3 ms·

I don’t think it would make terribly compelling children’s television to just show the children misbehaving and the dad disciplining them.

gambiting 3y ago
Bluey is firmly in the category of shows for 2-4 year olds, they have to be educational at this point, I'm sorry but that's my firm stance as a parent. There will be plenty of time for pure entertainment where bad behaviour doesn't get corrected later - at this stage a 3 year old can't tell good from wrong, and the message the show sends categorically cannot be "let's punch dad in the stomach because it's funny". Look at Peppa pig(which has a whole host of its own issues, but whatever) - any time Peppa and her brother do something wrong they get an explanation why it was wrong, how it could have hurt or made someone else sad, they apologise and sing/dance about it - most of the time it teaches a good lesson while still being amusing for little kids.
- lotsofpulp 3y ago
  Bluey and her sister are 6 and 4 years old at the start of the show, now 7 and 5. I don’t think the show is made with 2 year olds in mind. Maybe 3.5 and up, but a lot of the concepts are for the 5+ kids in my opinion.
  - wharvle 3y ago
    Good children's programming often presents characters somewhat older (in affect, if not truly in age, e.g. Big Bird) than the target audience, to act as role models. You don't want a typical 3-year-old to look to a typical 3-year-old as an example for what to aspire to, you want them to look at well-developing 4-, 5-, and 6-year olds. This works well anyway, since children often look up to older kids and are interested in what they get up to.
    - QuercusMax 3y ago
      This is correct. Kids generally don't like watching shows for or starring "babies" (really kids their own age) unless they're very small.
    - lotsofpulp 3y ago
      Sure, but the content of Bluey is not going to understandable to a 2 year old. I would guess 3 is when some basic understanding starts, but 3.5 to be safe. In my experience, below 3.5 or so, more sing song-y and basic repetitious stuff is digestible. Bluey episodes have a plot and lots of dialogue that has to be followed.
      - wharvle 3y ago
        That... very much depends on the 2-year-old. Maybe true on average, IDK.
      - gambiting 3y ago
        >> I would guess 3 is when some basic understanding starts My son is 2.5 and he absolutely understands what's happening in cartoons. He will comment on action saying clear things like "daddy he hit him in the head!" And then you have to pause it and actually explain it's not nice and you shouldn't do that. I wish shows clearly aimed at small children didn't have those moments.
        lotsofpulp 3y ago
        That is my point. Bluey’s stories may require showing a bad action, but a too young toddler will not have the capability to understand the broader context and resolution.

gambiting 3y ago

Bluey is firmly in the category of shows for 2-4 year olds, they have to be educational at this point, I'm sorry but that's my firm stance as a parent. There will be plenty of time for pure entertainment where bad behaviour doesn't get corrected later - at this stage a 3 year old can't tell good from wrong, and the message the show sends categorically cannot be "let's punch dad in the stomach because it's funny". Look at Peppa pig(which has a whole host of its own issues, but whatever) - any time Peppa and her brother do something wrong they get an explanation why it was wrong, how it could have hurt or made someone else sad, they apologise and sing/dance about it - most of the time it teaches a good lesson while still being amusing for little kids.

lotsofpulp 3y ago
Bluey and her sister are 6 and 4 years old at the start of the show, now 7 and 5. I don’t think the show is made with 2 year olds in mind. Maybe 3.5 and up, but a lot of the concepts are for the 5+ kids in my opinion.
- wharvle 3y ago
  Good children's programming often presents characters somewhat older (in affect, if not truly in age, e.g. Big Bird) than the target audience, to act as role models. You don't want a typical 3-year-old to look to a typical 3-year-old as an example for what to aspire to, you want them to look at well-developing 4-, 5-, and 6-year olds. This works well anyway, since children often look up to older kids and are interested in what they get up to.
  - QuercusMax 3y ago
    This is correct. Kids generally don't like watching shows for or starring "babies" (really kids their own age) unless they're very small.
  - lotsofpulp 3y ago
    Sure, but the content of Bluey is not going to understandable to a 2 year old. I would guess 3 is when some basic understanding starts, but 3.5 to be safe. In my experience, below 3.5 or so, more sing song-y and basic repetitious stuff is digestible. Bluey episodes have a plot and lots of dialogue that has to be followed.
    - wharvle 3y ago
      That... very much depends on the 2-year-old. Maybe true on average, IDK.
    - gambiting 3y ago
      >> I would guess 3 is when some basic understanding starts My son is 2.5 and he absolutely understands what's happening in cartoons. He will comment on action saying clear things like "daddy he hit him in the head!" And then you have to pause it and actually explain it's not nice and you shouldn't do that. I wish shows clearly aimed at small children didn't have those moments.
      - lotsofpulp 3y ago
        That is my point. Bluey’s stories may require showing a bad action, but a too young toddler will not have the capability to understand the broader context and resolution.