Mother Goose is a character that originated in children's fiction, as the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. She also appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as a nursery rhyme. The character also appears in a pantomime tracing its roots to 1806.
Makaton is a communication tool with speech, signs, and symbols to enable people with disabilities or learning disabilities to communicate. Makaton supports the development of essential communication skills such as attention, listening, comprehension, memory and expressive speech and language. The Makaton language programme has been used with individuals who have cognitive impairments, autism, Down syndrome, specific language impairment, multisensory impairment and acquired neurological disorders that have negatively affected the ability to communicate, including stroke and dementia patients.
Jackanory is a BBC children's television series which was originally broadcast between 1965 and 1996. It was designed to stimulate an interest in reading. The programme was first transmitted on 13 December 1965, and the first story was the fairy-tale "Cap-o'-Rushes" read by Lee Montague. Jackanory was broadcast until 1996, with around 3,500 episodes in its 30-year run.
CBeebies is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content targeted for children aged six years and under. Its sister channel, CBBC, is intended for older children aged six to twelve. It broadcasts every day from 6:00 am to 7:00 pm, timesharing with BBC Four.
"Jack and Jill" is a traditional English nursery rhyme. The Roud Folk Song Index classifies the commonest tune and its variations as number 10266, although it has been set to several others. The original rhyme dates back to the 18th century and different numbers of verses were later added, each with variations in the wording. Throughout the 19th century new versions of the story were written featuring different incidents. A number of theories continue to be advanced to explain the rhyme's historical origin.
"Old Mother Hubbard" is an English-language nursery rhyme, first given an extended printing in 1805, although the exact origin of the rhyme is disputed. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19334. After a notable nursery success, it was eventually adapted to a large variety of practical and entertaining uses.
Playdays is a British preschool television programme which ran from 1988 to 1997 on Children's BBC. The show was the successor to Play School and, like its predecessor, was designed as an educational programme.
Tweenies is a British live-action puppet children's television series created by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan. The programme was focused on four preschool-aged characters, known as the "Tweenies"; Bella, Milo, Fizz & Jake, whilst playing, singing, dancing and learning in a fictional playgroup based in England. They are cared for by two adult Tweenies; Max & Judy and their dogs; Doodles and Izzles.
"Wee Willie Winkie" is a Scottish nursery rhyme whose titular figure has become popular as a personification of sleep. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 13711.
Dave Benson Phillips is a British entertainer, comic, children's television presenter and wrestler, best known for his work presenting Playhouse Disney (1998–2006) and The Fun Song Factory (1994–1999). He also presented the popular CBBC game show Get Your Own Back.
"Henny Penny", more commonly known in the United States as "Chicken Little" and sometimes as "Chicken Licken", is a European folk tale with a moral in the form of a cumulative tale about a chicken who believes that the world is coming to an end. The phrase "The sky is falling!" features prominently in the story, and has passed into the English language as a common idiom indicating a hysterical or mistaken belief that disaster is imminent. Similar stories go back more than 25 centuries and "Henny Penny" continues to be referred to in a variety of media.
Penny Dale is an English illustrator and writer of children's books.
Justin Fletcher is an English children's television presenter, actor and comedian, appearing mainly on the BBC pre-school television channel CBeebies. Speaking and performing in various, often self-created, roles, he specialises in slapstick comedy and works with children with special educational needs through his show Something Special.
Wibbly Pig is the title character of a series of picture books for young children, written and illustrated by English author and illustrator Mick Inkpen. The series includes titles such as Wibbly Pig Likes Bananas (ISBN 0-340-75740-X) and Is It Bedtime Wibbly Pig?. Like Inkpen's Kipper the Dog for slightly older readers, Wibbly Pig has been published internationally and has sold millions of copies worldwide.
Bedtime is a ritual part of parenting to help children feel more secure and become accustomed to a more rigid schedule of sleep than they might prefer. The ritual of bedtime is aimed at facilitating the transition from wakefulness to sleep. It may involve bedtime stories, children's songs, nursery rhymes, bed-making and getting children to change into nightwear. In some religious households, prayers are said shortly before going to bed. Sleep training may be part of the bedtime ritual for babies and toddlers.
In the Night Garden... is a British preschool children's television series created, written and composed by Teletubbies co-creator Andrew Davenport for CBeebies and BBC Two and produced by Ragdoll Worldwide, a joint venture of Ragdoll Productions and BBC Worldwide. The show was aimed at children aged from one to six years old. The programme is narrated by Derek Jacobi. It is filmed in live action and features a mix of actors in costume, stop motion, puppetry and CGI animation. The characters include Igglepiggle, Upsy Daisy, Makka Pakka, the Tombliboos, the Pontipines, the Wottingers, the HaaHoos, the Ninky Nonk, the Pinky Ponk, the Ball and the Tittifers.
Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song-Book is the oldest extant anthology of English nursery rhymes, published in London in 1744. It contains the oldest printed texts of many well-known and popular rhymes, as well as several that eventually dropped out of the canon of rhymes for children.
"Matthew, Mark, Luke and John", also known as the "Black Paternoster", is an English children's bedtime prayer and nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 1704. It may have origins in ancient Babylonian prayers and was being used in a Christian version in late Medieval Germany. The earliest extant version in English can be traced to the mid-sixteenth century. It was mentioned by English Protestant writers as a "popish" or magical charm. It is related to other prayers, including a "Green" and "White Paternoster", which can be traced to late Medieval England and with which it is often confused. It has been the inspiration for a number of literary works by figures including Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and musical works by figures such as Gustav Holst. It has been the subject of alternative versions and satires.
Show Me Show Me is a pre-school television series that aired on CBeebies from 6 July 2009 to 30 October 2015 and is presented by Chris Jarvis and Pui Fan Lee. The series teaches and shows children to read stories about their toys. The show also aired on Pluto TV's BBC Kids FAST Channel in the United States, ABC Kids in Australia, BBC Kids in Canada and on BBC One And BBC Two.
Wish Films is an animation and live-action studio, established by Will Brenton and Iain Lauchlan in 2006. It is the predecessor to Tell-Tale Productions, which was formed in 1994, first producing live shows, and later went on to produce TV shows.
