I have been cleaning out closets and discovered these treasured books from the time of my childhood. I am certain they came from yard sales. I bought them because they were so near and dear to my heart.
Romper Room was an early childhood television series in the U.S. from 1953-1994. Miss Lois (there were several teachers over the years) who used a magic mirror to "see" her viewers. She called the names of children she "saw" watching her show. She insisted they be good "Do Bees."
Then Barney the big purple dinosaur made his debut. My granddaughter, Ashley, the boys' mom, loved Barney so much Papa Bill took her to the mall and bought her a stuffed Barney. When giant Barney was scheduled to make an appearance at the mall, the crowd was unbelievable; they had traffic cops at all entrances. The line to see Barney wound around the first floor of the mall three times. I took Ashley to get a bite to eat, and happened to see Barney stick his head out a door to take a peek. I grabbed her up and beat a path over. When he exited with his handler, he greeted Ashley first! We headed home and did not have to wait in a three hour line. Leave it to Nana Linda.
Prior to these wonderful early learning shows there was Ding Dong School. The nursery school of my childhood debuted as a morning show in 1952 on NBC. Early childhood educator, Dr. Frances Horwich, was known as beloved Miss Frances. I waited each day for her to ring the bell and start Ding Dong school. These books are
L to R from 1953, 1954, 1935, and 1940. So many little hands must have turned these pages.
L to R from 1953, 1954, 1935, and 1940. So many little hands must have turned these pages.
I am certain Captain Kangaroo and Mr. Green Jeans had an influence on me, too, but not like Miss Frances who reminded me of my grandma.
I beleieve that in my forty year career as an early childhood educator, I was influenced by these nursery programs.
Do you remember them?
5 comments:
Did you know the Romper Room lady ("I see Susie and Bobby and...") has a channel on You Tube? Life Over Sixty With Sandra.
The only one I recognise is Sesame Street, though I do vaguely remember Barney. We had Muffin the Mule when I was a child and I was given a Muffin puppet. We also had Bill and Ben, the Flowerpot Men.
I remember Captain Kangaroo, with his sidekick Mr. Green Jeans, and Miss Lois from Romper Room. In later years, I enjoyed The Wordsmith on PBS. Not because the guy had such a sparkling personality (he did not), but because learning about word roots was like taking apart a puzzle. My fellow freshmen English students were not nearly as enthralled as I was when our teacher would turn on the TV once a week to show us.
One of the best ways to educate kids is via the means of television. It can entertain, offer a variety of learning language programs, bring snippets of local and world news. It can be both fun and useful.
Before television in the 50's, I listened to "Big John & Little Sparky' on a radio station out of Cincinnati. Later we watched 'Pinky Lee' and 'The Howdy Doody Show' -- gave Mom a chance to cook dinner while we were quiet. As a pre-teen loved 'The Mickey Mouse Club." Children's books and television are a big part of a child's life.
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