Behaviour
Deception
Deception covers everything from a playful trick to a small fib told to stay out of trouble. Children meet it long before they can explain it, and a story gives them a safe place to watch someone hide the truth and then set things right. A calm, well made episode slows the moment down enough that a child can follow what was hidden, who it affected, and what happened next.
For 3-year-olds
Three year olds tell their first fibs, usually to dodge a small telling off, and they are easy to see through. They still mix up wishing something were true with saying something untrue. Helpful episodes keep the fib tiny and the repair quick: a character says something that is not so, someone notices kindly, the truth comes out. Check that the story shows the honest answer clearly, not just the awkward feeling around it.
Shape Island
Square's Very Kind Gesture
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Square finds a rare banana tree with two bananas and decides to give one to his friend Circle so he can be known for a kind gesture. Each time he tries, Circle passes the spare banana on to Triangle, and Square ends up with neither the fruit nor the praise he hoped for. He waits for the tree to grow again, rehearses his plan, and keeps trying. By the end he finally eats one banana at a picnic, still weighing whether to share the other.
Lucas the Spider
I Can't See You
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Lucas the Spider keeps losing hide and seek to his friend Bodhi, who can blend into her surroundings. Kevin the chameleon coaches Lucas to try blending, sniffing and changing color, and Lucas finally wins by tricking Bodhi into leaving footprints. When Bodhi is hurt that he cheated, Lucas apologises and the two agree to play fair, with Bodhi setting aside her camouflage. The episode ends with the whole group starting a new round together.
Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom
Fun and Games
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Ben the elf helps his mum bake cupcakes in the family kitchen, and his friend Holly the fairy princess joins in with the stirring. While the cakes bake, the two go outside and play tag and hide-and-seek, and Holly keeps slipping into flying and magic despite promising to play fair. When the cupcakes come out of the oven, everyone agrees the time flew by because they were having fun. The episode ends with the friends sharing cakes and Ben showing a trick.
Handy Manny
Rusty's Little Light Lie
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Handy Manny and his talking tools take on a job from Mayor Rosa: filling the new movie theater's marquee with light bulbs for its grand opening. One of the tools, Rusty, accidentally crushes the box of bulbs and then lies about it, saying he was careful. When the sign stays dark, Rusty confesses to Manny and the mayor, and the town pitches in by donating spare bulbs. The episode ends with Rusty switching on the finished, fully lit sign just in time for opening night.
Shape Island
Square's Big Prank
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Square, a tidy square who likes everything in its place, is pranked every morning by his friend Triangle. Square decides to prank back and, with advice from Circle and a crystal-cave oracle to go bigger, huger, then enormous, he keeps escalating his attempts. His small tricks all fail, but the enormous one accidentally knocks down Triangle's whole house and a mountain. Instead of being upset, Triangle is thrilled and declares their prank war will never end.
For 4-year-olds
Around four, children work out that another person can believe something wrong, which is exactly what makes hiding and tricking suddenly interesting. Look for episodes where both sides are visible: what one character knows, and what the other has been told. The moment of discovery should be easy to follow, and the character who hid something needs a way back, an apology or a fix, rather than the trick being left as the punchline.
Llama Llama
Home with Mama
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Llama Llama wakes up hoping to attend his school carnival, but Mama finds he still has a fever and keeps him home to rest and to avoid spreading his cold. He is disappointed and even tries to sneak out, but Mama comforts him with soup, cuddles, and pretend play through the day. His friends and family then surprise him by setting up a whole carnival at his house, with games, balloons, and treats. He ends the day feeling lucky for his friends and his mama, just as a small new sneeze returns.
Bluey
Mount Mumandad
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Sisters Bluey and Bingo turn their parents, sprawled on the couch, into 'Mount Mumandad' and race to plant a flag at the top. Bingo falls behind under a heavy backpack, Bluey cheats to get ahead, and their argument sparks a pretend avalanche and storm. The sisters take shelter in a tent, play card games, and Bluey apologises for cheating. When the storm passes they climb the last stretch together, and Dad explains the mountain is conquered by unselfish teamwork.
Octonauts
The Walrus Chief
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Peso, the Octonauts' penguin medic, loses his medical bag in Arctic waters when a walrus mistakes it for a clam. Captain Barnacles and Kwazii put on a two-person walrus costume to sneak into the walrus colony, learning their customs along the way. They eventually meet the chief, who has the bag and is also nursing a twisted flipper that has kept him from hunting. Peso treats the injury, the chief returns the bag, and the colony makes the Octonauts honorary walruses.
