"Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" is a children's program geared for ages 2 to 5-year-old. It has been developed to follow the theme of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," a kids show that aired in the 1960s. "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" started airing on PBS in 2012.
The show tracks the adventures of a 4-year-old tiger, Daniel, and it centers on teaching preschoolers social and emotional skills. Every episode features a story that makes use of music and creativity as learning tools. The songs on "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" is vital to the lessons imparted in the series, per PBS.
A new study, which is set to be published in the Journal of Children and Media, looked into the effects of "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" in preschoolers. For two weeks, 127 kids were asked to watch either 10 episodes of "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" or a nature-themed program.
The kids who ended up watching the PBS series more showed self-confidence and empathy and were also more socially-adjusted than those who watched the nature shows. However, the study also underscored that it helped that the kids were also engaged in frequent conversations with their parents, who are constantly involved with what their kids watch.
Does your family have any special summer plans this weekend? #DanielTigerPBS pic.twitter.com/2evlmJnrC3
— Daniel Tiger (@danieltigertv) June 24, 2016
The study further stressed that honing proper social skills in children can be aided by media or TV shows like "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood," but its impact is shaped by the parents. For this to work, the children must not simply be left alone to pick up lessons from the show they watch, per Children and Mediaman. Parents have to do actual reinforcements on the kids.
Aside from PBS, "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" is also available on Netflix. The series, which has been nominated for Outstanding Youth Program by the Television Critics' Association, has three seasons so far.
