Nick Jr.’s new show, Ni Hao, Kai-lan premieres today at 11 a.m. corresponding with the Chinese New Year.
The show aimed at 2 to 5 year olds focuses on a five year old girl named Kai-lan. The series explores the colorful aspects of her upbringing and background, and her relationships with family, friends, and the world around her.
The characters of the show include:
- YeYe: YeYe is Kai-lan’s grandpa. He provides her with guidance, but let’s her find her own answers while he learns from her as well.
- Rintoo: Rintoo is a five year old tiger who loves to play with his best friend Kai-lan. He is impulsive with much bravado but also sweet and caring.
- Tolee: Tolee is a koala who always puts his friends first. He sometimes worries too much, but can’t wait to be part of games and activities.
- Hoho: A three year old monkey is the youngest of Kai-lan’s friends. He loves to be the center of attention.
- Lulu:Â The oldest of the group, Lulu is a six year old pink rhino who loves to dance and is eager to help out.
Preschoolers will learn many mandarin words and phrases, as well as how to deal with issues such as taking turns, disappointment and jealousy.
The initial season has 20 episodes.
More on Ni Hao Kai-lan:
Review: ‘Ni Hao, Kai-lan’ like Mandarin Dora
Being authentic is admirable, but whether “Ni Hao, Kai-lan” succeeds or not depends less on that or even the “emotional intelligence curriculum” than it does on whether the 2-t0-5 demo finds Kai-lan and friends entertaining. It may be visually pleasing and sweet at its heart – good and good for you, as they say – but if Kai-lan, Rintoo, Tolee, Hoho, Lulu and Gramps can’t set the hook in those kids from Kansas, this series will be forgotten faster than the French you learned in high school.
Chinese-speaking Kai-lan joins network who teaches little kids Spanish with Dora, Diego
For anyone interested in China, “Ni Hao, Kai-lan” is a dramatic illustration of how much Chinese culture — like Irish, German, Italian and so many other immigrant cultures before it — is not only present in America but is part of us. That’s part of why Jade-Lianna Gao Peters, the 11-year-old Milwaukee girl who voices Kai-lan, is excited about what American kids unfamiliar with Chinese culture can glean from the show.
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