Common Sense Media Review
By Erin Brereton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Interactive story site is off to a solid yet limited start.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 3+?
Any Positive Content?
Videos and Photos
Scribbles and Ink
What's It About?
PBS Kids' SCRIBBLES AND INK is an interactive viewing and drawing experience. Kids can view animated adventures featuring characters from the book series of the same name, who pause periodically to ask kids to draw objects like a car. A drawing tool provides a variety of colors and utensil options, such as a marker or spray paint. Kids will then see their illustration incorporated into the episode. Kids can also download a half-dozen activity worksheets or use the drawing tool to create random pictures, and up to 10 can be saved in a gallery.
Is It Any Good?
Interjecting kids' drawings into animated features provides a unique viewing experience -- kids get to both watch a story unfold and also participate in it. In addition to engaging them, Scribbles and Ink's interactive elements gives kids a chance to be creative. The characters often supply an admirable amount of verbal support as kids draw, offering sentiments like "You have some great ideas!"
Kids access each story by clicking on an object in rooms they scroll through from the main screen -- a box, for example, leads them to story where they're asked to turn boxes into costumes by drawing on them. Clicking on an umbrella takes kids to an episode where they add rain so the characters can puddle jump. The functionality is easy to figure out -- drawing utensils zoom forward when selected, and kids just need to click on a green checkmark to indicate they're finished with a picture. They may not end up spending hours on the site -- each episode is fairly short, and currently, there are only a few. But PBS Kids just launched the site in mid-December 2019, so additional content will likely be added in the future.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about expressing yourself through drawings. Does your child find it easier to share feelings through words or pictures?
What specific elements in your child's drawings or artwork illustrates your child's emotions? Can these be conveyed in different ways?
What does your child think an artist was feeling when some of the pieces were created?
Website Details
- Subjects : Language & Reading : following directions , storytelling , Arts : drawing
- Skills : Creativity : imagination , making new creations
- Genre : Creating
- Topics : Book Characters
- Pricing structure : Free
- Last updated : October 1, 2025
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