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The chapter rang very true to me. It was interesting, easy to relate to, and honestly, the nostalgia that the television show descriptions induced both scared me and intrigued me further. Was it my love of Blue's Clues as a child that let me remember Blue's favorite animal was a penguin, or was it simply the fact the show was so "sticky" I felt the need not only to watch it several times as a child, but also remember the information as a young adult? It's terrifying. Weird brain memories aside, the chapter was insightful, and I agreed with what Gladwell said. I can't help but wonder, however, over the success of Blue's Clues. While it makes total sense it would surpass Sesame Street in attention and interest, it would be nice to see if Blue's Clues actually taught children more skills as well.
^This picture is from the penguin episode of Blue's Clues, but I was unfortunately unable to find the moment they show the penguin in the episode
A common stereotype that was addressed and proven incorrect was the assumption that children did not have a long enough attention span to learn information in a story format. Unfortunately for Sesame Street, which made "magazine" formatting to avoid boring toddlers and children, Blue's Clues was more "sticky" and interesting for children--mostly due to the fact it was in a story format!
In order to learn something, it needs to stick in our minds. Calculating the "Stickiness Factor," however, is not a simple task. In the chapter, "The Stickiness Factor: Sesame Street, Blue's Clues , and the Educational Virus," Gladwell speaks about not only how educational television shows were made successful by using "stickiness," but also talks of triggers and reward systems, such as in the section with record commercials. Gladwell argues that if you can engage the mind in "a game of sorts" focused on rewards, stories, and interesting images, the brain is wired to remember and take action on it, as opposed to looking at a pretty ad in a magazine and never taking action by buying the product. This is also true with the educational television shows that Gladwell frames the chapter around. Shows such as Sesame Street, and (more effectively) Blue's Clues, harness the "Sticky Factor" to such a degree that the low-activity television watching suddenly becomes an engaging environment which invokes thought and learning from a young age. Sesame Street Muppets spelling words with their fingers engages young children to spell words and learn letters effectively. The literal wording and story of Blue's Clues makes the show a problem-solving puzzle which makes young children learn and think at the same time. Other factors that help engage children, such as call-and-response, repetition, and asking questions (with pauses long enough for children to answer) were also mentioned.
-The "Sticky Factor" of Blue's Clues is astounding, because as Gladwell described some episodes for the book, I was still able to remember the "mysteries" before Gladwell even described the full episodes (e.g. Blue's favorite animal is a penguin).
-The fact that young children crave repetition due to how they process information and engage in early learning makes the reason why the young children I babysit for love reading the same books, watching the same movies, or following the same routine a lot more clear.
-The "reward" system hinted at briefly in the book, where there is a trigger and incentive somewhat parallels how the brain responds to texting and Candy Crush.
-While I had always been indifferent towards the "is-educational-television-safe-for-kids" debate, "The Tipping Point" certainly pointed in the direction of "yes." When I'm babysitting small children or one day have children of my own, this book might come back to mind, reminding me that at the end of the day, not all television shows are terrible. (In addition, I know know why a puzzle-like story formatted show like "Blue's Clues" or "Dora the Explorer" may very well be the kid's favorite show.)
-Next time I'm trying to play a "play pretend" game with small children, I'll remember to use the strategies that Blue's Clues uses to captivate kids and promote learning. Repetition, asking questions with excess time to answer, and puzzle-like story-lines intrigue and entertain young children, but also encourage problem solving and other important skills. Playing that way would be much more time-worthy than wandering around the house or running in circles.
-Next time I see a commercial with some sort of task or trigger, I'll know exactly why corporations do the things they do. They want to engage the audience.
-Another small theme of the book is how small changes can make a difference. Next time my writing doesn't feel right, or a project isn't going well and I can't quite place it--I'll make sure to see if there's any small issues I need to fix. It might improve whatever I'm working more than first expected!