SciGirls

Last updated

SciGirls
SciGirls logo.jpg
SciGirls logo
Genre
Created by Twin Cities PBS
Written byKerri Grant
Starring
Voices of
  • Lara Jill Miller
  • Greg Cipes
Theme music composerEggplant: Steve D'Angelo, Terry Tompkins, Jeff Morrow
Country of originUnited States
Original languagesEnglish
Spanish
No. of seasons7
No. of episodes46 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producerRita K. Karl
Producers
  • Angie Prindle
  • Marie Domingo
Animators
  • Soup2Nuts (seasons 1–3)
  • Duple Media (seasons 4 and 6)
  • Curious Media (season 5)
  • Primal Screen (season 7)
Running time28 minutes
Production company TPT Productions
Original release
Network
ReleaseFebruary 11, 2010 (2010-02-11) 
June 23, 2023 (2023-06-23)

SciGirls is an American live-action/animated children's television series that premiered on February 11, 2010 on PBS Kids Go! It was produced by Twin Cities PBS and builds on the "real kids doing real science" approach of DragonflyTV .

Contents

It is an educational outreach program for elementary school children based on proven best practices for: science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education for girls. It was launched in February 2010 and produced by Twin Cities Public Television, the episodes are broadcast on most PBS stations and the project's website, SciGirls, [1] is designed to encourage girls to pursue STEM careers, in response to the low numbers of women in many scientific careers. [2] [3] A sixth season themed around NASA been confirmed and completed, and it premiered on February 3, 2023. [4] The seventh and final season premiered three months later on May 26, 2023. [5]

Overview

Each episode depicts the STEM-themed activities of a group of middle-school girls including engineering a mini-wind farm, creating a turtle habitat, designing an electronic dress, and more. Additionally, women scientists and engineers mentor the girls, demonstrating that interest in STEM subjects can lead to a rewarding lifelong pursuit. The series is unified by two animated characters, Izzie (voiced by Lara Jill MIller) and Jake (voiced by Greg Cipes), who emphasize how science and technology can help solve problems in everyday life. These characters also appear on the series website, integrated into the TV episodes.

Episodes

Series overview

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
1 12February 11, 2010 (2010-02-11) [6] April 29, 2010 (2010-04-29)
2 10October 11, 2012 (2012-10-11)December 13, 2012 (2012-12-13)
3 6April 16, 2015 (2015-04-16)May 21, 2015 (2015-05-21)
4 6February 1, 2018 (2018-02-01)March 8, 2018 (2018-03-08)
5 5December 12, 2019 (2019-12-12)January 9, 2020 (2020-01-09)
6 2February 3, 2023 (2023-02-03)February 10, 2023 (2023-02-10)
7 5May 26, 2023 (2023-05-26)June 23, 2023 (2023-06-23)

Season 1 (2010)

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
11"Turtle-Mania"February 11, 2010 (2010-02-11)101
When Izzie's new school club is a bust, she seeks help from the SciGirls. They teach her about evaluating habitats for turtles and she adapts the information to make her club more appealing.
12"Puppet Power"February 18, 2010 (2010-02-18)102
Jake convinces Izzie that if she wants to become class President, she has to be taller. To accomplish it she looks to the SciGirls for inspiration as they create massive sized May Day Parade puppets with elaborate features.
13"Dolphin Dive"February 25, 2010 (2010-02-25)103
Izzie finds herself unable to figure out Jake when he loses his voice. She turns to the Scigirls who are observing and researching dolphin behavior, in the hopes of learning a new way to understand Jake by using the scigirls help
14"Digging Archaeology"March 4, 2010 (2010-03-04)104
When Jake's lucky socks go missing before his science test, Izzie goes to the SciGirls for help. Their investigations into Native American archaeology inspire her to treat Jake's messy locker like a dig site.
15"Horsing Around"March 11, 2010 (2010-03-11)105
The Sadie Hawkins dance is approaching and Izzie has to choose between two potential dates. She decides to model her selection process upon a series of SciGirls experiments designed to select the most ideal horse for an upcoming competition.
16"Blowin' in the Wind"March 18, 2010 (2010-03-18)106
Concerned about the Earth's limited resources, when Izzie's laptop runs out of power she and the SciGirls investigate alternative power sources.
17"High Tech Fashion"March 25, 2010 (2010-03-25)107
Izzie makes preparations for a triathlon, but realizes she isn't able to wear all athletic gear at the same time. Turning to the SciGirls, she learns how fashion and technology can be merged.
18"Science Cooks!"April 1, 2010 (2010-04-01)108
Jake loves eating snack food rather than terrible tasting healthy food, much to Izzie's concern. Luckily she finds four SciGirls who are out to remake their favorite meals into healthier, appetizing versions for their families.
19"Underwater Eco-Adventure"April 8, 2010 (2010-04-08)109
Izzie is confused when she is described as "the Most Unique Dresser" at school. To find out if she's being complimented or not she compares notes with two SciGirls studying biodiversity.
110"Robots to the Rescue"April 15, 2010 (2010-04-15)110
Jake and Izzie attempt to catch Fang, his escaped pet mouse, with the aid of a remote controlled car with a camera. Fang bolts whenever the vehicle approaches, so they learn from the SciGirls how to make robots with better communicative skills.
111"Going Green"April 22, 2010 (2010-04-22)111
After going through a huge amount Mighty Munchies containers, Jake and Izzie realize they have to take care of the mess. She follows three SciGirls who are designing new ways to reuse and recycle materials from their school's trash.
112"Star Power"April 29, 2010 (2010-04-29)112
In a bid to help Jake distract a group of Talent Show judges with flashy lights, she tags along with two SciGirls as they research light pollution.