The Berenstain Bears
Out for the Team
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Brother Bear is hitting well in a sandlot game when Papa suggests he try out for the Bear Country Cardinals, and Sister Bear decides to try out too. Brother grows jealous and afraid of losing his spot to his sister, so he fakes a sore arm to skip the tryouts. Sister catches the lie and encourages him, and the two practice together before the tryouts. In the end the coach is impressed by both and adds a second spot, so Brother and Sister both make the team.
Mira, Royal Detective
The Case of the Wrecked Recital
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
In the royal city of Jalpur, Mira the royal detective is asked to find the great uncle's sitar that vanished before Neil's first music recital, along with his speech. Mira questions the head guard, rules out a spider-webbed door, and follows the sound of sitar music through the palace. She works out that Neil hid the instrument himself because he was afraid of making mistakes in front of his family. With encouragement from Mira and his great auntie Rupa, Neil performs his recital and thanks everyone for believing in him.
Llama Llama
Happy Birthday Llama Llama
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
On his birthday, Llama Llama gets a toy airplane and heads out to play, but his friends Nellie, Luna, Gilroy, and Roland all say they are too busy. He starts to feel left out and tells Mama he thinks his friends are avoiding him. When they finally lead him home, everyone jumps out for a surprise party, and Llama realizes his friends were busy planning it all along. The episode closes with the family and friends celebrating together and a short theme song.
Mira, Royal Detective
The Case of the Dance Off Disaster
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
In the kingdom of Jalpur, young detective Mira and her friend Priya enter a dance contest hosted by Sanjeev Joshi. When each team's routine goes wrong, sped-up music, a missing song and beads that cause slips, Mira gathers clues and works out that Mina cheated to win. Mina confesses, apologises and gives up the trophy. The contest ends with a friendly rerun where two teams tie and everyone dances together.
For 5-year-olds
Five year olds can tell a joke apart from a lie and care a great deal about what is fair. They notice when someone is deliberately left out of the truth. At this age a story can let a small deception build real consequences, a friend upset or a plan falling apart, and then show that owning up is harder than it looked. Trust rebuilt over the course of an episode gives far more to talk about afterwards than a trick that is simply undone.
Fancy Nancy
Tea Party Trouble
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Nancy hosts a fancy tea party in her front yard with her friend Bree and borrows Grandma's heirloom teapot after promising to be careful. Her charm falls in, her hand gets stuck, and the pot ends up broken, so she tries to hide it and glue it back together. Meanwhile Dad and toddler sister JoJo work to set up a new big-girl bed in the same house. Nancy finally tells her mom the truth, and Mom reassures her that accidents happen and shares her own story of chipping the same teapot as a child.
Fancy Nancy
Nancy's Dog Show Disaster
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
After watching a televised dog show, Nancy decides her poodle Frenchy could win one too and organizes a contest in her backyard with her Plainfield friends. She trains Frenchy for the obedience and special-skills rounds, but he keeps running off and refusing commands, so she quietly enters Mrs. Devine's well-trained poodle Jewel in his place. When Frenchy bounds back mid-event, the judges disqualify Nancy for showing two dogs, and Bree and her dog Waffles win the trophy. Nancy hugs Frenchy and tells him he is still the best dog in the world.
Goldie
Tall Teeny
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
In a colorful amusement-park town, a small girl named Teeny feels overlooked when she is turned away from a ride for being too short. With her friend Goldie, she pretends to be tall using a disguise and enjoys new treatment before admitting the truth. When the mayor's cat gets stuck in a maze that only someone small can enter, Teeny saves it as her real self and is honored for her bravery. She ends the day deciding she is happy to stay small.
Goldie
Petey the Stargazer
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Petey, a boy who loves stargazing, decides aliens must not be real after a supposed UFO turns out to be a blimp. His friends Goldie and Romeo, unwilling to let him lose that wonder, secretly stage crop circles, a homemade UFO and an alien visitor named Zor-Zor, and soon the whole town of Boysenburg prepares a welcome. When Petey discovers it was all his friends' doing, he decides that having friends like them means anything is possible and keeps believing. The segment ends with the group back at their telescopes and a short teaser for the next story.
The Magic School Bus
Meets the Rot Squad
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 2
Ms. Frizzle's class holds a rotten-food contest, and winner Wanda receives a young tree she wants to plant in a vacant lot full of dead logs. When Wanda calls a service to haul away one rotting log, the Magic School Bus shrinks the class to bug size so they can see the fungi, beetles and slime molds living inside it. The children learn that rot is nature recycling itself and race to stop Larry from removing the log. In the end they save it, plant Wanda's tree, and feed it compost.
