Sid the Science Kid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Sid the Science Kid |
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Sid the Science Kid Title Card
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| Genre | Children's television series Education |
| Created by | The Jim Henson Company |
| Written by | Bradley Zweig |
| Voices of | Drew Massey Alice Dinnean Victor Yerrid Julianne Buescher Donna Kimball |
| Theme music composer | Dena Diamond Mike Himelstein |
| Opening theme | "Sid the Science Kid" |
| Ending theme | "Sid the Science Kid" (instrumental) |
| Composer(s) | Michael Turner Mike Himelstein |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 66 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Brian Henson Lisa Henson Halle Stanford Bradley Zweig |
| Producer(s) | Chris Plourde |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | The Jim Henson Company KCET (2008–13) KOCE-TV (2011–13) |
| Distributor | The Jim Henson Company |
| Release | |
| Original network | PBS Kids |
| Original release | September 1, 2008 – March 25, 2013 |
Sid the Science Kid (also known as Jim Henson's Sid the Science Kid) is an American computer-animated children’s television series on PBS Kids. It aired from September 1, 2008 to March 25, 2013, with a total of 68 half-hour episodes produced over two seasons. The computer generated show is produced by The Jim Henson Company and PBS member KCET in Los Angeles, California using the Henson Digital Puppetry Studio. The show is produced by motion capture which allows puppeteers to voice digitally animated characters in real time.
Production began in the fall of 2008 with 42 half-hour episodes of Sid the Science Kid having been ordered. The series debuted on PBS Kids along with Martha Speaks on September 1, 2008, with a two-year on-air commitment. The original working title for the series was "What's the Big Idea?" and the central character, Sid, was originally named Josh. The series is the second CGI animated show to use the motion capture technique after Donkey Kong Country.
KOCE, the current primary PBS member for the Los Angeles area, began co-producing the show after KCET disaffiliated with PBS on December 31, 2010 (though the station later returned to PBS as a secondary member for the area in 2019).
Contents
Premise
The main character in the show is Sid, an "inquisitive youngster" who uses comedy to tackle questions kids have about basic scientific principles and why things work the way they do. He tries to answer questions and solve problems with the help of his classmates (May, Gerald, and Gabriela), Teacher Susie, and his family (his mother Alice, his father Mort, his Grandma Rose and his baby brother Zeke). In "Hello Doggie," Sid's Grandma adopts a dog from the animal shelter (which she names Philbert – voiced by Bruce Lanoil, motion captured by Daisy the dog).
The conceptual content of Sid is based in national science learning standards, cognitive learning theory, and on the preschool science curriculum, Preschool Pathways to Science.
Each week's episodes are built around a single scientific topic or concept. The first week (episodes 1 – 5) focuses on scientific tools and concepts (such as charts, observation, estimation, and measuring). The second week (episodes 6 – 10) focuses on changes and transformation (including decay, growth, freezing and melting, and the effects of heat). The third week (episodes 11 – 15) focuses on the senses (including touch, smell, sight, taste, and hearing). The fourth week (episodes 16 – 20) focuses on health (including brushing teeth, eating food, sneezing and exercise). The fifth week (episodes 21 – 25) focuses on simple machines (including wheels, inclined planes, levers and pullieys). The sixth week (episodes 26 – 30) focuses on backyard science. The seventh week (episodes 31 – 35) focuses on the human body. The eighth week (episodes 36 – 40) focuses on weather. The Friday shows are designed to review, reinforce and summarize the central concept of the week.
Segments
Breakfast Time
Breakfast Time is when Sid runs down the hall shouting the title. Then his parents Alice or Mort teach him something that has anything to do with the problem.
Looking for my friends
When Sid arrives at school, he goes to the playground to look for his friends May, Gerald, and Gabriela. When he finds each friend, he/she does a "cool move". Then, when everyone found each other, they all dance together.
What's the Big Idea?
What's the Big Idea? is a question that Sid has with anything that has to do something with the problem.
The Sid Survey
The Sid Survey is the segment where Sid asks questions to May, Gerald, and Gabriela.
Rug Time
Rug Time is where Sid shows his friends and his teacher something with the problem.
Super Fab Lab
The Super Fabulous Lab is where the scientists do the lab along with a live-action class (in fast-motion) performing the experiment of the day.
Good Laughternoon
Good Laughternoon features the kids opening panels in a brightly colored playground structure and telling jokes. The format and set borrows heavily from the closing "joke wall" of Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, the Groaning Wall from Square One TV, and "locker jokes" from You Can't Do That on Television, but for a pre-school audience and Sid would end the segment by saying, "Now that's funny!" along with a pre-recorded laughter from his toy microphone. This was cut from PBS Kids Preschool Block airings.
Playtime/Let's Play Pretend
Playtime is when the class finished an experiment, the kids would either play in the classroom or on the playground.
Singing with Susie
Singing with Susie is where teacher Susie sings a song related to the experiment or topic during the end of the school day.
Backseat Driving with Grandma
Backseat Driving with Grandma is where Grandma (Rose) tells a story about when she was little while driving Sid home from school. Sometimes, she drives Gabriela with Sid.
Scientist in the House!
Scientist in the House! is when Sid solves the problem and/or plays with his family after school. Sometimes, Sid would have his play date with Gabriela after school making it "Two Scientists in the House!"
Sid's Super-Duper-Ooper-Schmooper Big Idea!
