Slowscreen SlowScreen
Toggle sidebar

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

Start free

The Qyah Ice Classic

In this episode

This episode is one video with 2 short stories. Each story gets its own review and score.

Very good

Recommended age Unlock

Co-watching from age 2

Balanced

Exact score locked

Watch on Prime Video PBS Kids
Save
The Qyah Ice Classic

Share

Pass this find on to another parent

Link preview

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2 - Slowscreen

Very good · Co-watching from age 2. In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and g...

slowscreen.com

https://slowscreen.com/en/series/molly-of-denali/s3/e6a-the-qyah-ice-classic

https://slowscreen.com/en/series/molly-of-denali/s3/e6a-the-qyah-ice-classic

Slowscreen

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2 - Slowscreen

Very good · Co-watching from age 2. In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and g...

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2
Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2

slowscreen.com

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2 - Slowscreen

Very good · Co-watching from age 2. In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and g...

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2
slowscreen.com

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2 - Slowscreen

slowscreen.com · Posted by you

Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2 - Slowscreen

0 Share
Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2
To
Subject Molly of Denali: The Qyah Ice Classic | Very good, co-watching from age 2

Very good · Co-watching from age 2. In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and g...

https://slowscreen.com/en/series/molly-of-denali/s3/e6a-the-qyah-ice-classic

Share on WhatsApp Share on X Share on Facebook Share on Telegram Share on Reddit Share on Email

See the exact scores

The review is yours to read. Create a free account to reveal the exact SlowScreen score and every pillar score.

Create free account
This program is well-balanced. It remains mostly easy to follow and process. It is a good fit for the recommended age. The pacing is fast. Images follow each other quickly, leaving little time to pause and take in what is happening. The sound is soft and supportive. The visuals are calm and well-organized.
One contest anchors the whole episode: the village sets up a tripod on the river and everyone tries to guess when the ice will break and topple it. Events build in a clear order, from the announcement through each child's research to the winner reveal, with a flashback that is signposted and easy to follow. Cause and effect is spelled out plainly, such as thicker ice taking longer to break and a crack making it break sooner. The main caveat is the heavy load of new facts, from a warming climate to ice thickness to many different signs of spring, which is a lot to hold for a child at the younger end of this range.
Feelings stay gentle and well-regulated from start to finish. Characters support each other warmly, Oscar helps everyone with their guesses even though he is not entering, and no one is mocked or made the butt of a joke. Small frustrations, like Molly not knowing which date to pick, settle quickly back into curiosity. Shifts between emotions are smooth and unforced, keeping the tone safe and predictable for this age.
This episode puts thinking and figuring-things-out front and centre. Each child takes their own approach: Molly visits Grandpa Nat for photos of spring signs, measures the ice, and builds a model, while Vera studies past winning dates and Tooie watches for clues. The standout is Oscar, who at the end walks through exactly how he combined everyone's findings, starting from the birch-leaf date, adjusting for the crack in the ice, and choosing a likely time. Problems are tackled with visible, multi-step reasoning and clear cause-and-effect logic that a child can follow.
The dialogue is clear and purposeful, with most lines giving information, instructions, or explanations rather than empty exclamations. Characters speak in complete sentences and use words consistently, and new terms like 'ice classic', 'climate', and 'ice sample' are introduced with enough context to follow. The vocabulary leans toward the richer end, so a younger child may want an adult nearby for some of the science words. Overall the language is meaningful and well-matched to early school age.
Almost everything here connects to the real world. The activities have a clear purpose, from measuring ice and reading a table of past dates to building a small model to test an idea, and many translate directly to things a child could try, such as watching for the first signs of spring or asking an expert for help. The setting and relationships are grounded in real village and family life, and a closing live-action segment shows real children in Nenana explaining the actual tradition. Imagination appears only in clearly framed dream moments, keeping the episode firmly tied to real experience.