Season 2 (2012)

Season 2 is the last season to air during Soup2Nuts' activity.

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
21 (13)"Aquabots"October 11, 2012 (2012-10-11)201
Season 2 opens at the U.S. Naval Academy. Akina and friends dive into underwater robotics at the US Naval Academy, building a “Sea Perch” ROV to investigate artificial oyster reefs in Chesapeake Bay.
22 (14)"Mother Nature's Shoes"October 18, 2012 (2012-10-18)202
Nature’s designs, from polar bear paws to penguin flippers, inspire Elin and her best friends to design a safer shoe for walking on Minnesota’s icy winter streets.
23 (15)"Habitat Havoc"October 25, 2012 (2012-10-25)203
Budding naturalist Lea and her SciGirl pals investigate what the non-native Canary Island Palm does to San Diego habitats, comparing the palms to native trees.
24 (16)"The Awesome App Race"November 1, 2012 (2012-11-01)204
San Francisco SciGirls shake things up, programming their own smartphone app to highlight the history and geoscience of the 1989 San Francisco Earthquake.
25 (17)"Multitasking Mania"November 8, 2012 (2012-11-08)205
Can teens – juggling computers, smartphones, music, homework, and TV at the same time – multitask as well as they think they can? Alejandra and her friends find out.
26 (18)"Insulation Station"November 15, 2012 (2012-11-15)206
Cold weather, hot science! SciGirls Greta and her 6th grade pals use passive solar heat and bubble-wrap insulation to warm up an ice shanty on a frozen Minnesota lake.
27 (19)"Workin' It Out"November 22, 2012 (2012-11-22)207
Jekima and friends break a sweat in steamy South Carolina—hiking, playing soccer, dancing and doing yoga—all to find out, “what’s the best exercise for me?”
28 (20)"Bee Haven"November 29, 2012 (2012-11-29)208
What’s the buzz in urban gardens? The SciGirls use math, mapping and data visualization to help a colony of bees thrive in a downtown Phoenix neighborhood.
29 (21)"Pedal Power"December 6, 2012 (2012-12-06)209
Best friends Angela, Olivia, Margaret and Rebecca don welding masks and rev up power tools to engineer an ice cream-maker that’s powered by their bikes.
210 (22)"Super Sleuths"December 13, 2012 (2012-12-13)210
At a forensics summer camp, super sleuths Emi and friends team up with real forensic scientists to solve the mysterious theft of the priceless ‘Queen of the Forest’ ceremonial mask.

Season 3 (2015)

Season 3 marks the first season to air after Soup2Nuts' closure, despite being still listed in the credits from the season.

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
31 (23)"Frog Whisperers"April 16, 2015 (2015-04-16)301
A decline in the amphibian population is investigated.
32 (24)"Flower Power"April 23, 2015 (2015-04-23)302
The arrival of spring, and how it impacts flowers and plants, is investigated.
33 (25)"SkyGirls"April 30, 2015 (2015-04-30)303
Three girls from Virginia team up with NASA scientists to compare clouds seen from the ground to satellite images.
34 (26)"Butterfly Diaries"May 7, 2015 (2015-05-07)304
A video diary capture the metamorphosis of caterpillars into butterflies.
35 (27)"Feathered Friends"May 14, 2015 (2015-05-14)305
Three Denver girls create a bird habitat in a city school garden.
36 (28)"Terrific Pacific"May 21, 2015 (2015-05-21)306
A junior lifeguard and her friends study the health of the Pacific Ocean with marine scientists; and make a conservation video for beach visitors.

