WordWorld | |
---|---|
Genre | |
Created by |
|
Developed by |
|
Directed by | Olexa Hewryk |
Narrated by | H.D. Quinn |
Theme music composer | Billy Straus |
Composers |
|
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 45 (90 segments) (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers |
|
Producers |
|
Running time | 28 minutes |
Production companies |
|
Original release | |
Network | PBS Kids |
Release | September 3, 2007 – January 17, 2011 |
WordWorld is an American animated children's television series based on the books and the wooden puzzles of the same name. The series was created by Don Moody, Jacqueline Moody, Peter Schneider and Gary Friedman, it was produced by The Learning Box and WTTW National for PBS Kids.
WordWorld aired on PBS Kids from September 3, 2007 to January 17, 2011, with PBS later airing reruns on the national 24-hour PBS Kids channel from January 16, 2017 to October 2, 2022. The series consisted of 3 seasons and 45 episodes (90 segments total).
In the series, when letters are combined to spell words, they morph into the shape of the corresponding object. The animal characters and many objects are made of letters, and are respectively called WordFriends and WordThings. The main setting is a planet that has two landmasses in the shape of Ws for WordWorld; despite its name, WordFriends and WordThings also exist in outer space. In each episode, the characters have a cartoonish adventure, and ultimately must "build a word" using synthetic phonics to solve a problem. Some episodes focus on concepts such as rhymes, compound words, and plural formation with -s.
WordWorld is designed to teach children how to spell. In non-English speaking countries, it is designed to teach children English as a second language.
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Build a Word | Music video | Original air date | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Runaway O" | Box Cake | Dancing Dog | September 3, 2007 | |||||
"Happy Birthday, Dog!" | ||||||||||
When Sheep and Bear open Cat's box of "O's," one rolls away, sending them on a madcap chase to catch it before Cat wakes up. It's Dog's birthday and all of his friends are planning a surprise party. However, when the cake flips around and breaks the letters, everyone panics. Frog must get to the party safely without Dog finding out. | ||||||||||
2 | 2 | "There's an Ant in Every Giant" | Ant Pot | Dancing Dog | September 4, 2007 | |||||
"Chef Sheep" | ||||||||||
Tiny ant is tired of being the smallest Word Friend in Word World. When Ant adds "GI" to his name, Ant becomes a "giant" and soon learns that being small isn't so bad after all. During his "cooking show", Chef Pig gets a pot stuck on his face while eating ice cream out of it. Now there is no pot to cook in and no chef to do the cooking. Luckily for Pig, an ever-helpful Sheep is there to take over for him. But first, Sheep must learn to have confidence in herself before Sheep can save the day. | ||||||||||
3 | 3 | "Rocket to the Moon" | Rocket Bird | Dancing Dog | September 5, 2007 | |||||
"The Birds" | ||||||||||
Frog thinks that in order to build a big rocket Frog needs big, uppercase letters. But when Frog gets stranded on the moon with the Little Piggies, Frog learns that lowercase letters are just as useful as uppercase ones. Sheep, Bear and Frog go out bird watching and get more than they bargained for–they find an egg. Sheep does her zany best to care for the energetic egg until the baby bird is born and is reunited with his mother. | ||||||||||