Arthur
Muffy Misses Out
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 3
Muffy, a confident organizer at Lakewood Elementary, is thrilled to visit Italy with her father but worries about leaving her friends to run the school bake sale. While she is away, the friends swap her Italian theme for New Orleans beignets and jazz, and the sale is a hit, which leaves Muffy feeling unneeded. When her friends realize how much her ideas and presence meant, they bring her back to help settle a disagreement over decorating the stage curtain. A short closing segment has real children explain who civil rights leader John Lewis was.
For 6-year-olds
By six, children are curious about why someone lied: fear, embarrassment, protecting a friend. They can follow a story where a character keeps up a pretence for a while before it unravels. Look for episodes that give the reason for lying enough weight to understand, while still letting the cost land. Secrets that should not be kept, loyalty between friends, and apologising properly all match what six year olds are already working out in the playground.
Pinecone & Pony
Hero Soup
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
In a make-believe warrior world, young Pinecone and her friend Hoth decide to cheer up their sick teacher Gladys by cooking a magical 'Hero Soup'. The recipe needs a mysterious 'Essence of Hero', which sends them chasing heroic deeds and then a famous hero named Ace. When Ace is revealed to have faked all her rescues, Pinecone realizes a true hero simply helps others with what they need. The friends quietly take care of Gladys's chores, and the soup finally works.
Pinecone & Pony
Lance or Not
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Pinecone accidentally breaks the lance she built with her mom, Queen Kimya, just before the craft fair. With her companion Pony, she sets off on a quest through the town, visiting a lance shop and a wizard to secretly replace it before her mother notices. Each attempt falls short, and the magical copy never quite matches the original. At the fair Pinecone tells the truth, and her mom responds with a hug and the promise that they can make new lances together.
Craig of the Creek
The Final Book
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Kelsey, Craig, and JP set out to find the missing final book of the Dragonmancer series after it goes overdue at the library. Framed as a detective case from the 'Smarty Boys' mystery books, they interview kids who are role-playing as horses and ninjas, chase down a red turtle shell backpack, and hit several dead ends. Craig eventually deduces that Stacks, who writes book reports for other kids, hid the book. Stacks admits she was afraid of losing the only friend who talks with her about stories, and Kelsey forgives her and suggests they read a new series together.
Pinecone & Pony
You're On!
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Pinecone and her family settle in for a game night, but the board game Ultimate Ruler turns Mom into a fierce, taxing competitor the family jokingly calls a game monster. Pinecone and her dad launch a series of numbered plans, a fake ghost, invented rules and a staged illness, to make Mom lose interest, and none of them work. Pinecone finally joins the competition herself and then tells her mom plainly that a game is only good when it is fun for everyone. Mom apologizes, the family decides to get rid of the game, and they choose a different one to play together.
Pinecone & Pony
Belt or Bust
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
In the fantasy town of Sturdy Stone, a traveling saleswoman called Granny Cutie trades enchanted belts for the villagers' treasured old belongings. Pinecone and her pony miss out and, encouraged by Hawthorne, build a belt of their own from workshop materials, which friends first mock. When Granny is exposed as the shapeshifting witch Magpie, whose belts were fake magic, Pinecone leads the group to confront her. Using their homemade belt gadgets they defeat Magpie, recover everyone's items, and the handmade belts become the new trend.
Craig of the Creek
The Brood
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Craig brings a cicada shell to the creek to impress his friends and find a keepsake for his granddad, but a swarm of cicadas emerges and traps Craig, Kelsey, and JP in their hideout. They try a message in a bottle, ration old snacks, and are let down by Jason, who abandons them when there is no ice cream reward. Watching a captured cicada molt after seventeen years underground, they decide they can wait it out too and run to freedom. Craig frees the bug, keeps a shell for his granddad, and the friends pose for a photo.
Pinecone & Pony
The Straight and Arrow
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Princess Pinecone, an eight-year-old archer, is thrilled to meet her hero Prince Randolph at a garden party, but he is arrogant and dismissive. Stung by his taunts, she challenges him to an archery duel with her trophy at stake, and when he cheats with his falcon she cheats back using a wizard's magic arrows. On the verge of winning, she confesses to the crowd that she used enchanted arrows and does not deserve the prize. The king makes Randolph return the trophy, and the group shares cake as Pinecone decides she would rather be herself than be like the prince.
Pinecone & Pony
The Pony Express
recommended age
Unlock
co-watching from 4
Two young warriors, Pinecone and Annabelle, are sent by their leader Gladys to deliver a package to a wizard before sundown. On the way they bicker over routes and leadership, egged on by a hidden Wood Imp who whispers lies to each of them. When they discover the imp is behind the fight and has stolen the package, they build a trap, distract the imp, and recover it. They deliver the package together and agree they make a good team.