Play School

- Season 27

(1992)

aka 37.1 Every day this week the 'Heads and Shoulders' animation is shown. A jointed wooden figure is the calendar. Benita and George draw around the shape of each other to create outlines. They paint the shapes to match the colours of their clothing. They make a twin stroller for Kim and Lisa. The presenters stand in statue shapes. Through the windows there are lots of twins. The story is 'Red is Best' by Kathy Stinson, with illustrations by Robin Baird Lewis.

aka ep37.2 Benita and George make body stamps from card glued onto blocks of wood. They create a frieze with the body stamps and decorate them. George looks at photographs and discuss the feelings demonstrated. Benita tells the story of 'Snock the Sock Thief', which is then acted out around a wash line with George. Benita draws eyes on her hands and animates them. She then paints patterns on George's body. Through the windows there is body painting.

aka 37.3 Noni and George feed the Play School pets. Body variations and features are discussed. Animals are found in their environment on a large collage picture. George makes a beak and newspaper feathers and does a wobbly emu walk. Sofya tells the story 'What am I?', then shows sign language. The story is retold with Noni speaking and Sofya signing. A miming game is played with Sofya introducing activities. The toys try out a washing basket trampoline and an ironing board slide and a broom balancing beam at a Kindy gym. Through the windows there are children at a ...

aka ep37.4 Noni and George paint blobs on paper and use them for a simple puppet show played against a black background. They use their hands for dancing. The animation 'One Day a Hand Went Walking' is shown. Humpty and Big Ted try out exercises. Big Ted is given a wash in a cardboard box. Finger painting is done and print is made. The story 'The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything' is told. Through the windows a child is being washed.

Noni and George make gingerbread people. They clean up the kitchen and sing 'Singing in the Kitchen'. Noni and George tell the story of The Gingerbread Man using the toys. They sing 'Running to the Corner' showing feeling out of breath. Jemima has a mild asthma attack and is given a puffer to help her breathe. Through the windows is an asthma clinic. A life size drawing of a skeleton has 'doors' that open to show inside parts - heart, lungs and stomach made of soft material.

aka ep38.1 Every day this week the 'Bags' animation is shown, sung by Don Spencer. Benita and John make bags with a sewing machine. They act out a stitching mime: tiny, straight and zig-zag stitches. They guess which toy is in a feely bag. They move like a hairy bear in a hessian sack. They make a cloth bag into a bear. Through the windows a Big Ted bear is made in a soft-toy factory. The story is 'My Brown Bear Barney' by Dorothy Butler and illustrated by Elizabeth Fuller.

Benita and John make rubber glove puppets with paper bags. They move along to 'Bags' bouncing, twisting and sagging. The story is 'The Saggy Baggy Elephant' by Gustaf Tenggren. They dress up as elephants. Through the windows is a rubber glove factory.

aka ep38.3 Trisha and George decorate a pyjama bag for Banana. They all go camping, putting up a tent, cook sausages, make billy tea, sing 'Waltzing Matilda' and try to sleep in sleeping bags. They play a finger game about an ostrich, a snake, a bird and someone sleeping. They make simple, white paper bag puppets to appear as characters in a story. Through the windows is an ostrich in Open Plains Zoo in Dubbo. The story is 'The Bananas in Pyjamas Holiday Book' by Katrina van Gendt.

Trisha and George play a guessing game with the contents of different bags. The presenters tell a story with paper vehicles about 'Molly, Polly and Dolly's journeys'. Scrap and the presenters play astronauts with paper bag space hats. Through the windows, children dress up.

George and Benita open some of the Play School mail. They make a post pack into a face and post bag. The story 'Mrs Winkle Twinkle' is acted out. Through the windows is bush tucker.

aka ep39.1 Trisha and Simon tidy and sort the Useful Box. They squash cardboard boxes for recycling. Trisha pretends to be a nurse and ministers to SImon who has a cold. Through the windows is Meals on Wheels. Trisha and Simon make meals on wheels and deliver them to the toys. The story is 'The Shht Ptt Pen Helps' told with a thick marker pen.

aka ep39.2 Trisha and Simon wash Jim and Hamble's clothes. They play a game with cut out clothes on a washing line, which is 'muddied' by toy animals. They make play dough pigs. Simon gives Jim and Hamble a bath. Through the windows a family bathe their baby brother. The story is 'Soap and Suds' by Diane Paterson.