4 | 4 | "The Mystery of the Disappearing Pie" | Bear Truck | Dancing Dog | September 6, 2007 | |||||
"Duck's Family Reunion" | ||||||||||
Pig baked a pie while waiting for Bear, then, it goes missing and awry. Detective Sheep is ready to help her WordFriends follow the letter clues and solve the mystery of the disappearing pie. Because they have similar-sounding names, Duck mistakes a truck for a long-lost relative. His best friend Frog is a bit ruffled at the epidemic of silliness going around, but ends up saving the day for Duck and his word 'family' when the truck gets stuck in the muck. | ||||||||||
5 | 5 | "Sh-Sh-Shark!" | Shoe Ball | Dancing Dog | September 13, 2007 | |||||
"Dog Wants to Play Ball" | ||||||||||
6 | 6 | "Pies, Pies, Pies!" | Pies Log | Dancing Dog | September 14, 2007 | |||||
"Waterlogged" | ||||||||||
7 | 7 | "Dog's Camping Adventure" | Tent Vine | Ride the Slide | September 17, 2007 | |||||
"V is for Vacation" | ||||||||||
8 | 8 | "Snug as a Bug" | Rug Nightlight | Ride the Slide | September 18, 2007 | |||||
"Nightlight" | ||||||||||
9 | 9 | "Duck's First Sleepover Party" | Bed Hat | Ride the Slide | October 29, 2007 | |||||
"One Hat Fits All" | ||||||||||
10 | 10 | "Dancing Dog" | Drum Corn, Pie, Cake | Circus Sheep | November 19, 2007 | |||||
"Pig's Big Moonlight Feast" | ||||||||||
11 | 11 | "Boppin' with the Bug Band" | Bell Pit | Circus Sheep | November 26, 2007 | |||||
"Shuffleword" | ||||||||||
12 | 12 | "W Drought" | Water Crown | Take the Stage | January 31, 2008 | |||||
"Princess Sheep" | ||||||||||
13 | 13 | "Radio Read-a-Thon" | Book Robots | Take the Stage | February 15, 2008 | |||||
"Robots to the Rescue!" | ||||||||||
14 | 14 | "Pl-Pl-Plane" | Plane Sail, Pail, Nail | Take the Stage | March 3, 2008 | |||||
"Mail Mix Up" | ||||||||||
15 | 15 | "Pig's Present" | Jet Clock | Monster Maker | March 21, 2008 | |||||
"Tick Tock Space Clock" | ||||||||||
16 | 16 | "Castles in the Sea" | Castle Coat | Monster Maker | April 7, 2008 | |||||
"Get Your Coat" | ||||||||||
17 | 17 | "Superhero Sheep" | Slide Ship | Monster Maker | April 8, 2008 | |||||
"Pirate Ship" | ||||||||||
18 | 18 | "Playing Spies" | Pool Sub | It's Time to Rhyme | May 5, 2008 | |||||
"Wee Little Whale" | ||||||||||
19 | 19 | "The Race to Mystery Island" | Boat Star | It's Time to Rhyme | May 6, 2008 | |||||
"A Star is Born" | ||||||||||
20 | 20 | "Back on Track" | Track Candle | It's Time to Rhyme | May 23, 2008 | |||||
"The Rainbow Birthday Cake" | ||||||||||
21 | 21 | "Bit by Bit" | Banana Rope | Pig's Perfect Pizza | June 23, 2008 | |||||
"Ride 'em, Cowbear!" | ||||||||||
22 | 22 | "Play Ball!" | Ball Map | Pig's Perfect Pizza | June 24, 2008 | |||||
"M is for Map" | ||||||||||
23 | 23 | "Flying Ant" | Kite Stage | Pig's Perfect Pizza | July 7, 2008 | |||||
"The Dancing Duck Bonanza" | ||||||||||
24 | 24 | "The Lost Letter L" | Log Cookie | Ride the Slide | August 18, 2008 | |||||
"Catch that C!" | ||||||||||
25 | 25 | "A Kooky Spooky Halloween" | Bag Dust | Monster Maker | October 6, 2008 [DVD 1] . | |||||
"Sheep's Halloween Costume" | ||||||||||
26 | 26 | "The Christmas Star" | Star Ball | It's Time to Rhyme | December 1, 2008 | |||||
"A Christmas Present for Dog" | ||||||||||
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Build a Word | Music Video | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
27 | 1 | "My Fuzzy Valentine" | Heart Bug | Fruit Cha-Cha | February 13, 2009 |