Sid's Super-Duper-Ooper-Schmooper Big Idea! is where Sid would think about what will he do to solve a problem like the one he had from school before going to bed.
Characters
- Sid (motion captured by Misty Rosas, voiced by Drew Massey) always wished about being a scientist when he grows up. Sid is the most practical character on the show and is often portrayed as a very supportive friend and leading scientist in his group. He got so many questions every single day while at his school after he think questions the night before. His special item is a toy microphone with four different colored buttons. When pressed, the blue button plays the recorded laughter of people, the yellow button plays the recorded applause, the red button makes a cow noise, and the white button records echoes. He wants to know "everything about everything". He enjoys singing and dancing as well. He is a well-noted observer, and possibly the brightest of the group. His daily activities always consist of breakfast, school, seeing his friends, asking his friends questions, addressing the main question of the day to his teacher, do experiments in Super-Fab-Lab, then finally wrapping up with a daily song from the teacher before heading home for the day. Sid's mother is of African descent and mainly does research as noted in every single episode and his father grew up Jewish as noted in the Hanukkah/Christmas/Kwanzaa episode.
- Gabriela (motion captured by John Munro Cameron, voiced by Alice Dinnean) is one of the three best friends Sid got. Unlike her friends, Gabriela is the most sensible character and often comes up with the most reasonable jokes during Good Laughternoon. She is the most authoritative figure of the quartet, often being the leader of the group activities. She is usually the one that likes to come up with playing Pretend, always opting to be a "mommy" parent. She can allegedly read and potentially help with others in her group that don't understand something in a lab or any other academic activity. She rarely comes over to Sid's house to have a play date with him but does more than the other two kids and must have her parent's permission to do so. She has an older brother named Mateo.
- Gerald (motion captured by Alon Williams, voiced by Victor Yerrid) is Sid's airhead best friend. Although he often procrastinates at the start of Rug Time, he's still an amazing person. He has a dog called Chester. He is a very valued character of the quartet, perhaps the most vivid character of the group, often being the life and soul of activities. A running gag is that he is always trying to be funny, but fails miserably.
- May (motion captured by Dana Michael Woods, voiced by Julianne Buescher) is one of Sid's best friends, marked by her striped stockings and fairness. She is an Asian that suffers from really poor far vision. She is one of the friendliest characters in the group. She is very polite and is characterized by her charming, courteous ways. May often sympathizes with everyone, appreciating even inanimate objects like decayed pumpkins and brown, mushy bananas that exist in reality. May has a cat named Mooshu, and is smarter than her other three friends.
- Susie (motion captured by Sonya Leslie, voiced by Donna Kimball) is the Mexican-accented teacher at Sid's school. She begins the day with "Rug Time," where she calls her students over to sit in a circle and ask them if they have anything to share with the class. Usually the theme that gets everyone's attention is what was discussed during "Sid's Survey" and what Sid was thinking about earlier in the day. She demonstrates the experiments with her class each and every day that her students are there that follows Sid's main question theme. She sings to the children during the "Singing With Susie" segment at the end of the school day.
- Mort (motion captured by John Munro Cameron, voiced by Victor Yerrid) is Sid's father. Mort works in construction and often relates Sid's observations to his work experiences.
- Alice (motion captured by Sonya Leslie, voiced by Alice Dinnean) is Sid's African-American mother. Alice is a website designer and children's computer game developer (Seen in Episode 58 "The Amazing Computer Science Tool!"). She also frequently searches up the web for Sid to answer his main question before dropping him off for school. Her name is probably an allusion to her voice actress.
- Zeke (motion captured by Alon Williams, voiced by Donna Kimball) is Sid's baby brother. He's almost 1 year old and doesn't know anything yet although he'll know more and more as he gets older and enters preschool.
- Rose (Sid's Grandma) (motion captured by Dana Michael Woods, voiced by Julianne Buescher and Donna Kimball) is Sid's paternal grandmother and Mort's mother. She likes to tell Sid stories about herself when she was younger while driving Sid home from school.
- Dr. Rosalinda Cordova (motion captured by Michelan Sisti, voiced by America Ferrera) is Gabriela's mother. Her job is working at the Science Center that kids often visit. She helps to explain the various exhibits at the center and how they relate to the school lessons the children are having. On occasion, she will visit the other preschool students at school and collaborate with Teacher Susie. She is very proud of her daughter Gabriela for doing well in school.
Episodes
List of Sid the Science Kid episodes
Sid the Science Kid: The Movie (2013)
Sid the Science Kid: The Movie premiered on PBS Kids on March 25, 2013. It featured the original voice cast of the show, with special guest voice Christopher Lloyd as Dr. Bonanodon. In the movie, Sid and his friends enter a contest and win a trip to a new science museum in town. They are allowed inside the museum before it officially opens to the public. Along the way, they meet some new friends; such as Yang Yang, Niu Niu, and BobbyBot. However, one of the robots malfunctions, causing the museum to be in total chaos and havoc, putting the grand opening of the museum in jeopardy. It's up to Sid and his friends to save the museum before it opens up. This also serves as the series finale of Sid the Science Kid.
Awards
"Save the Stump!" won in the Children's Programming category Saturday at the 26th Genesis Awards, presented by the Humane Society of the United States. Additionally, the series has received a total of six Daytime Emmy Award nominations and a TCA Award nomination.
