St. Louis, MO — March 18, 2020 – Nine Network has curated its vast library of PBS content and resources into an online toolkit so that educators and caregivers have easy access to content to serve students while schools are shutdown during the coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak. PBS is a respected leader in educational media, one that educators and parents trust to provide evidence-based educational content.
A virtual meeting between Nine Network and St. Louis-area school superintendents and education leaders informed the creation of the Nine PBS Educator and Caregiver Toolkit that will be used by educators, parents, and students in the region to extend learning.
Launched today, Nine PBS Educator and Caregiver Toolkit provides a suite of free, accessible, high-quality, educational tools from PBS and Nine Network to ensure that the region’s educators, parents, and learners are supported. The toolkit has broadcast, online, and mobile resources, as well as learning tools and tips that can be text messaged to phones. It includes a broadcast and streaming schedule of kids’ programs available by targeted ages, learning goals, air times, and links to PBS KIDS apps.
Nine Network will be creating messages to air daily across our four channels to provide messaging for educators, parents, and children that keep them engaged and connected to learning.
The toolkit and other resources are the first step. Nine Network will continue to listen to our region’s educators to adjust and add accordingly.
Nine PBS (9.1) broadcasts 8.5 hours of PBS KIDS programs each weekday. In addition to PBS KIDS programs, starting March 23 from 12:30–2:30 pm, Nine PBS (9.1) will broadcast educational programs more suited for middle and high school students. The content is available free to everyone and is indispensable to families that do not have access to cable or streaming services.
Nine PBS KIDS (9.2) is free and broadcasts content for kids ages 2-8 all day, every day of the week. The channel is also streamed live at nineNet.org/ninepbskids.
Nine Network is committed to serving the public with high-quality information, resources and trusted stories to help them navigate through this challenging period.
“Today, our founding mission to educate children through television, which in 1954 was considered a new media, is more important than ever. In a crisis you become more of who you really are. For Nine, that means using all of our assets – our community relationships along with our trusted and educational content – to help communities across our region learn and connect to each other,” says Amy Shaw, president and CEO, Nine Network.
About Nine Network of Public Media
Nine Network of Public Media is a multifaceted organization creating a network of individuals and organizations empowered by public media to strengthen civic life. One of the nation’s most watched public television stations, Nine Network offers the people of the St. Louis region multiple ways to explore the world and become engaged in civic life. Nine’s platforms include four distinct broadcast channels (Nine PBS, Nine World, Nine Create and Nine PBS KIDS®), the Nine Center for Public Engagement, the Public Media Commons, social media, and online. Nine Network’s rich legacy of serving the community was launched in 1954 and continues through our vision of a strong and healthy community working together through public media and our mission of igniting the spirit of possibility.
For more information, contact:
Matt Huelskamp
Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer
(314) 512-9117
mhuelskamp@ketc.org