Edutainment Show: Difference between revisions

{{quote|''"Well, Itchy & Scratchy are gone, but here's a cartoon that tries to make learning ''fun''! ...Sorry about this kids, but stay tuned; we've got some real good toy commercials coming right up, I ''swear''".''|'''Krusty the Clown''', |''[[The Simpsons (Animationanimation)|The Simpsons]]''}}

As the trope's title implies, the [['''Edutainment Show]]''' combines educational content with entertainment. As such, most shows in this genre are aimed at children; of course, some more mature fare may fit this definition, such as ''[[Myth BustersMythBusters]]''. [[Cooking Show|Cooking Shows]]s, [[Science Show|Science Shows]]s, [[Nature Show|Nature Shows]]s, and other [[TV Documentary]] formats (especially [[Docu Drama]] programs) may also count, if they are entertaining enough. Additionally, the definition has become somewhat blurred - these days networks often pass children's programs in particular as "edutainment," when their only actual educational content is pro-social themes, such as "work together as a team", "[["Reading Is Cool" Aesop]]" or "be a good friend to others."

Many [[Edutainment Show|'''Edutainment Shows]]''' appear on PBS, the most famous example being ''[[Sesame Street (TV)|Sesame Street]]''. Nickelodeon also has had quite a few in their "[[Nick Jr.]]" block, such as ''[[BluesBlue's Clues (Animation)|Blues Clues]]'' and ''[[Dora the Explorer (Animation)|Dora the Explorer]]'', as do specialized fact-oriented cable networks as The Learning Channel, Noggin, the many Discovery channels, the History Channel, and Animal Planet.

In the United States, since 1990, networks are required to have 3three hours of educational material a week; the tag "E/I" (for "Educational/Informative") was created to denote such shows (though in the case of stations carrying ''[[Saved Byby the Bell]]'', the rules are susceptible to [[Loophole Abuse]] if [[An Aesop]] is fit into the show in just the right way, and they can count as E/I). Now you know what the [[And Knowing Is Half the Battle]] is referring to.

* [[BluesBlue's Clues]]

* [[Brainiac: Science Abuse]]... sometimes.{{context}}

* [[Brain POP (Website)|Brain POP]]

* [[Bubble Guppies (Animation)|Bubble Guppies]]

* [[Caillou (Animation)|Caillou]]

* [[Captain Planet and Thethe Planeteers]]

* [[Classic Disney Shorts (Animation)|Classic Disney Shorts]]: Some [[Donald Duck]] shorts of the mid-to-late 1950s had an educational bend, one of the most notable of which was ''Donald in Mathmagicland'', in which Donald, assisted by the True Spirit of Adventure, shows how "there's a lot more to mathematics than just two times two."

* [[Clifford the Big Red Dog (Literature)|Clifford the Big Red Dog]]

* [[Conquest (TV series)|Conquest]]

* [[Cosmic Quantum Ray (Animation)|Cosmic Quantum Ray]]

* [[Cyberchase (Animation)|Cyberchase]]

* [[Deadliest Warrior]] gets into the nitty -gritty of history: wars, different warriors, how they fought, and their weapons. Controversy or no, they dig up the most brutal aspects of humanity and pit them together in all their bloody glory.

* [[Didou]]: Step-by-step instructions on drawing various items.

* [[Dinosaur Train (Animation)|Dinosaur Train]]

* [[Doc McStuffins (Animation)|Doc McStuffins]]

* [[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]: As odd as it seems in retrospect, this show started out as edutainment. The show was originally meant to alternate between stories set in the past that would teach kids history, and those set in the future, or on other planets, that would teach science (hence the first two companions being a history teacher and a science teacher). Then the Daleks showed up, became massively popular, and changed the emphasis of the show to scary monsters rather than education.

* ''[[Dora the Explorer (Animation)|Dora the Explorer]]''

** Its spin-off ''[[Go, Diego, Go (Animation)|Go Diego Go!]]''

* [[Dragon Tales (Animation)|Dragon Tales]]

* [[The Electric Company]]: Both the 1971 version and the 2009 version, though the 1970s version is more well-liked/remembered. Given that the 70s version managed to license Spider-Man and features [[Morgan Freeman]], and managed to make both of them [[Narm|Narmy]]y, being remembered is guaranteed.

* [[Fat Albert and The Cosby Kids (Animation)|Fat Albert and Thethe Cosby Kids]]: A 1970s cartoon that does a good job teaching life lessons to kids.

* [[Fetch! Withwith Ruff Ruffman]]

* ''[[Fireman Sam (Animation)|Fireman Sam]]''.

* [[Food Detectives]]: An attempt to do for foodstuffs what [[Myth BustersMythBusters]] does for high explosives.

* [[Franklin (Literature)|Franklin]]

* [[Frannys Feet (Animation)|FrannysFranny's Feet]]

* ''[[The Fresh Beat Band (TV)|The Fresh Beat Band]]''

* [[The Funny Company (Animation)|The Funny Company]]

* [[Histeria (Animation)|Histeria!]]

* ''[[Horrible Histories (TV series)|Horrible Histories]]''

* [[How Its Made (TV)|How ItsIt's Made]]

* [[Humf (Animation)|Humf]]

* [[Its a Big Big World (TV)|ItsIt's a Big Big World]]

* [[Jake and Thethe NeverlandNever Pirates (Animation)|Jake and The NeverlandLand Pirates]]

* [[Jakers! the Adventures of Piggley Winks (Animation)|Jakers theThe Adventures of Piggley Winks]]

* [[James Mays Man Lab (TV)|James MaysMay's Man Lab]]

* [[Jay Jay the Jet Plane (Animation)|Jay Jay the Jet Plane]]

* [[Jelly Jamm (Animation)|Jelly Jamm]]

* [[Jurassic Fight Club (TV)|Jurassic Fight Club]]: Because [[EverythingsEverything's Better Withwith Dinosaurs]]

* [[Kratts Creatures (TV)|Kratts' Creatures]]

* [[Lamb Chops Play Along (TV)|Lamb ChopsChop's Play Along]]

* [[Leap FrogLeapFrog (Animationanimation)|Leap Frog]] Learning DVDs.

