Psychological Issues

One of public television’s (PBS) excellent programs for preschool children is Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.  This show replaced Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in 2012.  Unlike the original program, which had real people and children, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood is in animated cartoon format.  According to Wikipedia, Rogers’ program The Neighborhood of Make-Believe, which had puppets as characters, influenced Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.  Daniel is a young tiger who attends school and has many friends, including a young cat and a young owl.  Some brief sequences of real children involved in interesting activities like feeding zoo animals and visiting museums also appear. Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood teaches kids how to handle and understand emotions like sadness and jealousy.  By having Daniel feel sad when his class’s adopted duck must return to the farm, the program tells viewers, “It’s OK to feel sad,” and reassures them that they will gradually feel better.  The creators of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood embody this message in a repeated song that youngsters can quickly memorize.  Similarly, the show portrays Daniel’s jealousy when his grandfather pays attention to…