Growing up, I managed to watch my kids television on channels such as PBS Kids and Qubo. While others were watching the cable networks, I managed to find and watch these OG kids tv shows (which honestly, some might even be better than some of the ones on cable tv). Here, I’ll be ranking from best to worst (all are exceptionally good, but best to worst for the top 5) shows that were aired on PBS Kids, and still exist to this day.
- Arthur
If you haven’t heard of Arthur, you truly are missing out on a show that exemplifies both comedy, and wholesomeness. This show is hands down one of my favorite shows ever to watch, and perhaps, not confirming that this is true, still watch sometimes on YouTube. There have been viral memes made about Arthur, so if you haven’t watched the show, these may seem familiar to you:
The animation style is also one that I favor a lot, but more so of the older seasons rather than the new. This show is about friendship, family, school, and doing what’s right, which is why in my opinion, this would be a very good show for children to watch growing up.
2. Word Girl
This show was definitely not watched by many, but it is my second pick in this list of favorites. Word Girl is about a very smart young girl that inhabits special flying powers, and has a very accelerated knowledge upon complicated, yet useful words. She has a monkey sidekick, and together, they stop villains roaming the city, looking to gain control of the citizens. This show also has a lot of comedy, but also exhibits the importance of partnership, teamwork, and family. Finally, the animation style is also one to die for, as everything has clean cut lines, very opaque and bold colors, and is just captivating to the eye.
3. Wild Kratts
This show has a combination of both real life filming, as well as animated versions of what they see as two brothers explore the wilderness. If you or your child are very interested in learning about animal life in an actually very fun and informative way, this show is for you. To this day, I still remember random facts about species or habitats that we never covered in school. This show is such a good way to raise awareness to issues such as poaching, global warming, and environmental crisis in general. The animated parts of this show shows the two brothers and their team of wildlife experts saving animals from evil villains who want to gain money, fame, and fortune off of species both normal and endangered, which symbolizes the issues facing the environment today.
4. Cyberchase
This show helps children learn a lot about math and technical terms, while also showing the importance of teamwork, loyalty, and communication skills. I remember learning a lot about geometry, and just problem solving techniques to situations commonly found in math problems. It is such a good way to test the knowledge of young kids and help them gain an advance in certain math topics and terminology. The setting of this show is also based off of a computer circuit, and helps a lot with the visualization of how a computer works, like the motherboard, the connection, and viruses or glitches (like the villians in the films). To also show 3 kids working to help save their whole environment really goes to show how even at a young age, change can be made by individuals if they put work into it, and are true to their actions and ambitions.
5. The Ruff Ruffman Show
Finally, we have the Ruff Ruffman Show. This show, like Wild Kratts, has both real life film, and animated parts too. The dog, also known as the host of his show, is animated, and tells kids through a screen on set what to do through challenges for prizes. He gives them challenges that face their fears, expand their knowledge, gain insight into the real world, and just help them experience certain things that kids do not normally get the chance to. This show was very fun to watch, as you would always wonder if the contestants would end up failing or persevering through, and you could always see clear themes of teamwork, collaboration, bravery, and open mindedness.