The latest Muppet in the Sesame Street family is a foster kid called Karli with "for-now" parents.
While Karli won't be seen on the popular kids show, she'll appear in video, digital and print materials as part of the "Sesame Street in Communities" foster care initiative alongside her foster parents Dalia and Clem.
"Children in foster care often experience many transitions -- from their separation from birth parents, to their placement in foster care, to many moves -- and the new resources are designed to help children in crisis cope along the way," Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind the show, said in a statement.
Videos starring Karli include On Your Team, featuring the green-haired girl and her friend Elmo playing a game called Monster Ball. While the kids pal around, their parents catch up. Elmo's dad asks Clem and Dalia how things have been going since becoming Karli's foster parents.
"Changes like this can be really rough for kids -- and for adults too," foster dad Clem says.
"It's had its ups and downs, but no matter what, we try to let Karli know we are always here for her," Dalia says.
In addition to the videos, free resources for foster parents and caregivers -- including a storybook and an Artmaker activity to help kids express their feelings through drawing -- are available at SesameStreetinCommunities.org.
"Fostering a child takes patience, resilience, and sacrifice, and we know that caring adults hold the power to buffer the effects of traumatic experiences on young children," Dr. Jeanette Betancourt, senior vice president of U.S. social impact at Sesame Workshop, said. "We want foster parents and providers to hear that what they do matters -- they have the enormous job of building and rebuilding family structures and children's sense of safety.
"By giving the adults in children's lives the tools they need -- with help from the Sesame Street Muppets -- we can help both grownups and children feel seen and heard and give them a sense of hope for the future," she added.
Karli is just the latest Sesame Street character introduced to help families cope. In April, the long-running educational kids' program announced that the family of Julia, the show's first autistic character, would also be featured in new digital videos and storybooks as part of its "Sesame Street and Autism: See Amazing in All Children" initiative.
-- GINA SALAMONE
New York Daily News (TNS)
CARTOON NETWORK
What do a crime-fighting samurai cat and a gadget-building feline have in common? Both are cats and both are characters in new shows headed to Cartoon Network.
Cartoon Network announced Monday that Mao Mao, Heroes of Pure Heart and Tig N' Seek will be joining its programming lineup. Both animated shows are described as adventure comedies.
In Parker Simmons' Mao Mao, Heroes of Pure Heart, samurai cat and sheriff Mao Mao -- described as an "explosive loner" and a "famous hero" -- will work with sidekicks Badgerclops and Adorabat to bring justice and peace to the people of the valley. Produced by Cartoon Network Studios and Titmouse, the series will make its official network debut July 1 with new episodes airing on Mondays throughout the summer.
A sneak peek at Mao Mao can be seen on the CN App and On Demand. A second preview will be released June 3, with eight additional new episodes hitting the platforms June 28.
Created by Myke Chilian, Tig N' Seek will follow 8-year-old sleuth Tiggy and his inventor cat Gweeseek, who search for the lost items of Wee Gee City as part of the Department of Lost and Found. The show is slated for a 2020 release.
Cartoon Network also announced that Summer Camp Island will return with new episodes June 23. Created by Julia Pott, the show follows best friends Oscar and Hedgehog and their adventures as they navigate their way at a magical summer camp filled with monsters, aliens, yetis and camp counselors who are teenage witches. Season 2 is scheduled for later this year.
Also getting new episodes is Apple & Onion, about best friends Apple and Onion, who live in the big city with even more anthropomorphic food friends.
-- TRACY BROWN
Los Angeles Times (TNS)
Style on 05/26/2019