Season 4 (2018)

NOTE: Jake is absent.

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
41 (29)"Baile Digital/Digital Dance"February 1, 2018 (2018-02-01)401
A high-tech dance show features robotics and light-up dance costumes.
42 (30)"Gallinas de Ciudad/City Chickens"February 8, 2018 (2018-02-08)402
Designing and building a chicken coop for an urban farm by recycling a donated structure into a new home where the birds can thrive.
43 (31)"Escuadron Espacial/Space Squad"February 15, 2018 (2018-02-15)403
Texas SciGirls team up with NASA materials engineers to create water bottle insulators.
44 (32)"Atletas Maravillosos/Awesome Athletes"February 22, 2018 (2018-02-22)404
Inspired by Olympic athletes, SciGirls in San Diego create a fitness boot camp.
45 (33)"Mejorando Procesos/Process Power"March 1, 2018 (2018-03-01)405
SciGirls in Arizona design a streamlined service plan for a food bank to help high school students in need.
46 (34)"Asombrosos Arboles/Terrific Trees"March 8, 2018 (2018-03-08)406
Exploring the benefits that big trees bring to ecosystems, and the differences between trees in the rainforest and the city.

Season 5 (2019–20)

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
51 (35)"High Tech Tide"December 12, 2019 (2019-12-12)501
SciGirls in Florida unite with marine biologists to digitally track spotted eagle rays.
52 (36)"Game Changers"December 19, 2019 (2019-12-19)502
Jolie and friends team up with professional game designers to create their own board game.
53 (37)"Super Sensors"December 26, 2019 (2019-12-26)503
Inspired by NASA satellite cameras, SciGirls build and code their wildlife cameras.
54 (38)"Cartoon Coders"January 2, 2020 (2020-01-02)504
The SciGirls create a computer action urging kids to take positive action.
55 (39)"Code Concert"January 9, 2020 (2020-01-09)505
Britanee, Estrella, and Saabirrinn use code to turn music into a stunning visual display.

Season 6 (2023)

Season 6 is re-titled "SciGirls in Space" and is listed as specials on TPT's website.

NOTE: Jake is absent.

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
61 (40)"Dakota Stars"February 3, 2023 (2023-02-03)601
Indigenous SciGirls learn how modern science connects to ancestral Dakota star knowledge.
62 (41)"Making Space"February 10, 2023 (2023-02-10)602
SciGirls are on a mission to reduce the harmful effects of isolation during deep spaceflight.

Season 7 (2023)

All five episodes from the seventh and last season were released online on May 26, 2023. The season is re-titled "SciGirls in the Parks" and is the final season. [7]

Season #Episode #TitleOriginal airdateProd. code
71 (42)"Flashy Fireflies"May 26, 2023 (2023-05-26)701
Reagan, Kyra, and Jayden visit Congaree National Park and learn about its unique fireflies.
72 (43)"Salamander Tales"June 2, 2023 (2023-06-02)702
Tennessee SciGirls explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park in search of salamanders.
73 (44)"Dragonfly Detectives"June 9, 2023 (2023-06-09)703
SciGirls on Lake Michigan's sandy shores collect dragonflies to monitor water quality.
74 (45)"Awesome Alaska"June 16, 2023 (2023-06-16)704
Alaskan SciGirls, Gracie, Indigo, and Evie, explore their local parks for scientific data.
75 (46)"River Rescuers"June 23, 2023 (2023-06-23)705
In Minnesota, Jenny, Hope, Dani, and Amelia track pollution in the river.

Characters

Alongside Izzie and Jake, each episode features a group of real girls (not actors) working alongside a woman STEM professional.

Related Research Articles

Cyberchase is an animated science fantasy children's television series that airs on PBS Kids. The series centers around three children from Earth: Jackie, Matt and Inez, who are brought into Cyberspace, a digital universe, in order to protect it from the villainous Hacker. They are able to foil Hacker's schemes by means of problem-solving skills in conjunction with basic math, environmental science and wellness. In Cyberspace, they meet Digit, a "cybird" who helps them on their missions.

<i>Caillou</i> Canadian preschool animated television series

Caillou is an animated educational children's television series which aired on Teletoon – with the first episode airing on the former channel on September 15, 1997 – until the fourth season. After that, the fifth season channel was moved to Treehouse TV, the series final aired on April 17, 2011. It also aired on PBS and the PBS Kids Channel.

