The Best of the Electric Company

I grew up on the Electric Company and I KNOW that it and vintage Sesame Street helped me read by the age of 4. In fact, both the Electric Company and vintage Sesame Street episodes (Sesame Streed Unpaved) used to air on Noggin after midnight. As a new Mom, I was THRILLED...especially since my son and I are both late-nighters. Sadly, Noggin took off both programs and only pre-teen angsty stuff is on late-night Noggin.My son is now learning to read so I bought this DVD series to help him. Oh...who am I fooling?! I also bought it because I couldn't wait to reminisce with all the cool skits on the Electric Company! Some of the hilarious and memorable things you'll find on this 4-Disc CD set include:*Greedy Greg Grabbed the Green Grapes*"I was walkin' down the street when...BOOM!"*Spidey versus the Spoiler*Several episodes of Letterman and The Spellcaster*The Silent E Song ("Who can turn a can...into a cane?")*Several Easy Reader Episodes ("Easy Reader, that's my name..." Go Morgan!)*The silhouettes (ch...ip....chip!)*Fargo North, Decoder*J. Arthur Crank*Love of Chair*Short Circus musical numbers*Guest stars like Oscar the Grouch and Big BirdWhat I had forgotten was just how incredibly educational the Electric Company is. Every single skit teaches reading...EVERY ONE! No skits are wasted by trying to be politically correct, teaching kids how to be nice and share, or demonstrating simplistic rote information over and over and over. No, the Electric Company never insulted our intelligence.Unlike what's on today.I can't believe what a wasteland children's TV is. PBS Kids was bad enough with it's drivel (Boohbah, George Shrinks, Teletubbies and other lame shows), and now that it's turned into PBS Kids Sprout as of 9/05, it's even worse! Kipper, Thomas the Tank Engine, James the Cat, Noddy...most of these have NO educational value and teach rudeness to boot! Noggin is a bit better, as is Discovery Kids, Nick Jr., and Playhouse Disney. But even THOSE networks pander to the lowest common denominator of mediocrity (which is a reflection of the adult society we live in). I've never come across a children's show that taught kids how to read just about every moment--let alone just throwing in a few truly educational skits!Why the Electric Company--all glorious 7 seasons--remains unreleased and unaired is beyond me. No wonder the brains of most children are rotting! They're fed a steady diet of violence, idiocy, and PC BS.I highly recommed this 4 disc set for both kids and Generation Xers. My 7 year old LOVES this set, and plays it quite often. It's already reinforced what I'm teaching him (blends, vowel teams, silent 'e', etc.). The skits are hilarious, even for adults (the "in" jokes are priceless), and it's great to see Bill Cosby, Rita Moreno, Morgan Freeman, Luis Alvalos and the others entertain and educate with flair and enthusiasm.They just don't make 'em like they used to...

What can I say about this gem, except it is what it is - a gem! I remember seeing episodes of The Electric Company on the Noggin channel about 20 years ago and since then, I've fallen in love with it. Most people might fear that the show doesn't grab the attention of today's generation of children (readers), but regardless of how old it may be, you can bet that some of the same techniques used back then are used even now! If your child is familiar with exercises that deals with sight words, then The Electric Company basically teaches the same thing! You watch and hear words being sounded out, spelled out, and there are even catchy songs relating to certain words and letters that I'm sure has helped children's phonic skills for many years! For instance, in show 110A of this collection (Disc 4), you'll find in the very beginning a Joe Raposo tune sung by an animated singing fox (Tom Lehrer) about how he loves to do things that begin with "sn", like sneeze, sniffle, and snore. In addition, there's the The Adventures of Letter Man, Easy Reader, the "Punctuation" song, and the classic animation/tune about "Silent E", a lowercase vowel who does magic by turning words like "can" into "cane", or "pan" into "pane". I especially find Rita Moreno's commentaries before each episode pretty informative as she gives insight as to what you will be tuning into. I don't want to be a "spoiler" and tell you everything, but I can tell you that you will definitely get your money's worth with this collection!

Rita Moreno's signature yell, much like Carol Burnett's Tarzan yodel have remained with me for years. I was reared on the early days of Sesame Street and The Electric Company. When I read in the newspaper that The Best of The Electric Company would soon be available on DVD, it made the top of my "must haves."I have not been disappointed. Aside from bringing back some great memories of my own childhood, the episodes have really boosted the reading and pre-reading skills of my own small children. My four year-old is now more interested than ever in finding the words in her books. She can also identify most of the words she's learned from watching The Electric Company.My six year-old, who is also high-functioning autistic, has always had problems with language acquisition and especially with reading. However, in the few short weeks since purchasing the DVD set, his reading skills have improved dramatically. Furthermore, his spelling test scores have improved! He's got the Silent E song memorized. At dinner time, he likes to point out the difference between "dinner" and "diner." And don't knock on our door unless you know "It's the plumber. I've come to fix the sink."It has proven to be a great purchase. The educational value found in the programs is not equalled by many programs on the air for kids today. (PBS's Between the Lions is one reading/pre-reading show that may come close.)The shows are definitely from the early to mid-70's. The music, lingo and clothing give it away. However, the messages are timeless. My kids beg to watch the DVD's.If I had to purchase all over again, I would. I've recommended it to many of my friends. If you've got early readers or pre-readers in your home, the DVD set is definitely worth the purchase.If you remember The Electric Company from your youth, the 4-disc set is a "must have." If you are looking to boost your kids' reading skills, buy the less expensive 1-disc version. You get fewer episodes, but the kids will enjoy watching them again and again and again.