More information

This score shows how inclusively the series portrays diverse people, families and cultures. Scale: Limited → Varied → Rich → Inclusive.
Molly of Denali builds its world around an Alaska Native community in a small village, where children, parents, and an elder all take part in a shared contest about when the river ice will break. Tasks and ideas move freely among the friends, with both girls and boys investigating, researching data, and contributing, and the win comes from teamwork rather than one standout. A closing real-life segment with two Native boys from Nenana, who speak about living on Tanana land, connects the story to a living culture and place. The result is a grounded, varied picture of who belongs in the story and what each person can do.
This score shows whether the series stays close to everyday reality or leans into fantasy. Scale: Fantasy → Mixed reality → Realistic.
This episode is built almost entirely from real Alaskan life: children in a small village set up a tripod on a frozen river and try to guess when the ice will break apart in spring. They gather real information, old photographs of the first birch leaves, a book about a warming climate, and a measurement of how thick the river ice is, and the closing minutes hand off to real children in Nenana explaining the actual Ice Classic contest. There is no villain and no magic; the only challenge is the friendly puzzle of making a good guess, which the group solves by pooling everything they learned. The grounded, fact-based world is a clean fit for an early school-age child.
This score shows how enjoyable the series is for parents watching along. Scale: Tedious → Tolerable → Pleasant → Enjoyable.
This one is easy to sit through as the grown-up in the room. The story has a real shape: a contest to guess when the river ice will break, where each kid tries a different method, and the quiet boy who keeps saying he is not even entering ends up winning by pooling everyone's findings, a small and satisfying turn. Voices stay calm and the warm Alaskan backdrops are pleasant to look at, with no shrill songs or color assault to wear you down. There is little humor aimed squarely at adults, so you are following a well-made children's story rather than being winked at, but it rarely drags.

Themes

Science

Recurring

Characters measure ice thickness, discuss a warming climate, and read a table of past breakup dates and times.

Nature

Recurring

Grandpa Nat tracks signs of spring like birch leaves, ducklings, geese, frogs, and budding spruce tips to predict the thaw.

Community

Recurring

The village of Qyah holds its own Ice Classic with a shared prize, mirroring the real Nenana tradition.

Competition

Recurring

Everyone submits a dated guess in hopes of winning the new ice cream maker prize.

Curiosity

Recurring

Molly investigates by visiting Grandpa Nat and gathering information to solve the puzzle.

Helping others

Recurring

Oscar shares ideas with everyone even though he says he is not entering the contest.

Behaviour

In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and guessing when the spring ice will break and topple it. Each child uses a different method, looking up past dates, measuring the ice, watching for signs of spring, and building a model, while their friend Oscar helps everyone without entering himself. In the end Oscar wins by combining all the information his friends gathered, and they share the ice cream prize together. A closing live-action segment shows real children in Nenana explaining the real Ice Classic tradition.

Molly of Denali
S01 E03

Molly of Denali

Grandpa's Drum

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly finds an old photograph of her grandfather Nat as a boy, singing and drumming with a young girl, and learns that he no longer sings because he gave his drum away long ago. With her friend Tooey, she uses clues in the photo (mountains, a water tower, train tracks, and partial letters on a sign) to locate the town of Tiritchik and find the now-grown woman who still has the drum. The elder Shyahtsoo explains that at boarding school Native children were forbidden from singing their own songs, which is why Grandpa stopped. Molly returns the drum, and during the community show Grandpa rediscovers his songs and drums alongside her, followed by a live-action segment of Alaska Native children sharing their own traditions.

Molly of Denali
S03 E06 Story A

Molly of Denali

The Qyah Ice Classic

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

In a small Alaskan village, Molly and her friends start their own Ice Classic, setting up a tripod on the frozen river and guessing when the spring ice will break and topple it. Each child uses a different method, looking up past dates, measuring the ice, watching for signs of spring, and building a model, while their friend Oscar helps everyone without entering himself. In the end Oscar wins by combining all the information his friends gathered, and they share the ice cream prize together. A closing live-action segment shows real children in Nenana explaining the real Ice Classic tradition.

Molly of Denali
S03 E06 Story B

Molly of Denali

The Great Qyah Cleanup

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

In the Alaska Native village of Qyah, Molly helps with the spring cleanup after winter. When Mr. Rowley's grill turns up broken and missing a part, Molly uses the instruction manual to reassemble it, then goes looking for litter with a friend and finds a mystery piece. After asking several neighbors what it is, she realizes it is the grill's missing regulator dial, which had fallen from her bag and been used as a scarecrow's face out at the dump. She retrieves it, the grill works, and the community cookout goes ahead.

Molly of Denali
S03 E08 Story A

Molly of Denali

Puppy Sitting

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Trini agrees to look after Tooey's puppy Key while Tooey's family travels to Japan for a wedding, working from a training checklist Tooey made. At first she spoils Key with cheese and pizza crust and skips his runs, then realises her mistake and trains him hard for several days to get back on track. When Tooey returns, Key responds to his commands and Trini has even taught her own puppy Four Spots a new trick. The episode ends with a live-action visit to the tundra near Nome, where Molly and local children learn about musk ox and their qiviut fur.