Simon and Trisha play with some visiting kittens. Trisha pretends to be a vet to help Simon's pets Scrap and Diddle. Penny visits with her piano accordion. The story is 'Six Dinner Sid' by Inga Moore. Simon pretends to attempt eating six dinners. The 'Black Cat' animation is shown. Through the windows is a seeing eye dog.

aka ep39.4 Trisha and Simon make three types of transportation vehicle from blocks and chairs - a truck, a train and a ferry boat. They play a matching and mix up game in which cut out vehicles are stuck onto land, sea or air space on a drawing board. They do face and hand 'tricks'. Rhythms are played on cardboard boxes and body rhythms. Through the windows are African drums. The story 'Diddle up the Tree' is acted out with the toys. The 'Standing on One Leg' animation is shown.

aka ep39.5 Trisha and Simon make popcorn. They stir up a 'bedroom stew' from cushions and clothes. 'The Garbage Man' animation is shown. They have a garbage collection. The presenters clean the kitchen. Through the windows are cleaners. The story is 'Diddle up a Gum Tree'.

aka 40.1. Monica and George have cardboard cut-outs with pipe cleaners and drinking straws attached to present a do-it-yourself theatre with a black backdrop. The puppet show is about a teapot and a blowfly. They play a rhyming game where they pick a name that sounds the same for six objects (shell, bell, car, star, fork, cork). They pretend to react to a hairy, scary thing. They make a turban with a towel. Through the windows a Sikh boy is shown. We see the 'Ning Nang Nong' animation and children acting out 'Polly Put the Kettle On'. The story is 'Hairy Maclary From ...

Monica and George make Nursery Rhyme pictures with paint-soaked sponge mops, scourers, thongs and fly swats, which they bang, swish, thump and pat to the beat of the rhymes 'Twinkle Twinkle', 'Pat a Cake', 'Sing a Song of Sixpence' and 'Diddle Diddle Dumpling'. They dress up sharing a single shirt and skirt and a pair of shoes and gloves. They play a rhyming game with numbers on a clock face. The story is 'Mortimer' by Robert Mursch and told by the presenters with finger cymbals and maracas. Children are shown performing 'Diddle Diddle Dumpling'. Through the windows ...

Monica and George look at three hens - one white, one red, one black - and a rooster which are visiting. They mime pony riding and digging in the garden. They build a house for Big Ted with cardboard boxes and create a garden with paper. They make up a nonsense story on the pattern of 'The House that Jack Built' using the toys. Through the windows are garden tools being made in a factory. We see children performing 'Yankee Doodle'. The story is an animation of 'The House That Jack Built'.

Noni and George sing 'Oomba Baroomba' with different animal cutouts. The story is 'Go Tell it to the Toucan' by Colin West, told with animal cutouts by the presenters. Kathy visits with her violin to play the 'Hokey Pokey' and perform 'Hey Diddle Diddle' with the toys. Through the windows there are cheetahs at the Dubbo Open Plains Zoo. The 'Hey Diddle Diddle' animation is shown.

aka ep40.5. Noni and George test whether items will float or sink, including an apple, a sea shell, a feather and a pebble. They put them in a bucket of water to find out. Then they make an aluminum foil boat to see if they can make the pebble float. The toys are used with play 'Rub a Dub Dub'. The presenters play with water and plastic containers which gurgle, squirt and pour. The story is 'Who Sank the Boat' by Pamela Allen. Children are shown playing 'Row, row, row your boat'. Through the windows is a rain walk.

aka ep41.1 Trisha and Simon make a crab from a paper plate and a bowl, some pipe cleaners and some pegs. They make a tropical island from towels, rugs, cardboard tubes and torn newspaper is set out. A pelican is created from a plastic bottle with two beach hats. The story is 'Nasiko and Nakato', a folktale from Vanuatu. Through the windows it's pelican feeding time.

Trisha and Simon use half a watermelon, a lettuce leaf and a stick of celery to make a boat. Pretzels and cream cheese are used to make a person. Simon colours a circle of cardboard in pink and green. He puts black spots on it to make a watermelon sunhat. They act out a sea rescue. Through the windows is a trawler fisher. The story is 'Magic Beach' by Alison Lester.

