PBS Kids Shows You May Not Remember

We’re all familiar with the long-running popular kids’ series on PBS. Programs like Sesame Street, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and Reading Rainbow entertained and educated multiple generations of children. But there are other children’s programs that weren’t on as long, or aren’t remembered as being broadcast on PBS. We’ve listed a few of them below. How many of these programs do you remember watching? What other shows do you remember?

3-2-1 Contact

Produced by Children’s Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop), this series premiered on PBS in 1980 and ran on the network until 1988. It explored scientific concepts through video segments, cartoons and skits, like The Bloodhound Gang Detective Agency.

Check out this playlist of episodes from the 1980s.

Newton’s Apple

This pioneering PBS family science series was produced from 1983 until 1998, and answered basic science questions from viewers with hands-on experiments and field trips. Episodes occasionally featured segments such as, "Science of the Rich and Famous" where celebrities explained scientific principles or natural or physical phenomena. “Newton’s Lemons” was a segment included in the early seasons that used 1950s-era newsreels of a device that was considered "futuristic" at the time of its introduction but had long since been simply forgotten.

The 1983 season can be watched online at pbs.org or on the PBS app.

Square One Television

Produced from 1987 until 1992, this comedy sketch series for kids introduced and taught math concepts using parodies of popular television programs. Segments included General Mathpital, a parody of General Hospital; Nobody's Inn, a parody of Fawlty Towers; Late Afternoon with David Numberman, a parody of Late Night with David Letterman, and Mathnet, a parody of Dragnet. 

Find season 1 of Square One Television on YouTube.

Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?

Based on the Carmen Sandiego computer game series, this game show was produced from 1991 until 1995. As contestants, kids had to correctly answer geography questions to catch the international thief and win the grand prize — a trip to the destination of their choice anywhere in the continental United States. And every episode ended with the iconic, “Do it, Rockapella!” shouted by the show host, contestant and studio audience to cue the closing theme song.

Check out these episodes on YouTube to see how many cases you can solve.

Ghostwriter

This short-lived series revolved around a diverse group of friends in Brooklyn who solved neighborhood crimes with the help of Ghostwriter, a ghost who could only communicate through writing by manipulating letters and text. It began airing on PBS on October 4, 1992, and the last episode aired on February 12, 1995.

All 74 original episodes can be watched on YouTube.

Kratts’ Creatures

While Chris and Martin Kratt have become very familiar names in the world of kids’ programming on PBS, not everyone remembers their very FIRST series – Kratts’ Creatures. Launched in 1996, it was the first nature series of its kind for school-age children. In each episode, the brothers explore a variety of different animals' habitats and lifestyles. While the series was short lived, with 50 episodes that premiered in the summer of 1996, it led to the brothers creating their two subsequent PBS KIDS programs — Zoboomafoo and Wild Kratts!

Revisit clips from the series on The Kratt Brothers YouTube channel.