Twin Cities Public Television, Inc. is a nonprofit organization based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, that operates the Twin Cities' two PBS member television stations, KTCA-TV and KTCI-TV, both licensed to Saint Paul. It produces programs for local, regional and national television broadcast, operates numerous websites, and produces rich media content for Web distribution.

<i>Peep and the Big Wide World</i> Canadian-American animated childrens TV show

Peep and the Big Wide World (PATBWW) is an animated children's television series created by Danish-Canadian animator Kaj Pindal. It revolves around the lives of Peep, Chirp, and Quack, as viewers discover, investigate, and explore the world around them.

<i>Jay Jay the Jet Plane</i> American live action/CGI-animated television series

Jay Jay the Jet Plane is an American live-action/CGI-animated musical children's television series created by David and Deborah Michel and first aired on The Learning Channel and later moved to PBS Kids, with reruns on Qubo and TBN's Smile. The series aired for a total of 4 seasons and has 62 episodes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lara Jill Miller</span> American actress (born 1967)

Lara Jill Miller is an American actress. She rose to prominence when she played in roles like Samantha "Sam" Kanisky on the 1980s sitcom Gimme a Break! and Kathy on The Amanda Show.

<i>Curious George</i> (TV series) 2006 animated television series

Curious George is an American children's animated television series based on the children's book series of the same name for PBS Kids and a sequel series to the 2006 animated film Curious George. Frank Welker, who voiced George in the 2006 film, reprises the role in the series while Jeff Bennett co-stars as the voice of "The Man with the Yellow Hat", replacing Will Ferrell. The show premiered on PBS Kids on September 4, 2006, not long after the film's release, and originally ended after nine seasons on April 1, 2015 before returning in 2018. Later seasons were released on Peacock, and the series concluded on March 17, 2022 after a total of 15 seasons. This is the second animated series from Imagine Entertainment, following 1999’s The PJs.

<i>Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman</i> American animated television series

Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman is an American live-action/animated television series that aired on PBS Kids Go! and is largely targeted toward children ages 6–10. It is a reality competition hosted by Ruff Ruffman, an animated anthropomorphic dog who dispenses challenges to the show's real-life contestants. The series ran from May 29, 2006, to November 4, 2010 on PBS across five seasons and 100 episodes, and featured 30 contestants. Although a sixth season was planned, with auditions taking place in January 2010, WGBH announced on June 14, 2010 that the series would end due to lack of funding. In June 2008, the series received its first Emmy for Best Original Song for its theme.

<i>DragonflyTV</i> 2002 American TV series or program

DragonflyTV is an American science education television series produced by Twin Cities Public Television. The show aired on PBS Kids from January 19, 2002, to December 20, 2008. It was aimed at ages 9–12. Seasons 1–4 were co-hosted by Michael Brandon Battle and Mariko Nakasone. Seasons 5–7 were hosted by Eric Artell and were produced in partnership with science museums. DragonflyTV was created in collaboration with Project Dragonfly at Miami University, which founded Dragonfly magazine, the first national magazine to feature children's investigations, experiments, and discoveries. DragonflyTV pioneered a "real kids, real science" approach to children's science television and led to the development of the SciGirls television series. DragonflyTV and SciGirls were funded in part by the National Science Foundation to provide a national forum for children's scientific investigations. Reruns of DragonflyTV aired on select PBS stations until 2019, and later in off-network cable syndication to allow commercial stations to meet federal E/I mandates.

<i>WordGirl</i> Animated television series

WordGirl is an American animated children's superhero television series produced by the Soup2Nuts animation unit of Scholastic Entertainment for PBS Kids. The series began as a series of shorts entitled The Amazing Colossal Adventures of WordGirl that premiered on PBS Kids Go! on November 10, 2006, usually shown at the end of Maya & Miguel; the segment was then spun off into a new thirty-minute episodic series that premiered on September 3, 2007 to August 7, 2015 on most PBS member stations. The series of shorts consisted of thirty episodes, with 128 episodes in the full half-hour series and a film. WordGirl creator Dorothea Gillim felt that most children's animation "underestimated [children's] sense of humor" and hoped to create a more intellectual show for young audiences.

<i>The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!</i> Canadian-British-American animated television series

The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! is an animated musical preschool children's television series featuring Martin Short as the voice of The Cat in the Hat. It premiered on Treehouse TV in Canada on August 7, 2010, also airing on YTV and Nickelodeon Canada on weekday mornings from 2012 to 2013, and on PBS Kids and PBS Kids Preschool in the US on September 6, 2010; it also aired on CITV and Tiny Pop in the UK, and Disney Junior India. The show is based on Random House's Beginner Books franchise and The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library, itself based on the 1957 children's book The Cat in the Hat.

