Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that this entertaining animated series introduces grade-schoolers to the pronunciations and definitions of advanced vocabulary words like "temptation," "gigantic," and "vegetarian." There's a little bit of cartoon violence, but that pales in comparison to the fact that kid viewers will unknowingly expand their literary repertoire while enjoying the empowered young superheroine's adventures.
Families can talk about literacy skills. Kids: How does being familiar with more words help you in school? Does not knowing a particular word ever trip you up? What do you do then? Parents can also talk to kids about the power of words. What types of words can hurt other people? What types can help? Is it possible to resolve differences with words alone?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Emily Ashby
In WORDGIRL, a heroic grade-schooler uses her proficiency with the English language to rid her hometown of nefarious intruders. Not only will her zany adventures entertain young viewers, but they'll also increase kids' vocabulary skills and improve their reading comprehension.
To any onlooker, spunky girl next door Becky Botsford (voiced by Dannah Feinglass) seems no different from her fifth-grade peers. But when trouble strikes, Becky's caped alter ego WordGirl zooms off her monkey sidekick, Captain Huggy Face, to oust the bad guys with her double whammy of brawns and brain. Though she does employ her super strength at times (after all, what else is a girl with a leveling left hook to do?), WordGirl relies more on her grasp of the English language to outwit her vocabulary-challenged opponents.
WordGirl mimics the well-trodden path of most superhero cartoons. In each episode, a wacky bad guy carefully schemes some dirty deed, blind to his plan's true vulnerability. Once WordGirl catches wind of the trouble (usually via her super hearing skills), she makes a quick costume change (think Clark Kent in the phone booth) and sails in to save the day.
But the notable difference here is that, instead of firepower, WordGirl's most trusted weapons are entries on advanced vocabulary lists, which she uses to trip up her enemies. She'll often befuddle them with challenges to name synonyms or definitions for the words she uses, or they'll get distracted by their unfamiliarity with her word choice.
In one episode, for example, she explains to the police that a butcher was able to pull off robberies by offering free barbecued food outside the bank and store he burgled, thereby creating a diversion for people's attention. Confused, the butcher asks what a diversion is, and WordGirl explains its definition. The show also features recurring game show segments, in which characters must name synonyms and definitions for new words. (These bits are sure to have viewers testing their own knowledge as well.)
Engaging and well crafted, WordGirl combines fun stories, zany characters, and important literacy skills into a 30-minute package that kids will love and parents will applaud. As superhero stories go, this one comes up short on violence (what little there is is of the exaggerated WHAM! BANG! Variety, with more flash than force). Even better, it revolves around a brainy, well spoken female heroine. All in all, WordGirl is an excellent (superb, first-rate, stupendous, etc.) choice for young grade-schoolers.
More good picks for this age group include Magic Cellar and Class of 3000.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentA few very mild allusions to grade-school crushes. |
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ViolenceInfrequent cartoon violence of the "wham! bang!" variety -- with lots of flashy backgrounds to emphasize impact as WordGirl knocks out mostly robotic enemies. |
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Social BehaviorThe series exposes grade-schoolers to sophisticated words and their definitions, and word games woven into the plot encourage viewers to generate their own synonyms for the featured vocabulary lists. The female heroine is undaunted by her enemies, relying on her smarts and grasp of vocabulary to overcome challenges. Diverse characters. |
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