Teacher Training
Blue Ridge PBS has long been known nationally as one of the best education departments with the public media system. Thousands of educators across the Commonwealth have taken courses in the comfort of their homes through the WHRO Education Professional Development online teacher training service, PBS TeacherLine. Blue Ridge PBS offers a complement to TeacherLIne by creating content exclusive to Southwest Virginia. This 21st Century service saves teachers time and money while keeping them abreast of the latest educational practices.
Family and Community Support
Reaching into every school and home in Southwestern Virginia, our 24 hour per day educational television service, Blue Ridge PBS KIDS, is simply the best source of children’s programming available. This service was expanded to include a 24/7 streaming option that can be used on any mobile device. Featuring newer, award-winning early childhood programs such as Nature Cat, Ready Jet Go!, Odd Squad, Peg + Cat, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Esme & Roy, Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum, The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That!, The Jim Henson Company’s Dinosaur Train and Sid the Science Kid, Martha Speaks, Super Why!, and Word World, and perennial favorites Sesame Street, Curious George, Arthur, and Clifford The Big Red Dog, to name a few, Blue Ridge PBS delivered more than 12,000 hours of the best high-quality educational television programming last year, free-of-charge to every home and school in the 42% of the Commonwealth we service.
School, Educator, and Student Recognition
Many entries are received each year from aspiring artists and authors in kindergarten through 5th grade for the Annual PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest. Winners receive special awards and their families are invited to attend a special reception in their honor where each winner is recorded in the Blue Ridge PBS studio reading their winning entry. All local K-3 1st Place stories are also sent on to the national PBS KIDS Writers Contest competition.
Blue Ridge PBS Kids is our signature early childhood education initiative The PBS KIDS ® national program invests millions of dollars annually to create resources to prepare children for school and in life.
More than 40 percent of all children do not have access to high-quality preschool, and 90 percent of brain development takes place before the age of five. Blue Ridge PBS Kids works to surmount these challenges by providing information and free, accessible resources to parents and caregivers. The program empowers parents in our communities to be their children’s first teachers at this critical time in their development.
