Nickelodeon Launches #KidsTogether Program With Spongebob Squarepants to Aid Families During Coronavirus Shutdown

As many families find themselves working from home and with childcare programs and schools closed due to the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus they’ll be spending a lot more time together and potentially covering topics they wouldn’t normally discuss as a family. To help aid in those discussions, Nickelodeon has announced #KidsTogether a global, multiplatform prosocial initiative using their popular stable of characters to help kids and families with tips for staying healthy and activities they can do together while at home. Characters included in #KidsTogether include SpongeBob SquarePants, Blue’s Clues & You!, Henry Danger, Bubble Guppies and The Casagrandes.

Content included as part of this initiative will include original short-form content with videos of SpongeBob practicing social distancing, the Bubble Guppies demonstrating proper hand-washing techniques, and Chickaletta and the PAW Patrol showcasing awesome dance moves to promote physical activity and wellness. In addition there will be Nick-branded interstitials made in partnership with GoNoodle that encourage kids to get up and get moving, with help from Young Dylan’s beats or by joining Lincoln Loud’s dance party.

In addition, printable Blue’s Clues & You! activity sheets and Bubble Guppiescoloring pages, along with offscreen activities and games to help families play and learn together at home will be available along with Noggin shorts on the Nick Jr. channel that provide learning moments for preschoolers in the areas of wellness, social and emotional development, science, math, and literacy. All of this and more can be found on the NickHelps.com website.

In addition, Noggin–Nickelodeon’s direct-to-consumer interactive learning service for preschoolers–will be offered for free for three months starting next week to millions of kids in need through the help of national partner organizations, including the National Head Start Association and First Book. Noggin’s free trial period will also be extended to 60 days to all new subscribers, effective at the end of the month. The ad-free educational content on Noggin currently includes over 1,000 iconic, full-length episodes, short-form videos, and hundreds of interactive learning games and ebooks featuring preschoolers’ favorite characters and more.

According to the World Health Organization, who officially dubbed the coronavirus outbreak a “pandemic” last week, there are 191,127 confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide with 15,123 new cases confirmed in the last 24 hours. Worldwide there have been 7807 deaths. In the United States there have been 7,038 confirmed cases with 97 deaths as of this writing.

For those who are worried about the spread of the coronavirus, the CDC offers a litany of tips, including covering coughs and sneezes, avoiding large gatherings or close contact with people who are sick, and washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.