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Mitchell Kriegman: Seeing a Little of the Big Big World

"I was in New York when 9/11 happened, and having three kids, you discover pretty quickly that it changed their sense of the world." The creator of "Bear in the Big Blue House" and "Clarissa Explains It All," he began to envision a new television series that would help children make sense of a large and sometimes frightening world -- and perhaps even find its bigness and diversity a thing of beauty. "We wanted to find some way to create a positive image of the world that's not controversial or political but that's quintessential and human.," says Kriegman.

He imagined a World Tree set in a rainforest and populated by some very exotic talking animals. Their daily interactions with one another and their environment would offer opportunities for providing information about zoology, geography, and other life science topics, as well as lessons in understanding and dealing with your neighbors. Welcoming viewers to this colorful World Tree is Snook, a big lumbering sloth who speaks to camera, sings and dances. He often plays the gentle peacemaker of the World Tree, helping his friends and smoothing ruffled features. "I'm always trying to figure out about what little kids think of us adults," says Kriegman, "and from a kid's perspective we're like big lumbering sloths who don't want to move very quickly or do anything. Once he gets going, though, he helps you and does things."

Other denizens of the World Tree include Burdette the bossy bird, Madge the wise turtle, Bob the ingratiating anteater, Wartz the tree frog, and Smooch and Winslow, two rambunctious marmosets. Ick the loud-mouth fish lives in the pond below. The series is created through Shadowmation, a special hybrid of puppetry and computer-generated images devised by Kriegman and his company. Each character is operated differently -- Snook is inhabited by a person, Ick is a sock puppet, and each of the marmosets is operated, in the style of Japanese bunraku theater, by three different puppeteers. Some of the close-up objects, like tree branches and tables, are constructed props, while most of the colorful background is computer-generated.

A wide spectrum of topics is tackled in the series. In the first program, for example, they introduce the idea of metamorphosis. Smooch and Winslow are looking for their friend Wartz, a tadpole, only to discover that he's turned into -- a frog! "Every creature is perfect in its own way," Oko the monkey explains. "But sometimes they change." In other episodes the show deals with such topics as balance, sleep, camouflage, diversity, and different points of view.

While some of the topics may seem big for a preschooler, Kriegman says, "We learned from our science advisors that kids are much more receptive to science and scientific thinking and big words. Presented in the the right way, they can absorb a remarkable amount of information." The curriculum is informed by the National Science Education Standards, and the show has consulted with a number of experts such as Tina Grotzer from Harvard's Project Zero and Dan Anderson from the University of Massachusetts.

Ultimately, he says, "The episodes are driven by emotional stories, you can understand them irregardless. We were advised not to be shy about material, as long as our stories had emotional impact and drive." In one episode, for example, Ick campaigns against Burdette because "she's different" and wants her to leave the World Tree. However, his campaign backfires when no one else will go along with him, and he finds himself isolated by his own paranoia. It turns out that his real fear is that he feared for his life, because he had heard that birds eats fish. So Burdette explains that his fear is unfounded, because different birds have different diets, and she's the kind who eats only nuts and seeds.

Kriegman admits the World Tree is idealized -- here, even Bob the anteater wants to make friends with the ants! But he wants to convey the idea "that it takes a lot of different kinds to make up a tree, there's a community here, and everyone takes care of each other. It's an idealized fantasy, but to some degree you need to start with a fantasy before you learn about all the hard realities of life."

He encourages parents to watch the program with their children. "Kids love watching these shows on their own," he says, "but it's important that parents are familiar with what their kids are watching. I'm always in favor of co-viewing, and that way, if there is anything the kids don't understand, they can discuss it." While Kriegman has done shows for other networks, he says, "The reason I wanted this show on PBS is that of all the networks and outlets, PBS gets more co-viewing than anyone else."