"Love, Bug" | |||||
28 | 2 | "Duck Saves Spider's Web" | Web Box | Fruit Cha-Cha | March 31, 2009 |
"Caterpillar Gets A Home" | |||||
29 | 3 | "Bugs to the Rescue!" | Balloon Bike | Fruit Cha-Cha | April 13, 2009 |
"Sheep's First Bike Ride" | |||||
30 | 4 | "Duck's Hiccups" | Glass Ants | Fruit Cha-Cha | May 11, 2009 |
"Achoo!" | |||||
31 | 5 | "Get Well Soon Soup" | Bed Milk | Get Up and Move | May 12, 2009 |
"Mmm-Mmm-Milk!" | |||||
32 | 6 | "Get Set for ET" | Jet Piano | Get Up and Move | June 15, 2009 |
"Duck Plays the Piano" | |||||
33 | 7 | "Shark's First Day of School" | Flag Pillow | Get Up and Move | July 13, 2009 |
"Shark's First Loose Tooth" | |||||
34 | 8 | "Duck at Bat" | Bat (happened twice) Roof | Get Up and Move | July 14, 2009 |
"You Can Never Have Too Many OO's" | |||||
35 | 9 | "The Best Nest" | Nest Truck (repeat of season 1 episode) | Take the Stage | September 7, 2009 |
"Duck's Family Reunion" | |||||
36 | 10 | "Bed Bugs" | Bed Rug (repeat of season 1 episode) | It's Time to Rhyme | September 8, 2009 |
"Snug as a Bug" | |||||
37 | 11 | "Totally Terrific Duck" | Tie Star (repeat of season 1 episode) | Fruit Cha-Cha | October 12, 2009 |
"A Star is Born" | |||||
38 | 12 | "Dog's Having a Party" | Horn Ball (repeat of season 1 episode) | Ride the Slide | November 9, 2009 |
"Dog Wants to Play Ball" | |||||
39 | 13 | "Welcome Home, Duck" | Rock Log (repeat of season 1 episode) | Get Up and Move | November 10, 2009 |
"The Lost Letter L" | |||||
40 | 14 | "Bear's Bed Sled" | Sled Shoe (repeat of season 1 episode) | Take the Stage | December 28, 2009 |
"Sh-Sh-Shark!" | |||||
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Build a Word | Music video | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
41 | 1 | "A String's the Thing" | String Jar | Ride the Slide | October 4, 2010 |
"J-J-Jelly" | |||||
42 | 2 | "Hide and Seek" | Lake Kite | Get Up and Move | October 5, 2010 |
"Kite Flight" | |||||
43 | 3 | "The Really Red Ruby" | Rock Fire | Pig's Perfect Pizza | November 1, 2010 |
"Firefighters to the Rescue" | |||||
44 | 4 | "Think in the Rink" | Rink X-Ray | Fruit Cha-Cha | November 2, 2010 |
"X Marks the Spot" | |||||
45 | 5 | "Race to the Spaceship" | Spaceship Sandbox | Get Up and Move | January 17, 2011 |
"Sandbox Surprise" | |||||
Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave the series 5 out of 5 stars; saying that, “This show is perfectly suited for preschoolers' learning level, and it will entertain them as it reinforces their knowledge of letters, sounds, and simple words. With its imaginative design and with the various font styles used to create the letter-based objects, the WordWorld package is delightful enough to draw in parents almost as readily as kids.” [1]
2009 Emmy Award Winner Outstanding Children's Animated Program Outstanding Writing in Animation [2]
2008 Emmy Award Winner Outstanding Achievement in Main Title [2]
Three 2007 Parents’ Choice Awards: Gold Welcome to WordWorld DVD Rocket to the Moon/The Birds DVD WordWorld Television Series [2]
Creative Child Magazine – Creative Toys Awards 2008 Preferred Choice Award: Barn Bucket Set 2008 Seal of Excellence Award: Pull-Apart Plush [2]
2004 Preferred Choice Award: Pull Apart Plush [2]
2008 Toy Wishes Magazine All-Star Award WordPuzzle with Sound: Duck's Beach Party [2]
Interactive Media Awards 2007 Best in Class: PBS Kids WordWorld Website [2]
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.