Monica and George make an underwater scene under a table using cushions, crepe paper, water filled balloons, paper plates and stuffed socks. Bread trays on the table make a boat. They pretend to go fishing for sponges under the 'sea'. A tops and tails game is played using two boxes - one with an animal head drawn on it and the other with a tail. Through the windows some horses are swimming and playing on the beach. The story is 'Swimmy' by Leo Lionni.

Monica and George use a sheet, cushions, doona, washing basket, cardboard cylinders and bits of paper to make an island scene. Home-made sea creatures are placed in the 'sea'. Don joins in to tell the story of 'The Owl and the Pussycat' by Edward Lear. Through the windows are colourful fish in the sea. Humpty, Diddle and Owl are taken on a holiday cruise through the cushion islands. A sailing boat is made from a baby's bath, a cardboard cylinder and a pillow slip.

aka ep41.5 OUTSIDE BROADCAST Monica, John and Don visit the beach. They build a sandcastle to sing 'There was a Princess'. Don sings for a group of children. Monica goes for a swim. John looks in rock pools. Don cooks a barbecue.

aka ep42.1 Trisha and John paint faces on a perspex screen and then add different hairstyles. A puppet, 'Shakin' Shirl', is made with cardboard, a ruler and some pipe cleaners. Pretend muesli is made with torn paper and served up for a 'Bears' breakfast'. Shakin' Shirl visits 'Hairy Harry's Hairdressing Salon'. Through the windows Elenor has her hair done at a hairdresser's to go to a party. The story is 'Somebody and the Three Blairs' by Marilyn Tolhurst.

Trisha and John weave a 'robot face' onto a piece of fencing using paper, socks and tinsel. A robot hat and remote control are constructed from a colander, saucepan, coat hanger and chocolate wrappers. Trisha controls John the Robot in a robot game. The Robot face is transformed into a horse's back for John. Wool skeins, an ice-cream container, gumboots and Trisha are added to complete the horse who then gallops off with Jemima riding on the back. The story 'Around the World' is performed by the presenters. Through the windows is horse riding (riding for the disabled).

Trisha, Pauline and John play an animal guessing game with a doona as their costume. John feeds and brushes Jack and Jill the guinea pigs. Trisha brushes Hamble's hair and teeth. Pauline 'the doctor' prescribes some medicine for John who is 'sick, sick, sick'. Pauline tells the story 'Wunja the Echidna' written by Karen Vaughan. Footage is shown of echidnas and through the windows it is medicine time in a children's hospital.

Trisha and John play a 'Here is the Box' hiding game with the toys. The presenters then decorate the box. They use it as a hat and then as the setting for the story, which is 'The Quangle Wangle's Hat' by Edward Lear. A 'Humpty flip board' reveals a series of funny hats for Humpty including Jelly, Frog and Helicopter 'hats', which John mimes and sings to 'My Hat it has Three Corners'. Trisha and John make wigs for the toys and involve them in a performance named 'The Hairy Happity Toy Tree Show', ending with the 'Wiggerly Woo'. Through the windows a group of children ...

Trisha and John make multi-coloured bubble pints, which are later used as the background for a 'fishie' story. The use of detergent in bubble making is discussed and demonstrated with small, medium and giant sized bubbles being made. John washes Hamble's hair with more bubbles. Exciting hair styles are invented using 'spangly' wigs and helium balloons. The story of 'Dirty Squirty Squ' is performed with dishwashing and kitchen equipment in a water tray. Through the windows there is a Dolls Hospital visited by Jessica and her mother with their doll needing new hair and ...

aka ep43.1 Monica and George make and furnish a cardboard box house. George sings a cleaning song, emphasising the speed with which jobs can be done by machine. Potato latkes and a strawberry milkshake are made using a food processor and blender. Paper teddy bears dance and then visit the rooms of the cardboard box house. The story is 'When Dad did the Washing' by Rhonda and David Armitage. Through the windows is the Tiny Teddies factory.

Monica and George work with a cardboard box crane. They use the toys to tell a story where Little Ted loves climbing and keeps getting stuck up a tree, a tower and then a mountain. Through the windows there is a luggage carousel at the airport. The presenters role play the toys collecting their luggage from the airport.

Noni and George move pot plants with a wheelbarrow, then arrange and decorate the area. A cutting from an impatiens plant is potted and watered. Cress is planted in eggshell faces and fully grown cress is cut. A tractor is made out of blocks with a cardboard roll bar. Then a safety seat is added for a passenger. Through the windows cotton is being picked. The story is 'Snowball is Lost'.

