Common Sense Media Review
By Emily Ashby
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Friendly aliens encourage preschoolers' curiosity.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 3+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
What's the Story?
THE WOTWOTS is a preschool series from New Zealand that centers on two aliens -- DottyWot (voiced by Nathalie Boltt) and SpottyWot (Martin Baynton) -- who arrive on Earth in a steam-powered spaceship and explore the zoo where they've landed. The WotWots peer through a periscope called the "Sneak-a-Peek" into the world around them and use clues to identify the animals they see.
Is It Any Good?
This series is narrated by creator Martin Baynton, who interacts with the WotWots from off screen and translates their toddler-like babbling for the audience. The show pairs their computer-animated puppets with live-action scenes of animals and zoo settings, making the content more realistic and relatable for its young viewers.
Preschoolers will learn about a variety of zoo animals, but the show's better selling point is its focus on rewarding kids' curiosity about the world around them. The characters' language shortcomings might be distracting for older viewers and certainly don't help kids' vocabulary development, but otherwise the bright, friendly characters are fun for preschoolers.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about animals. Kids: What's your favorite animal? How do animals provide us with companionship or services? What's involved in caring for animals?
Kids: Did you like the characters in this preschool show? How do they compare to some of your other favorites? Did you find their language distracting? What gestures or other clues did they give to help you understand what they were saying?
What are some places you'd like to explore? How would you get there? What tools would you need? How would you identify the places and things around you?
TV Details
- Premiere date : October 10, 2010
- Cast : Martin Baynton , Nathalie Boltt
- Network : Discovery Family Channel
- Genre : Kids' Animation
- Topics : Animals ( Wild Animals )
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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