Between the Lions is an American animated/live-action/puppet educational children's television series designed to promote reading. The show is a co-production between WGBH in Boston and Sirius Thinking, Ltd., in New York City, in association with Mississippi Public Broadcasting, the distributor from seasons 1–10. The show won nine Daytime Emmy awards between 2001 and 2007. Although it is created by alumni of the fellow PBS children’s show Sesame Street, Between the Lions was not created by Sesame Workshop, nor was it produced with their involvement in any way. The show premiered on PBS Kids on April 3, 2000, taking over the schedule slot held by The Puzzle Place upon its debut, and ended its original run on November 22, 2010. This TV show was a companion piece to Sesame Street aimed at slightly older children.
Dragon Tales is an animated educational fantasy children's television series created by Jim Coane and Ron Rodecker, developed by Coane, Wesley Eure, Jeffrey Scott, Cliff Ruby and Elana Lesser, and produced by the Children's Television Workshop, Columbia TriStar Television and Adelaide Productions. The series focuses on the adventures of two siblings, Emmy and Max, and their dragon friends Cassie, Ord, and Zak and Wheezie.
Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks, or Jakers in Europe, is an animated children's television series. The series was broadcast on PBS Kids in the United States, and on CBBC and CBeebies in the United Kingdom. It was also broadcast in Australia on ABC Kids. The series ran for three seasons and 52 episodes total from September 7, 2003, to January 23, 2007, with reruns airing through August 31, 2008. Reruns aired on the Qubo television network from June 30, 2012 to March 26, 2017.
The Backyardigans is an animated musical children's television series created by Janice Burgess for Nickelodeon. The series was written and recorded at Nickelodeon Animation Studio. It centers on five anthropomorphic animal neighbors who imagine themselves on fantastic adventures in their backyard. The show's title is a portmanteau of "backyard" and "cardigan". Each episode is set to a different musical genre and features four songs, composed by Evan Lurie with lyrics by McPaul Smith. The Backyardigans' adventures span many different genres and settings. The show's writers took inspiration from action-adventure films, and many episodes are parodies of films.
Life with Louie is an American animated sitcom created by Louie Anderson and Matthew O'Callaghan for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series was based on the childhood of Anderson, growing up with his family in the fictional town of Cedar Knoll, Wisconsin during the early 1960s, although Anderson himself was actually from Saint Paul, Minnesota, also situated in the Midwestern U.S.
Zoboomafoo is a live-action/animated children's television series that originally aired on PBS from January 25, 1999, to November 21, 2001. After the original run on public television, reruns were shown on PBS Kids Sprout until 2012. A total of 65 episodes were aired. A creation of the Kratt Brothers, it features a talking Coquerel's sifaka lemur named Zoboomafoo, performed by Canadian puppeteer Gord Robertson, and mainly portrayed by a lemur named Jovian, along with a collection of returned animal guests.
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.
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.
Phineas and Ferb is an American animated musical-comedy television series created by Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh for Disney Channel and Disney XD. The series originally aired on the networks for four seasons between 2007 and 2015 and is scheduled to return for two additional seasons beginning in 2025. The series follows stepbrothers Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher during summer vacation. Every day, the boys construct a grand project or embark on a spectacular adventure to make the most of their time on vacation. This annoys their controlling older sister, Candace, who frequently tries to expose their schemes to her and Phineas's mother. The series follows a standard plot system; running gags occur every episode.
WordGirl is an American animated superhero children's 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.
The fifth season of the American animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants, created by former marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, aired on Nickelodeon from February 19, 2007, to July 19, 2009, and contained 20 half-hour episodes. The series chronicles the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. The season was executive produced by series creator Hillenburg and writer Paul Tibbitt, who also acted as the showrunner.