Noni and George make and use a Super Dooper hand-get-ready-in-the-morning machine to wash face, brush hair and clean teeth. George makes Noni breakfast of French toast and orange juice. The toys sit at a box table for pizza lunch. The box then becomes a bunk bed, then a bus. The presenters make the movements of mechanical toys, based on the ones they see through the windows. Greg visits and draws illustrations for the story 'Rani's Breakfast Friends'.

Trisha and John fill bottles with water and colour is added, then floating objects. Water is poured into a water wheel. A computer shows a page from the story, which is 'Just Grandma and Me' by Mercer Mayer. A large play computer is made from a cardboard box. Through the windows is a steam train.

aka ep44.1 Monica and George build skyscrapers out of boxes, using paper cutout windows. A tree is made using a bare branch. The leaves are scrunched up newspaper painted green. A long cardboard box becomes a tunnel. Corrugated cardboard is placed over the top as a park for Little Ted to wait before he goes to the station. The story 'The CIty Tree' is performed. Through the windows is a train trip to the city. The animation 'Walking in the City' is shown.

George sets up a market stall selling clothes. Monica buys clothes for herself and the toys. Walking and jumping actions are done. A miniature adventure playground is made out of a cardboard box with tape tied to become a ladder and a knotted rope. The slippery dip is a shoe box. The people are twisted fluffy pipe cleaners. Through the windows is an adventure playground and markets. The animation 'I'm Walking in the City' is shown. The story is 'Alfie Gets in First' by Shirley Hughes.

OUTSIDE BROADCAST - The Royal Botanical Gardens, Sydney. Monica, John and Colin visit the gardens. Monica and John perform 'The Three Billy Goats Gruff'. The presenters sing 'Oomba Baroomba' looking at the different statues. John has a rest on a bench.

Benita and John sort junk into bottles, cans, paper and things to be re-used. They make junk sculpture statues. A wind chime is made from drink cans. A bag is stuffed with newspaper to make a ball to play basketball with a washing basket for a goal. Through the windows there is a leisure centre. The animations 'I'm Walking in the City' and 'Dingle Dangle Scarecrow' are shown. The story of 'The Junk Stall' is performed.

Trisha and David make a big over-the-shoulder box car and turn it into an ambulance for Humpty. Other vehicles are made from recycled containers, a milk truck from milk cartons, a fire engine, a street sweeper and a garbage truck. The fire engine ladder is made from a coat hanger and hair bands. The presenters play with the vehicles to create traffic. Through the windows are city sounds. The animations 'Garbage Man' and 'I'm Walking in the City' are shown. The story is 'I Went Walking' by Sue Machin.

aka ep46.1 Monica and John make round shape stars from crumpled foil and hang them on a clothes line galaxy. Monica makes a spinning top from a paper plate and pencil. John uses a home-made aeroplane to fly from Australia to Italy on a Calendar ball globe. The presenters perform the story of "Jemima delivers the mail" using the toys.

Carlton and Benita make a garden sculpture from clay and things found in the garden. Benita creates shadow puppets using Mini Bananas in pyjamas and Mini Ted. Carlton and Benita put on a mini shadow-puppet chase. Through the windows we see NASA landing on the moon.

John milks Bessie the cow and uses the milk to make some porridge for Monica. Monica uses the calendar ball as the world and a desk lamp as the sun-Mini Bananas go to sleep and wake up as the earth revolves. Through the windows there are animals at night time.

Benita creates a star-filled sky out of a black cardboard box with lots of holes by shinning a torch in the back. Benita and Carlton play a dreaming game: Benita 'dreams' and Carlton draws her dream. Benita makes a rocket and then a lantern out of empty milk cartons. Benita and Carlton make light patterns with torches covered in coloured cellophane. The story of 'Loawnu Mends the Sky' is told against a blue screen with effects.

Monica joins dot-to-dot pictures to reveal Play School toys. Monica and John take turns to play tenpin bowling using ten plastic bottles and a foam rubber ball. Monica joins suspended stars with silver tinsel to make a picture of a crown. John and Monica land their 'spaceship' and find themselves in Upsy Down Planet - a planet where everything is upside down.

Benita and George meet members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in the studio. Trisha is on location at rehearsals with the SSO. The story is 'Orlando' by Gwenda Smyth.

VHS release only: Monica and George present a selection of musical clips from previous episodes and perform songs themselves with percussion and kitchen equipment.