* [[The Lebrons (Webweb Animationanimation)|The Lebrons]]: A modern daynew-millennium ''Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids''.

* [[Liberty's Kids (Animation)|Liberty's Kids]]: A surprisingly sophisticated show that teaches about [[The American Revolution]].

* [[Lift -Off]]

* [[Little Bear (Literature)|Little Bear]]

* [[Little People (TV series)|Little People]]

* [[Little Einsteins (Animation)|Little Einsteins]]

* [[Madeline (Literature)|Madeline]] (on the moral side only, show contains lots of factual mistakes)

* [[The Magic School Bus (Literature)|The Magic School Bus]]

* [[Mama Mirabelles Home Movies (Animation)|Mama MirabellesMirabelle's Home Movies]]

* [[Martha Speaks (Animation)|Martha Speaks]]

* [[Maya and Miguel (Animation)|Maya and Miguel]]

* [[Mentors (TV series)|Mentors]]

* [[Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (Animation)|Mickey Mouse Clubhouse]]

* [[Mister Rogers Neighborhood (TV)|Mister Rogers' Neighborhood]]

* [[My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic (Animation)|My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic]] is of the pro-social type - although occasionally larger words or terms that the younger audience probably won't understand, such as "tardy" or "hibernation", are defined (in-context). InteresitnglyInterestingly, the first season carried an E/I rating, but the second season has dropped it.

* [[Myth BustersMythBusters]] spells out how the myths are tested, so you can learn quite a bit from that show, in the middle of [[Stuff Blowing Up]].

* [[Ni Hao, Kai Lan (Animation)|Ni Hao Kai -Lan]]

* [[PB and J Otter (Animation)|PB and &J Otter]]

* [[Penn and& Teller: Bullshit!]]

* [[Penn and Teller Tell Aa Lie]]

* [[PJ Katies Farm (TV)|PJ KatiesKatie's Farm]]

* [[Pororo the Little Penguin (Animation)|Pororo the Little Penguin]]

* [[Postman Pat (Animation)|Postman Pat]]

** [[Guess With Jess (Animation)|Guess Withwith Jess]]

* [[Power Rangers (Franchise)|Power Rangers]], perhaps less so nowadays, was very edutainment back in the [[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers|Mighty Morphin]] days.

* [[The Puzzle Place (TV)|The Puzzle Place]]

* [[Pythagoras Switch]] (''Pitagora Suichi''): A show much like ''Sesame Street'', from Japan, known for its [[Eyecatch|Eye Catches]] featuring intricate [[Rube Goldberg Device|Rube Goldberg Devices]]s.

* [[Sagwa the Chinese Siamese Cat (Animation)|Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat]]

* [[Schoolhouse Rock (Animation)|Schoolhouse Rock]]: Animated shorts, set to music, that would play between [[Saturday Morning Cartoon|Saturday morning cartoons]] on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]].

* [[Science Court (Animation)|Science Court]]

* The newly started [[Sci Show]], hosted by [[Vlog Brothers|Hank Green]].

* ''[[Screenwipe]]'', and its spin-off, ''[[Newswipe (TV)|Newswipe]]''.

* [[Die Sendung Mitmit Der Maus (TV)|Die Sendung Mit Derder Maus]]: The most notable German language example.

* [[Sesame Street (TV)|Sesame Street]]: It's probably the longest Edutainment Show that's still currently running.

** [[ElmosElmo's World]]

* [[Sid the Science Kid (Animation)|Sid the Science Kid]]

* [[Spot the Dog (Animation)|Spot the Dog]]

* [[Storm Chasers (TV)|Storm Chasers]]

* [[Storylords (TV)|Storylords]]

* [[Super Why (Animation)|Super Why!]]

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1312022/ [Time Warp]]

* [[Todays Special (TV)|TodaysToday's Special]]

* [[Team Umizoomi (Animation)|Team Umizoomi]]

* [[Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales (Animation)|Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales]] is an early example of this trope, being created in response to the "TV is a vast wasteland" speech.

* [[Thomas the Tank Engine (Animation)|Thomas the Tank Engine]] became this after Series 7, sadly for some veteran fans.

* [[Through the Dragons Eye (TV)|Through the Dragons Eye]]

* [[Veggie Tales (Animation)|Veggie Tales]]

* [[Where On Earth Is Carmen Sandiego (Animation)|Where Onon Earth Is Carmen Sandiego?]] (based on the series of [[Edutainment Game|Edutainment Games]]s)

* [[Wild Kratts (Animation)|Wild Kratts]]

* [[Wimzies House (TV)|WimziesWimzie's House]]

* [[Word Girl (Animation)|Word Girl]]

* [[Young Indiana Jones (TV)|Young Indiana Jones]]: Taught kids about history and people who changed the world through the young eyes of everyone's favorite [[Indiana Jones|whip-wielding hero]].

* [[Zinnia Jones (Web Video)|Zinnia Jones]]

* [[Zoboomafoo (TV)|Zoboomafoo]]

* [[Zoom (TV series)|Zoom]]

* [[Zula Patrol (Animation)|Zula Patrol]]

{{quote| '''[[The Stinger|Statler:]]''' Say, Waldorf, do you think this show counts as edutainment?<br />

'''[[Statler and Waldorf|Waldorf:]]''' Don't see why not. After all, it encourages people to quit watching and read books!<br />

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