 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Between the Lions
- PBS
- Genre: Educational
Common Sense Media says
Educational TV with heart -- and a slight flaw.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that, in terms of PBS educational programming, this series exists somewhere between Sesame Street and The Electric Company. The focus is all about words and letter sounds. Parents will appreciate the parodies of adult shows, and kids will like the characters and the stories read during the program. But how much information is too much? This series is rather wonderful in some ways, but it teeters on the edge of being too chaotic to be effective.
What's the story?
Compelling characters and serials are what make BETWEEN THE LIONS a fun and fascinating television program. The Lion family, who live and work at the library, are the program's main characters. The mother and father lion provide good parental role models as they care for their clan and read, play, groom, and support their children, Lionel and Leona. A frazzled hen supplies library information, while a talking statue lends his curmudgeonly opinion to two pigeons who can't get their thoughts straight. Parodies of the Dick and Jane books and a short called "Gawain's World" will surely appeal to parents.
Is it any good?
In each episode, a vowel sound group (like the short "a" in the sound group "ack") is emphasized. Words containing the sound group (e.g., "back," "sack," and "crack") flash briefly on the screen, while letters are bumped to form new words as they are spoken. Even the strongest readers have to pay close attention to the quick changes in spelling, so it's unclear how the series' creators fathomed that young readers would be able to get the gist of them. It's almost as though the subliminal benefits of quickly flashing words were deemed more important than taking the time to focus on fewer sounds more thoroughly.
Sesame Street does well in this department by slowly sounding out fewer variations of word choices. Otherwise, the young viewer is apt to become frustrated -- or even confused -- by what's going on in the program. In other words, the intention to educate is clearly behind Between the Lions, but the quantity-not-quality axiom doesn't apply when it comes to teaching young readers about phonetics. Other than this educational qualm, Between the Lions is an entertaining, diverse -- and rather educational -- show for young viewers.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the sounds and words introduced in each episode. What other words have the same sound(s) as the ones mentioned on the show? What do you like about the Lion family? Would it be fun to live in a library?
- Show:
- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
This show used to be my fave, until I saw a scary episode. It was about a creepy book called "The Scary Old Man", :(.
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AGE
i love this show.i watched all the time as a kid. its all about getting kids to read.
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AGE
Educational
Educational, but they said stupid in one episode
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AGE
GREAT!
I LOVE it!!! But, I haven't seen it in a long time.
I've seen it Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. but I can't find it on TV anymore.
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AGE
Boring!
I love books, but this show is too pushy and educational to be enjoyable.
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AGE
A MUST SEE FOR CHILDREN LEARNING TO READ
As a parent and a first grade teacher, I can't recommend this show enough for children. It is not only educational and entertaining, it has been proven by research to help kids learn to read. The beauty of it is, they don't realize how education it is. To them it is just fun. My only problem is that it is often on during the school day when Kindergarten and first grade students are in school. Parents can dvr it but the kids who most need to see it also have the parents who aren't likely to dvr the show. That is why I have purchased the DVD season sets from PBS and show them to the children in my classroom as a treat! CHECK IT OUT on your local PBS station!
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AGE
Great Puppet Show For Kids Learning To Read
This show encourages kids to read with great classic like Three Little Pigs, new favorites like Click Clack Moo, and stories you never heard of such as Missippi Skip and His Pirate Ship. The characters not only learn to read, but also the cubs learn that helping people never goes unrewarded and that anger makes us do things we'll regret. Brother and sister argue, but you can tell they really love each other.
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| Topics: | numbers and letters |
| TV rating: | TV-Y |
| Network: | PBS |
| Cast: | Pam Arciero, Peter Linz, Stephen Scarpulla |
| Genre: | Educational |
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