‘Cocomelon’ to Begin Applying Child Development Research From UCLA

Moonbug, the studio behind the preschool series “Cocomelon,” “Blippi,” “Little Angel” and spinoffs like “The Melon Patch,” has launched a new effort to incorporate child development research into its creative processes.

The move comes from a partnership with the Center for Scholars and Storytellers at UCLA, a nonprofit research center that connects entertainment industry creators to academic research with the goal of supporting young audiences’ well-being and development.

In 2023, CSS conducted an in-depth analysis of Moonbug’s programming and processes, including interviews with creative teams, episode analysis, and collaboration with an advisory council of academic experts. The research center also conducted a comprehensive review of peer-reviewed research on early childhood learning. Based on that work, CSS has developed four core learning principles that Moonbug will apply across its slate of content.

The principles, which focus on illustrating what developmentally appropriate content looks like, will be made public later this spring with the intention of offering guidance not only to Moonbug, but to other kids’ content creators as well as parents evaluating their children’s media diet.

CSS is now working with Moonbug’s creative teams to define development and learning goals for each season, including development of life skills, social-emotional learning and cognitive skills. The research center will also help shape story ideas and episode themes and review scripts and early cuts of episodes to ensure learning is clear and age-appropriate.

Child development research has long been a major factor in the development children’s programming, with practices being standardized across institutions like PBS, Disney and Nickelodeon. But as YouTube and other decentralized digital platforms have become the primary content delivery methods for children, the Moonbug and CSS partnership aims to maintain those standards in a new media ecosystem.

“As more preschoolers spend time on digital platforms, parents and creators are asking more urgent questions about what quality screen time actually means,” said Dr. Yalda T. Uhls, founder and CEO of the CSS. “Research shows children can learn from online video, but only when it’s designed with child development in mind. Our work with Moonbug is about bringing research and storytelling closer together, and we see this as an ongoing commitment. Translating research principles into a production environment takes a sustained effort, and a real measure of success will be how consistently these principles shape creative principles over time.”

“To make great stories for young kids, you have to start with how they learn,” said Rich Hickey, chief creative officer at Moonbug Entertainment. “Our teams already think deeply about how toddlers experience music, stories and everyday moments. This partnership with CSS renews that commitment and helps us be even more intentional in how we build stories from the earliest ideas through production.”

Moonbug has previously worked with learning experts including Dr. Natascha Crandall, Dr. Allison Briscoe-Smith and Dr. Laura Brown, who continue to collaborate with the studio,