The popular children’s television series introduced a new muppet this week named Alex in a way to talk about the stigma of having a parent in jail.
The sensitive subject is being featured in an online teaching kit called, “Little Children, Big Challenges” thou the clips featuring Alex aren’t actually being aired on television and he isn’t being introduced as a regular character on the show.
“I just miss him so much,” the fuzzy blue-haired muppet says of his locked-up dad, adding, “Sometimes I just feel like I want to pound on a pillow and scream as loud as I can.”
“Coming from a muppet, it’s almost another child telling their story to the children,” Jeanette Betancourt, vice president of outreach and educational practices at the Sesame Workshop, told the “Today” show.
Still, “Sesame Street” execs say his story can be a useful tool for kids, specifically those ages 3 to 8. The show has broached other tricky lessons relating to divorce, hunger and military deployment
What do you think?
