What is quite fascinating about Nickelodeon’s new TV animation series for children is not only its multi-cultural premise. Its facility to engage young viewers in relevant American and global educational themes is succinctly supplemented by its ability to impart positive values through traditional Chinese culture.
Kai-lan is the show’s main character, an adorably cute Chinese-American girl with a diverse group of other preschooler friends and playmates. The episode I recently stumbled upon brings the young ensemble together as an aspiring band that is—complete with their DJ scratching and hip-hop moves—looking to participate in a musical contest.
Hoho, the designate free-lance vocalist unfortunately faces a writer’s block. Finding words that rhyme isn’t too easy, he realizes. After several futile attempts, encouragement comes in the form of the proverb “try, try again.” Kai-lan finally saves the day by inspiring her budding-artist audience to greater lyrical creativity: help identify objects in the scene that are oblivious to Hoho.
Kudos to Nickelodeon for promoting multicultural understanding from this optical (“being bicultural and bilingual is being American”)! My inner youth harmonizes with Kai-lan’s resulting exultation, "You make my heart feel super happy."
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