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Website review by Mieke VanderBorght, Common Sense Education | Updated March 2012

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood

Name: Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Item: Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
Rating: 4
Author: Mieke VanderBorght

Learn to love and know yourself, others, and the world around you

Learning rating

Editorial review by Common Sense Education

Community rating

Based on 4 reviews

Privacy rating

Not yet rated Expert evaluation by Common Sense

Grades

Pre-K–1 This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.

Subjects & Skills

English Language Arts, Creativity, Character & SEL, Critical Thinking

Great for

SEL

Take a look inside

5 images

Kids explore items in Mr Roger’s living room or choose to watch videos or play games.

In the kitchen, kids can explore or link to games or the Neighborhood of Make Believe.

Kids can create drawings, tell a story, or interact with the puppets and other characters in the Neighborhood of Make Believe.

Games available range from creation to body movement to letter exploration.

A body movement game that gets kids up and moving around – and learning to control their bodies.

Pros: Its positive message encourages love of self and others, as well as a true curiosity about the world.

Cons: Activity offerings are a bit limited and site navigation isn’t always clear, especially for kids exploring the site without an adult.

Bottom Line: Warm, loving messages delivered with Mr. Rogers' typical calm, gentle style make this site a great launching pad for explorations of social/emotional development.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood would be best used as a springboard for class discussions on important preschool issues and feelings -- for example, how everybody is special and unique. Have kids learn Mr. Rogers’ songs, discuss what they mean, and sing them together. Show the class "How People Make Things" videos to help teach kids about items they use in their everyday life, or visit Mr. Rogers' kitchen and then make a simple recipe together as a class. Kids can complete some of the art activities on their own and then print their creations. Or, try "Make a Story," which lets children pick some images and use them to tell their own story. The accompanying parent/teacher website also has a wide selection of ideas for classroom activities -- check it out.

What Is It?

PBS KIDS' Mister Rogers' Neighborhood is an interactive online extension of the classic and much-loved television show. Kids navigate through Mr. Rogers' iconic house, where they can explore the living room or kitchen (e.g., open the front door, look at the ever-changing contents inside a box), watch video clips, or listen to songs. Videos are of field trips to places like the dentist, or features on "How People Make Things," like crayons. Songs, some of which also include video, focus on preschool subjects like “What Do You Do with the Mad that You Feel?” Of course, the classic “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” is also available. Kids can also visit the Neighborhood of Make Believe, where they interact with puppets or use their imaginations to create things, tell a story, or build their own unique neighborhood.

Is It Good for Learning?

The theme of teaching kids to love and appreciate themselves, others, and their world abounds on this welcoming site. Kids will have fun interacting with loveable characters, exploring the familiar (to those who watch the TV show) house, and seeing Mr. Rogers' things for themselves; you can open the closet door and see his sweaters and sneakers inside.

There aren’t many activities, though they do cover a wide range: from creation (making a drawing) and exploring (opening alphabet doors) to watching and listening (videos and songs), making social connections (sending an e-card), and doing (making a recipe). Kids will get the most out of the site when they visit it with a grown-up who uses it as a launching pad for discussion and offline activity. Each activity includes information about learning goals and importance for development. For instance, a stop light game in which kids learn to control their bodies has them clap fast at a green light, slowly at a yellow light, and stop clapping at a red light. More activities like this would give the site more even substance.

Learning Rating

Overall Rating

Engagement Would it motivate students and hold their interest? Is it visually appealing? Would it inspire teachers to try something new or change their instruction?

This lovingly rendered virtual version of the TV show will please fans of all ages. Beloved puppets are now interactive cartoon characters, while old clips from the show play inside an Etch-A-Sketch frame.

Pedagogy Does the tool help teachers promote a more student-centered experience? Will students gain conceptual understanding or think critically? Does it deepen teachers’ pedagogical thinking?

Kids learn in a caring and friendly setting. Exploration, make believe, videos, songs, creation tools, and tips for discussion contribute to reaching learning goals of developing an appreciation of self, others, and the surrounding world.

Support Can students and teachers get assistance when they need it? Is it created with people of different abilities and backgrounds in mind? Is learning reinforced and extended beyond the digital experience?

There are wonderful explanations for why each activity is relevant or important, along with suggestions for offline extension activities. The site might be a little confusing to navigate at first, especially for an audience of very young users.

Common Sense reviewer

Mieke VanderBorght Researcher

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Community Rating

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Featured review by
Kristen V. , Classroom teacher

Classroom teacher

Tussing Elementary School
Reynoldsburg, United States

Great site for early childhood classrooms!

There are lots of great parts to this site to use as teaching tools. When left to choose what they'd like to do on the site, my students usually just watch the videos. I also feel that when given the choice, they choose the Daniel Tiger site instead, because they are more familiar with him and his stories. This is a great way to keep Mister Roger's memory and his lessons alive for generations to come though!

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