Molly of Denali
S03 E08 Story B

Molly of Denali

Big Dreams And Blue Skies

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly, an Alaska Native girl, hears how a pilot named Ellen Peniak inspired her mother to fly. When the library's books leave women pilots out, Molly digs deeper online and through Auntie Midge's stories, then flies along on a mail run where her mom lands safely by reading the wind off a lake. Together they write a booklet about Ellen and two other women pilots and leave it at the library so others can learn about them.

Molly of Denali
S03 E09 Story A

Molly of Denali

Sticker Shock

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

In the Alaskan village, Tui borrows his older brother's label maker and starts naming all his belongings, then labels seats at the shared picnic table so friends know where to sit. When Molly is left with nowhere to sit, the labelling causes a falling out, and the device jams and breaks. The children fix it by following the troubleshooting steps in the instruction manual, and Jay explains that shared spaces belong to everyone. The episode closes with Molly answering a viewer's question and a live-action trip where children go dog sledding.

Molly of Denali
S03 E09 Story B

Molly of Denali

A Song for Lola

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly helps her friend create a special song to honor her grandmother, Lola Miranda, who is returning to their Alaskan village from the Philippines. Following an Alaska Native tradition explained by Grandpa Nat, the children secretly gather family stories, then worry the funny ones are not serious enough for a gifted song. They learn that a song should match the person it honors, so a cheerful Lola deserves a cheerful song. At the welcome-back dinner they perform it, and Lola calls it the best gift she has ever received.

Molly of Denali
S04 E02 Story A

Molly of Denali

Steam Bath Ch'oondaii

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly, an Alaska Native girl, wants to help her mother recover from a cold so she can pass the annual medical exam she needs to keep flying. With advice from Auntie Midge and her mom, Molly and her friend set out to build a traditional steam bath, first trying shop-style instructions, then realising those don't fit their village or their age and returning to Auntie Midge for the traditional willow-frame method. They gather volcanic rocks with Grandpa Nat's help, build the bath in clear steps, and the warm steam helps mom breathe and feel close to her own mother. The episode closes with a short 'Ask Molly' segment exploring real Alaska Native houses at a heritage center.

Molly of Denali
S04 E02 Story B

Molly of Denali

In the Dark of Day

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly, Trini and Oscar walk home from school in an Alaska village where the winter sun sets in the early afternoon, and Oscar is sure a monster is waiting in the dark. The friends look up sunset times on a weather website, learn about the winter solstice, and try several plans to face the creature. Auntie Midge tells a story about a wolf pup who overcomes its fear of the dark by finding a pack. Emboldened by his friends, Oscar finally confronts the monster and finds it is just a large pile of snow.

Molly of Denali
S04 E07 Story A

Molly of Denali

Tusk, Tusk, and More Tusk

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly and her friends Tooey and Trini discover a large tusk buried in the mud near the river in their Alaska village. Grandpa Nat and an archaeologist named Olin Benedict identify it as a woolly mammoth tusk and explain the Ice Age, permafrost, and how the warming climate erodes the riverbank. The children help free the tusk through trial and error, measure it, photograph it, and give it the Gwich'in name 'Trilzok', meaning gentle. The episode ends with a separate live-action segment where children visit a museum to learn whether dinosaurs once lived in Alaska.

Molly of Denali
S04 E07 Story B

Molly of Denali

The Jökulhlaup Is on Us

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly, an Alaska Native girl, learns that a glacial flood called a jokulhlaup could wash away Auntie Cecilia's old fishing cabin by Lake Kaya. Using Nina's 3D topographical map, Molly and her friends find higher ground out of the flood zone, then work out how to slide the cabin there on a bed of logs. The cabin is moved safely and Molly discovers the family doll she lost as a baby. The episode ends with the family settling the cabin into its new home.

Molly of Denali
S04 E20

Molly of Denali

Happy Birthday, Qyah!

Balanced
recommended age Unlock co-watching from 2

Molly and her best friend Tui set out to answer one question: how old is their Alaska Native village of Qyah, really? After Molly's dad finds a cave revealed by an earthquake, the two join archaeologists Nina and Olin to investigate signs that ancestors once sheltered there. They uncover a painted pictograph that matches an oral origin story, get briefly trapped by an aftershock before climbing out, and help carbon-date the find. The episode ends with a new museum exhibit, a corrected town website, and the news that people have lived in the area for at least 13,000 years.

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

Create your account

Search by title, show, tag, or topic

We use functional cookies and Google Analytics to improve our site. Learn more