<i>Space Racers</i> Animated television series

Space Racers is an American animated preschool STEM-focused educational animated television series featuring the space travel cadets of the Stardust Space Academy. The series was produced by Stardust Animation for seasons 1 and 2, and co-produced by Maryland Public Television for season 1, and later WNET for seasons 2 and onward. The show began as a web series on March 22, 2011 entitled Space Race, then debuted as a television series on May 2, 2014 on select public television stations. The second season of the show debuted on October 31, 2016 on Sprout. Since the second season, the show's original production funding was provided by NASA, which involves science and space technology education, in partnerships with U.S. Space & Rocket Center and U.S. Space Camp.

<i>Martha Speaks</i> (TV series) American-Canadian animated TV series

Martha Speaks is an American animated television series based on the 1992 children's book of the same name by Susan Meddaugh and debuted on September 1, 2008 on PBS, on the PBS Kids programming block. The series was produced by WGBH Boston, with animation by DHX Media Vancouver for the first four seasons and Oasis Animation for the final two seasons of the series.

<i>Ready Jet Go!</i> Animated television series

Ready Jet Go! is an animated educational children's television series produced by Wind Dancer Films. The series aired new episodes on PBS Kids from February 15, 2016 to May 6, 2019, although re-runs continue to this day. It was created by animator and Hey Arnold! creator Craig Bartlett, and is produced in cooperation with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The show teaches science and astronomy.

<i>Pinkalicious & Peterrific</i> Animated childrens TV series

Pinkalicious & Peterrific is an educational animated children's television series on PBS Kids, based upon the Pinkalicious book series by Victoria and Elizabeth Kann. The series is produced by WGBH Kids in association with Sixteen South.

<i>Esme & Roy</i> Animated childrens television series

Esme & Roy is an animated children's television series created by Dustin Ferrer and Amy Steinberg. The series is produced by Canada-based animation studio Nelvana and Sesame Street producer Sesame Workshop, in association with Corus Entertainment.

<i>Hero Elementary</i> PBS Kids animated TV series (2020-2022)

Hero Elementary is a children's animated television series created and produced by Portfolio Entertainment and Twin Cities PBS. The series premiered on June 1, 2020 to January 4, 2022, on PBS Kids. The series was created by co-creators Carol-Lynn Parente and Christine Ferraro, who previously worked on Sesame Street. The series involves the students of "The Sparks' Crew"—Lucita Sky, AJ Gadgets, Sara Snap and Benny Bubbles—who are trained in superheroics by their quirky and enthusiastic teacher, Mr. Sparks. Together the students work as a team, using their own unique superpowers, as well as the "Superpowers of Science" to help people, solve problems, and try to make the world a better place. The series has 40 half-hour episodes, each of them containing two segments.

<i>Elinor Wonders Why</i> 2020 American-Canadian animated television series

Elinor Wonders Why is an animated television series created by Jorge Cham and Daniel Whiteson. The series premiered on September 7, 2020 from PBS Kids.The series is produced using 2D software.

Bridgette Renee Shannon is an African-American chemist who is a research scientist at 3M. Shannon was the first African-American woman to complete a doctoral degree from the chemistry department at the University of Arkansas. She is the current president of the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE).

References

  1. "PBS SciGirls—Science Fun for Tween Girls". SciGirls.
  2. Parents, PBS KIDS for (May 18, 2021). "About SciGirls | PBS KIDS Shows". PBS KIDS for Parents.
  3. "TPT National Productions Wins Daytime Emmy For PBS Series "SciGirls"" (PDF). tpt.org. June 20, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2011.
  4. SciGirls [@SciGirls] (April 5, 2022). "🎥 🎬 That's a wrap on season 6⭐🔭 We've been having a blast stargazing, designing NASA mission patches, & learning about deep space! Thanks to everyone who helped make this happen! @NASA @NASAJPL @BellMuseum @belwin_org @MIWRC_MN @WASH_MN @the_zooniverse @amragallery" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  5. "Season 7 of SciGirls Premieres May 26". May 22, 2023.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved August 25, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Season 7 of SciGirls Premieres May 26". Twin Cities PBS. St. Paul, MN: Twin Cities Public Television. May 22, 2023. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  8. "SciGirls - Meet the Characters". pbs.org. Archived from the original on March 2, 2010.