Nick Jr. Celebrates the Chinese New Year and Introduces Preschoolers to Chinese Language...

Nick Jr. Celebrates the Chinese New Year and Introduces Preschoolers to
Chinese Language and Culture on Ni Hao, Kai-lan, a Groundbreaking New Animated
Series Premiering Thursday, Feb. 7, At 11:00 A.M. (ET/PT)
Nick Jr.'s New 20-Episode Half-Hour Interactive Series to Teach Preschoolers
Mandarin Language for the First Time on Television

NEW YORK, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- This February, millions of preschoolers
will learn that "Ni Hao" means "Hello" in Mandarin Chinese, as Nickelodeon
Preschool introduces them to Chinese culture and language on Nick Jr.'s
groundbreaking new animated series Ni Hao, Kai-lan. The original, half-hour
20-episode series will teach 2-5 year olds Mandarin words and phrases for the
first time on television. The premiere episode of Ni Hao, Kai-lan, titled
"Dragon Boat Festival," will debut on Nick Jr. on Thursday, Feb. 7 (11:00 a.m.
- 11:30 a.m., ET/PT), the first day of the Chinese New Year (Year of the Rat).
Additionally, Nick Jr. will roll out six new Ni Hao, Kai-lan episodes,
weekdays from Friday, Feb. 8 - Friday, Feb. 15, (11:00 a.m., ET/PT) and the
series will air regularly weekdays at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT) on Nick Jr.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080115/NYTU053 )
Ni Hao, Kai-lan is Nick Jr.'s first play-along, think-along series to
feature an intergenerational family. Through the eyes of a five-year-old
Chinese-American girl named Kai-lan, the series explores the colorful aspects
of her upbringing and background, her relationships with her family and
friends and the world around her. Ni Hao, Kai-lan will also help preschoolers
to identify their emotions and learn coping mechanisms to deal with their
feelings.
"Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego Go! have clearly
demonstrated how much kids love to interact with beloved characters, as well
as embrace new languages and cultures," said Brown Johnson, Executive Vice
President, Executive Creative Director, Nickelodeon Preschool. "Preschoolers
will immerse themselves in Kai-lan's rich Chinese-American heritage, while
they learn the Mandarin language and relevant social-emotional skills. We
can't wait for kids to see this incredibly vibrant and playful world come to
life."
On Monday, Jan. 28, the series will begin to "sneak peek" across the
following Nickelodeon preschool platforms:
-- Video On Demand will feature the full premiere episode, "Dragon Boat
Festival," in addition to a music video and other Ni Hao Kai-lan
clips, on Comcast, Charter, Cablevision, Verizon FiOS and Cox.
-- Nick Jr. will "sneak peek" "Dragon Boat Festival" on iTunes(R) Music
Store (www.itunes.com).
-- Nick Jr. Video, Nick Jr.'s broadband video service available on
Nickjr.com, will stream "Dragon Boat Festival," in addition to a music
video and other clips from the series.
-- Various wireless carriers will "sneak peek" clips from "Dragon Boat
Festival," in addition to a music video and other clips from the
series.

Ni Hao, Kai-lan stars Kai-lan Chow, a playful, adventurous bi-lingual
preschooler with a big heart, who speaks both English and Mandarin. Kai-lan's
world is infused with Chinese culture, from the dumplings she eats and the
lanterns that adorn her house to the huge Chinese New Year celebration she has
with her family and friends. The series centers on Kai-lan and her
relationships with her grandfather Yeye and her animal friends. Yeye plays a
major role in her life as he gently and playfully guides her to her own
discoveries. Kai-lan is a natural leader who is thoughtful and caring and has
a gift for helping her friends when they really need her. Her best friends are
Rintoo, a rambunctious five-year-old tiger who loves to play; Tolee, a five-
year-old koala who always puts his friends first; Hoho, a three-year-old
monkey full of boundless energy; and Lulu, a happy six-year-old pink rhino.
The series focuses on issues common to preschoolers such as taking turns,
disappointment and jealousy, and supports an emotional intelligence curriculum
highlighting cause and effect thinking in the social/emotional world. Ni Hao,
Kai-lan provides simple coping strategies, set to song, that teach valuable
lessons. Kai-lan strives to understand how things are linked together and she
always wants to find out the reason why. Every episode follows the adventures
of Kai-lan and her friends as they learn to identify their emotions and stop
to consider the feelings of others. Kai-lan leads them as they tackle such
issues as what caused Rintoo to get mad, or how patience and practice help
Tolee get better at rhyming.
Beginning Friday, Jan. 11, Nick Jr.'s award-winning website
(www.nickjr.com) will feature four, brand-new online games to complement the
launch of Ni Hao, Kai-lan. In the "Ni Hao, Kai-lan Paper Lanterns" game, users
can design their own paper lanterns to print, and in "Rintoo's Dragon Boat
Rowing Race," users play as Rintoo and row in rhythm on their dragon boat in
order to reach the finish line before the other challengers. In "Tolee's
Bamboo Bounce" users play as Tolee and travel on the bamboos to catch panda
items without falling and in "Kai-lan's Puddle Hop" users play as Kai-lan and
jump in puddles to gain points. Additionally, NickJr.com will feature Ni Hao,
Kai-lan themed printables, crafts and more.
On the premiere episode, "Dragon Boat Festival," the Dragon Boat Festival
is finally here and Kai-lan and her friends are excited to race dragon boats
on the river. Kai-lan rows a boat with her best friend, Rintoo the tiger, and
she cannot wait to meet a real dragon at the end of the races. But when they
lose the first race, Rintoo gets so mad that he whacks their boat and it lands
on top of a pagoda. It's up to Kai-lan and the viewers at home to figure out
how to help Rintoo calm down so they can finish the race and meet the friendly
dragon.
Ni Hao, Kai-lan is created by Karen Chau and Executive Produced by Mary
Harrington. Animation production for Ni Hao, Kai-lan is being done in
conjunction with Wang Films and the Wang Studio in Greater China.
Nick Jr. is a specially designed programming block airing on Nickelodeon
weekdays from 9 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. (ET/PT). Completely dedicated to preschoolers
ages 2-5, Nick Jr.'s Emmy, Peabody and Parents' Choice Award-winning programs
are curriculum based, fun and commercial free. At Nick Jr., kids play to learn
with innovative, original shows created just for them.
Nickelodeon, in its 28th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for
kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in
everything it does. The company includes television programming and production
in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online,
recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television
network is seen in more than 96 million households and has been the number-
one-rated basic cable network for 13 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all
related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc.
(NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).
* DVD screeners and art available upon request
SOURCE Nickelodeon

Sharyn Traub of Nickelodeon, +1-212-846-6381, Sharyn.traub@nick.com, or
Heather Brown, +1-212-846-6240, Heather.brown@nick.com, both of Nickelodeon