Smart preschool fun; some clips require cable subscription.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Products & Purchases
very little
Full episodes, shorter clips are ad-free; kids won't see many plugs for Nick Jr. character-related products.
Positive Messages
some
Home to variety of kids' TV shows, so messages vary. Most shows attempt to have a positive, educational message.
Educational Value
some
Kids can learn about basic math skills, such as counting and patterns, and word recognition, as well as related skills such as spelling and reading through games. Videos that feature closed-captioning also can provide reading practice. To find out which skills each activity involves, click on the information icon in the upper right-hand corner, which provides more information about the suggested age and intent. NickJr.com gives kids a safe site to watch kid-friendly content, while they learn about, for example, reading and math.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that NickJr.com is a top-notch site for preschoolers and up, especially those who can't read quite yet. Personal information doesn't have to be entered, unless parents are signing a child up for the site's free Birthday Club. Adults then need to enter their birth date first to confirm their age and are asked to enter their child's first name, birth date, gender, and age to set up a birthday phone call.
Black sunshine commercial is against every other race
You’re brainwashing my child whose brain is not developed yet with your Black Sunshine crap!! Im a very concerned parent and I’m infuriated with content on Nick Jr that I saw that has been affecting my 3yr old daughter and her mental health. I am speaking about the five minute long black sunshine commercial That broadcasts daily I cannot imagine the kind of outlash that would occur if you were to broadcast my white sunshine Asian sunshine or any other race sunshine why is black sunshine OK? Not only does this commercial exclude any other race but it has also directly impacts my child’s mental health and well-being. Every morning she apologizes to me that she is not a black sunshine, I demand this commercial be taken down immediately. the content Nick Jr is promoting in this commercial Has left my poor three-year-old daughter feeling so inadequate about herself that she feels the need to apologize to me on a daily basis that she is not a black sunshine and every morning she asks me why is she not a black sunshine? I expect immediate action to be taken for this matter before I escalate this even further. I expect this commercial to be discontinued immediately along with an apology broadcasted to all the other races that were excluded from Nick jr racism. And I expect my daughter to be compensated for the trauma and mental abuse that Nick jr has inflicted on her poor little heart. Nothing is more devastating than having to explain to my 3yr old that she is a sunshine and she is enough and it doesn’t matter what color she is and all because Nick jr played a 10 min commercial daily saying I’m a black sunshine shine, shine my black sunshine. I will take this to every branch of the Internet and expect my daughter is compensated or I will take matters into my own hands. Looking forward to see how Nick Jr plans on dealing with this travesty they have brought into my life, and for all of the emotional turmoil they inflicted on my 3yr old daughter
Sincerely,
Enraged Parent
I humbly wish to take your puppy patrol and their lives and your ice cream on the dick
What’s It About?
NICKJR.COM provides a variety of online games and videos for preschoolers. Kids can view some free full episodes of Nick Jr. shows, such as Dora the Explorer and Team Umizoomi; parents need to set up access through their cable provider's website to watch other episodes. Some games provide math and word skill practice. Parents can find additional printable and online learning activities on Nick's Beyond the Backpack site.
There are very few preschool-targeted sites that rival NickJr.com's quality content. The site, which was recently designed to be accessible on a desktop computer, mobile phone, or tablet, features games that are fun, age-appropriate, and educational, with obvious tie-ins to popular Nick Jr. TV characters. The site's video library also includes a number of clips, including some full episodes, that highlight concepts such as recycling. Random letters also are listed among the site's game and video options; they offer a word example when kids click on them.
Parents can view additional information about the appropriate age and educational intent for videos or games by clicking on the "i" icon on the screen. Instructions are generally well-explained, and characters generally say supportive things, but kids don't always get a lot of feedback when they play to help them improve on future tries. Including more input would help. It'd also be great if parents could easily find content that supports a specific learning concept to help them pick the best activities for their child. Adults can currently sort items by show or type but will have to read the additional information listed for each item to find out what kids will learn. That said, there's plenty of beneficial content on NickJr.com to help preschoolers boost their word and math skills -- and they'll also find a number of just-for-fun videos and games they'll likely be happy to watch and play.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about advertising and the effects it has on them and on their kids. How can you tell when a site is trying to sell to kids or their parents?
Website Details
Subjects:
Language & Reading
:
following directions,
letter or word recognition,
vocabulary,
Math
:
counting,
patterns,
shapes,
Arts
:
drawing
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Dana Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
