may even learn something new too.
*This review was written by Erika “Thing 3″ Bodwell. She received a screener of The Cat In The Hat Knows A Lot About That for purpose of review.