The sixth season of the American animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants, created by former marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, aired on Nickelodeon from March 3, 2008, to July 5, 2010, and contained 26 half-hour episodes, being the first season with a different number of half-hours. The series chronicles the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the fictional underwater city of Bikini Bottom. The season was executive produced by series creator Hillenburg and supervising producer Paul Tibbitt, who also acted as the showrunner. In 2009, the show celebrated its tenth anniversary on television. The documentary film titled Square Roots: The Story of SpongeBob SquarePants premiered on July 17, 2009, and marked the anniversary. SpongeBob's Truth or Square, a television film, and the special episode "To SquarePants or Not to SquarePants" were broadcast on Nickelodeon, as part of the celebration.
The Mighty B! is an American animated television series created by former SNL cast member Amy Poehler, Cynthia True, and Erik Wiese for Nickelodeon. The series centers on Bessie Higgenbottom, an ambitious Honeybee girl scout who believes she will become The Mighty B if she collects every Honeybee badge. Bessie lives in San Francisco with her single mother Hilary, brother Ben and dog Happy. Poehler provides the voice of Bessie, who is loosely based on the character Cassie McMadison, who Poehler played on the improvisational comedy troupes Upright Citizens Brigade and Second City before she joined the cast of Saturday Night Live.
The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! is an animated musical educational children's television series feature starring Martin Short as The Cat in the Hat. The series 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 Block in the US on September 6, 2010; it also aired on CITV and Tiny Pop in the UK, and Disney Junior India. The series 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.
T.U.F.F. Puppy is an American animated action children's television series created by Butch Hartman. It premiered on October 2, 2010, along with Planet Sheen, which premiered a half hour earlier. T.U.F.F. Puppy is Hartman's third animated show for Nickelodeon, after The Fairly OddParents and Danny Phantom and also before Bunsen Is a Beast. The show was cancelled after 3 seasons and aired its final episode on April 4, 2015.
Peg + Cat is an animated children's television series based on the children's picture book "The Chicken Problem", which was published in 2012. The series, which featured the voice acting of Hayley Faith Negrin and Dwayne Hill, was created by Billy Aronson and Jennifer Oxley and produced by Fred Rogers Productions and 9 Story Media Group. It debuted on most PBS stations on October 7, 2013, as part of the revamped PBS Kids brand, and aired 63 episodes through April 23, 2018. In Canada the show is broadcast on Treehouse TV.
The Loud House is an American animated sitcom created by Chris Savino that premiered on Nickelodeon on May 2, 2016. The series revolves around the chaotic everyday life of a boy named Lincoln Loud, who is the middle child and only son in a large family of 11 children. It is set in a fictional town in southeastern Michigan called Royal Woods, based on Savino's hometown of Royal Oak. The series was pitched to the network in 2013 as a two-minute short film entered in the annual Animated Shorts Program. It entered production the following year. The series is based on Savino's own childhood growing up in a large family, and its animation is largely influenced by newspaper comic strips.
Let's Go Luna! is an educational animated children's television series created by Joe Murray that aired on PBS Kids. Murray formerly worked on the Nickelodeon animated series Rocko's Modern Life and Cartoon Network animated series Camp Lazlo. It is co-produced by 9 Story Media Group. Judy Greer provides the voice of the titular Luna. In the first season, there are 38 half-hour episodes and a one-hour special. The second season has 26 episodes and premiered on May 10, 2021. Each episode consists of two 11-minute story segments, with a short segment of one of the characters telling a folktale, song or poem from that country in between.
Mother Goose Club is an educational nursery school program that streams on its eponymous YouTube channel and is produced by Sockeye Media LLC. Its YouTube channel has acquired more than 8 billion views and 7 million subscribers since 2009. Episodes of the program have also aired on PBS stations and are available on streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Tubi. The show is made up of a series of educational live-action and animated segments, with a cast of six recurring characters who introduce classic nursery rhymes and other songs to children through catchy tunes, play, and interactive lessons.