Activity

Going to school

Starting school or preschool is one of the biggest changes in a young child's life. It means a new building, new grown-ups, and a rhythm of goodbyes and reunions that has to be learned by doing. A calm, well-made series about school lets a child rehearse all of that from a safe spot on the couch, seeing that the day has a shape and that a parent always comes back.

For 2-year-olds

At two, school is mostly about the goodbye. A toddler this age lives in the moment and cannot yet picture the parent who has walked out the door, so separation is the whole story. Look for series that keep the focus on small, familiar routines: hanging up a coat, finding a spot in the circle, being picked up again at the end. Gentle repetition and a clear, happy reunion matter far more here than any plot about what happens in between.

S01 E05

Ready Eddie GO!

New Classmate

Balanced

recommended age co-watching from 2

Eddie, a young boy, learns that a new girl named Frida is joining his class and worries that his familiar routines will change. Guided by a calm narrator through chapters called Preparing, Welcome, Changes and Being kind, he watches classmates make welcome cards, practises greeting someone new, and eventually offers Frida his rocket toy when she looks unsure. Set almost entirely in a colourful classroom, the story follows his shift from resisting change to accepting it. By the end Eddie says he is really glad Frida is there and is ready for a new classmate.

S01 E04

Lu & The Bally Bunch

Tower Tower Wow

Stimulating

recommended age co-watching from 2

Lu the ladybird heads to Shell School, where she and her friends set out to build the tallest tower they can. When Dean knocks Gus's tower down as part of a game his own family plays, Gus is upset because no one explained the rules. A teacher helps the friends talk it through until they realize it was a misunderstanding. They end up happily playing 'tower tower wow' together, finishing with a wiggly dance.

See all Going to school shows for 2-year-olds

For 3-year-olds

Three-year-olds start to grasp the day as a sequence, and the interest shifts to what actually happens there. Playing alongside other children turns into playing with them, which brings the first real friction over toys, turns, and who sits where. Series that walk through the order of a day and show small social bumps being sorted out give a child words for things they are experiencing. Watch for a pace that leaves room to take it in, without rushing from one event to the next.

S03 E07

Chip and Potato

Tot and Potato

Stimulating

recommended age co-watching from 3

Chip is a young pug whose baby sister Tot is teething and uncomfortable. Chip lends Tot her beloved snuggly, a toy mouse named Potato, and then faces her first school day without it. At school she finds her way to the principal's office and, when she cannot read the story she wrote, tells a new one aloud and earns a certificate. By the end Tot's first tooth comes through, the baby says her first word, 'thank you', to Chip, and Potato is returned.

S01 E06

Peppa Pig

The Playgroup

Balanced

recommended age co-watching from 2

Peppa and George travel to Peppa's playgroup for George's first day, watched over by Madam Gazelle. Peppa first worries her little brother is too small, but after Danny Dog admires George's toy dinosaur she becomes proud of him. During a painting session Peppa tries to teach George to paint a flower while he paints a dinosaur instead. Madam Gazelle praises both pictures and hangs them on the wall, and the children ask if George can come again next time.

See all Going to school shows for 3-year-olds

For 4-year-olds

By four, the practical worries have usually settled and the social world takes over. A child this age cares about who their friend is, whether they were included, and what the grown-up in charge expects of them. They can also follow a longer story now, which makes room for the bigger themes: a first day at a new place, being left out, a mistake made in front of others. Look for series that let a child name a feeling and try a solution, rather than having an adult tidy it away.

S01 E18

The Berenstain Bears

Go to School

Balanced

recommended age co-watching from 2

Sister Bear is nervous about starting third grade after Too Tall's gang teases her that it is impossibly hard. At home, Brother, Mama and Papa reassure her, and Mama uses a photo album to recall how Sister once dreaded kindergarten yet quickly came to love it. Encouraged, Sister tries third grade and comes home pleased, while Papa faces his own fear and bakes his first apple pie. The episode ends with the family together and the lesson that new things are worth trying.

See all Going to school shows for 4-year-olds

Browse all Going to school shows

Explore more

Viewing guides Age 2 guide Age 3 guide Age 4 guide Age 5 guide Age 6 guide

Top lists by age 1 year 2 years 3 years 4 years 5 years 6 years

Keep exploring Browse by topic All platforms

Going to school

For 2-year-olds

Ready Eddie GO!

Lu & The Bally Bunch

For 3-year-olds

Chip and Potato

Peppa Pig

For 4-year-olds

The Berenstain Bears

Explore more

Just launched: free lifetime premium for the first 1,000 members to activate their account.