Ukulele in Children's TV

I have mentioned my 4-year-old daughter on here before. She was watching one of her favorite TV shows yesterday called Pinky Dinky Doo on a cable station called Noggin. The title character tells made up stories about things going on in her life. There are two stories per episode, and each one contains a different word of the day. The word of the day in the second story was ukulele.

It turned out that Pinky's pet guinea pig plays ukulele. He wrote a song about being friends. Everyone loved it and wanted him to do a concert. It went to his head, he grabbed an electric guitar and wrote a song about himself. No one liked it. Pinky told him he should get his ukulele back and sing about friendship again.

I thought this was a great little story putting the ukulele in a very favorable light for the preschool set. It also reinforced my daughters interest in the instrument.

You can find more about Pinky Dinky Doo at Noggin. There is a picture of Mr. Guinea Pig here that you or your kids, can print and color. There is video available of the show there, but I couldn't find this particular episode, however the audio is available in the Podcast you can from the Noggin site.

I know there are others on this board with children, so I thought you might all enjoy this.

I was just listening to the podcast and realized a couple of things, so I thought I might head off a couple of comments before they start.

1. No the ukulele isn't really a little guitar as they say, and it depicted in the PDF I pointed to. I know that, but this is directed at the 3,4,5 year old set. So give them credit for presenting the instrument even if they are a little loose about it.

2. They do not use the proper Hawaiin pronunciation of OO-ku-lay-lay, but give them a little break there too.

YESSSS!!!! I often, I mean, my daughter often watches Noggin. I've seen that episode a couple times. I mean, my daughter told me about that episode....

delostech said:

1. No the ukulele isn't really a little guitar as they say, and it depicted in the PDF I pointed to. I know that, but this is directed at the 3,4,5 year old set. So give them credit for presenting the instrument even if they are a little loose about it.

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I also know his is for the preschool set, but I gotta say, I think that you're over-literalizing the simile.

The exact text on the PDF is "UKULELE / It's like a little guitar."

It's not saying that the ukulele is a little guitar, it's pointing to similarity by saying that they have points in common.

I could likewise say that my cat is like a little tiger. My cat isn't a tiger-- he's a normal tabby housecat. I'm pretty sure you couldn't even breed a housecat with a tiger. But there are similarities, in behavior and appearance, and pointing out similarities can help to enrich one's understanding of one or both items paired in a simile.

It's meaningful to say my cat is like a little tiger, even though I'm pretty sure he won't bite my arm off one of these nights when I fall asleep on the couch.

Likewise, my car is like a horseless carriage. My love is like a red, red rose. Love is like a bottle of gin.* The internet is like a series of tubes. Simile isn't the substitution or conflation of one thing for another-- that would be metaphor or metonymy. Simile is saying that two things, while maintaining distinct qualities and characteristics, are similar in key ways.

And I think the ukulele is like a little guitar. It's a lot better to say that than say it's like a violin you pluck or a flute you don't blow.


...Sorry for the digression-- it's just the annoying humanities grad student in me talking.

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* In case anyone isn't familar with the song, and wondering, "How is love like a bottle of gin?" Stephen Merit explains:


It makes you blind, it does you in
It makes you think you're pretty tough
It makes you prone to crime and sin
It makes you say things off the cuff
It's very small and made of glass
and grossly over-advertised
It turns a genius to an ass
and makes a fool think he is wise
It could make you regret your birth
or turn cartwheels in your best suit
It costs a lot more than it's worth
and yet there is no substitute
They keep it on a higher shelf
the older and more pure it grows
It has no color in itself
but it can make you see rainbows
You can find it on the Bowery
or you can find it at Elaine's
It makes your words more flowery
It makes the sun shine, makes it rain
You just get out what they put in
and they never put in enough
Love is like a bottle of gin
but a bottle of gin is not like love

deach said:

YESSSS!!!! I often, I mean, my daughter often watches Noggin. I've seen that episode a couple times. I mean, my daughter told me about that episode....

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don't worry i'm a yo gabba gabba fan. Children program is pretty good now a days haha

Ukulele_Junkie said:

don't worry i'm a yo gabba gabba fan. Children program is pretty good now a days haha

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Wonder Pets and BackYardigans are awesome...and that Max is always getting in trouble. The joys of working from home.

Yay. I colored it.

It's like a little guitar.

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Reminds of the 3 Amigos, when they go into the bar and ask for beer.

We don't have no beer, just tequila. It's like beer.

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My son likes Noggin too. Its great- and commercial free.

I have also noticed that some of the original 'Noggin' songs by Moose A. Moose (used for filler for the spaces where commercials usually go) seem to feature the ukulele.

Tad - your point is well taken. It is "like" a little guitar and not that much like a flute or even a violin (except maybe the strings). On at least one other board that I read fairly often many would be QUITE offended by the reference. I was over defensive in this case.

Deach (and others) - as I type this I hear the voice of Moose A. Moose in the background. Some of the music they have in the breaks is quite good. Check out Angelique Kidjo - we bought 2 CD's based on what we heard on Noggin.

I think Wonder Pets is my favorite. Light opera with hint of comedy for the parents presented by a duck, a turtle, and a guinea pig. What could be better than that unless it is a guinea pig that plays the uke!

seeso said:

Yay. I colored it.

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ROFL!!!! hahahaha

I loveeeeeeee spongebob, ukulele comes up all the time in that show.. constantly, anything music theres a ukulele.. when they spell fun - u is ukulele

rep rep rep

*edit*
dont like it how it says "its like a little guitar"

Ive also seen the ukulele on Sesame Street and on Spongebob.

I'm really disapointed in Spongebob though.

he pronounced ukulele as (YOU-ku-lay-lee)

stupid spongebob, yeah i only noticed they pronounce it you-kulayle lolol but the main thing is that it shows up