Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures
Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures | |
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![]() The title card of the series. | |
Genre | Children's Animated cartoon |
Opening theme | "Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures" |
Country of origin | ![]() |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 46 |
Production | |
Running time | Approx. 28 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | PBS |
Release | January 03, 2008 – Present |
Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures is a slice of life cartoon intended for young children. The show premiered on January 19, 2008 on most PBS Kids stations. The show follows a girl named Betsy as she starts out her school years. The series premiere shows Betsy facing the uncertainty of her first day of school and the adjustments she must make as she meets her new teacher and classmates, encounters unfamiliar rules and routines, and finds herself in an entirely new environment. Subsequent episodes show Betsy's excitement and sense of adventure as she adapts to the new experiences of kindergarten.
Similar to other PBS Kids shows like Caillou, and Clifford the Big Red Dog, villains are completely absent in this educational real life adventure story. Any misbehavior from Betsy and/or the other children are there to instruct children, not to make them "evil" or "antagonizing." This methodology of children's programming is the polar opposite to some preschool shows like Noonbory and the Super Seven in addition to most shows for older children like Sonic X and Winx Club that include villains in their storyline (thus creating a clear line between good and evil that preschoolers cannot understand for themselves).
At the end of the final season, all the kids finally graduate from Kindergarten in the hopes of seeing each other in the first grade. They graduate at the beginning of episode titled The Birth Part 1. Betsy's Kindergarten Adventures has been renewed for a second season [1]
Characters
- Mrs. Carl O'Connor (voiced by Sally Struthers), the kindergarten teacher
- Mr. Carl O'Connor (voiced by Kevin Clash, Fred Stoller, and Tom Kenny), the kindergarten teacher's husband
- Bus Driver Bob (voiced by Fred Willard), the loyal bus driver
- Mr. Richard Warner (voiced by Tom Bosley), the principal at Lakeshore Elementary School
- Farmer Thomas Warner (voiced by Jorge Diaz), Richard Warner's brother and the owner of Warner Farms
- Betsy's mother (voiced by Bess Armstrong), a homemaker who takes care of her daughter Betsy and her baby son Kevin. She is a stay-at-home mother and does not seem to have any outside job.
- Betsy's father (voiced by Richard Steven Horvitz), an airplane pilot who speaks to Betsy in "airplane-talk." He appears to be the family's sole breadwinner.
- Betsy (voiced by Daveigh Chase), the title character of the show
- Scott (voiced by Richard Steven Horvitz), a smart boy with glasses who is very interested in science
- Billy (voiced by Nancy Cartwright), who enjoys playing in the dirt and is Betsy's best friend
- Molly (voiced by Vicki Lewis), an elitist girl
- Sarah (voiced by Cree Summer), a girl who excels at nearly all sports
- Kenji (voiced by Nancy Cartwright), an intelligent boy who enjoys dancing
- Maria (voiced by Cree Summer), a quiet and artistic girl
- Kevin (voiced by Nancy Cartwright), Betsy's baby brother
- Newton (voiced by Kath Soucie), who shares similar interests to Scott and Kenji
- Gracie (voiced by Kathryn Mullen), Betsy's family's dog
- Kitty (voiced by Pam Arciero), Betsy's family's cat
- Sydney (voiced by Anthony Asbury), the pet salamander that belongs to Mrs. O'Connor's kindergarten class
Settings
- Albright's department store where Molly hangs out and Betsy bought her mother a hair pin for $1.75; she earned that money by selling lemonade
- Warner Farms - where the principal's brother raises livestock
- Lakeshore Elementary School - Betsy's school where she attends kindergarten
- Lakeshore Elementary School's library where students borrow books for a week
- the school yard of Lakeshore Elementary School - it has served as a place to hold Mrs. O'Connor's carnival as well as a place for the kindergarten students to play during recess
- Betsy's house - where she lives with her stay-at-home mother and her airplane pilot father
- Lakeshore[2] - where Betsy, her friends, and family live
- the museum where Betsy and her school friends went to in the first episode
Seasons
Season one
- "How It All Began" ; "Lost and Found" (01/03/08) (Series Premiere)
- "Treasure Hunt" ; "Betsy In Charge" (01/12/08)
- "Election Day" ; "Happy To Be Me" (01/19/08)
- "The Farmyard Field Trip" ; "Betsy's Green Thumb" (01/26/08)
- "Boots, Boots, Boots" ; "Team Player" (02/02/08)
- "Camping Out" ; "The Tooth Chart" (02/09/08)
- "The Spy Who Taught Me" ; "Show and Tell" (02/16/08)
- "Betsy Buys a Vowel" ; "Follow These Directions" (03/01/08)
- "Frisky Business" ; "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow" (03/08/08)
- "Borrowed Time" ; "Happy Earth Day" (03/15/08)
- "Tickets, Please" ; "Have You Got the Time" (03/22/08)
- "Growing, Growing Gone" ; "The Treasure of the Sierra Betsy" (03/29/08)
- "Introducing the Post Office" ; "A Berry Sore Stomach" (04/05/08)
- "Lyrtle the Turtle" ; "The Great Gingerbread Man Mystery" (04/12/08)
- "Molly's First Bike Ride" ; "An Awfully Frightening Lightning" (07/05/08)
- "Newton the New Kid" ; "A Colorful Encounter" (07/12/08)
- "A Whole Lotta Hot Air" ; "The Fire Department" (07/19/08)
- "Responsibillities" ; "Rules of the Road" (07/26/08)
- "To Tree or Not to Tree" ; "Something Fishy" (12/13/08)
- "The Police Department" ; "A Visit From the Doctor" (12/20/08)
- "Homework Rules" ; "Bread and Butterflies" (12/27/08)
- "All Washed Up" ; "Mrs. O' Connor's Space Rangers" (1/3/09)
- "Manners Please" ; "Mystery at Lakeshore Farm" (1/10/09)
- "Big and Little" ; "Computer Fun" (01/17/09)
- "Making Instruments" ; "Dinosaur Dynasty" (01/24/09)
- "When I Grow Up" ; "Tell Me a Story" (01/31/09) (Season Finale)
Season two
- "Take Your Time" ; "Betsy is Late for School" (2010) (Season Premiere)
- "Imagine Time" ; "Mom's Trip" (2010)
- "Betsy's New Computer" ; "Science Club" (2010)
- "Basketball" ; "New Baby" (2010)
- "Game Show Rules" ; "Home on the Range" (2010)
- "Meeting Time" ; "Pet Day" (2010)
- "At the Supermarket" ; "Tummy Trouble" (2010)
- "Grandparents Day" ; "Restaurant Business" (2010)
- "Family Time" ; "Billy's Big Oops" (2010)
- "High School Memories" ; "The Best Moment" (2010)
- "Skateboarding Lessons" ; "Ice Cream" (2010)
- "New Friend" ; "Lessons Work" (2010)
- "Marine Time" ; "School Dance" (2010)
- "Wrong Bus" ; "Betsy's Journal" (2010)
- "Favorite Song" ; "Accused" (2010)
- "Running Away" ; "New Job" (2010)
- "Problems" ; "New Driver" (2010)
- "TV Trouble" ; "Sewer Trip" (2010)
- "The Birth Part 1" (2010)
- "The Birth Part 2" (2010) (Season Finale)