About Safety

About Safety is a children's educational television program which originated in 1972. It was produced by the Mississippi Authority for Educational Television. In the 3 to 6 minute shorts, marionettes, most notably Clyde Frog, taught children about safety and first aid. Mischievous Clyde has a distinctive, high-pitched voice, and would get himself into various troubles. The show illustrated dangers, ranging from traffic, guns, and tornadoes. About Safety ran for 47 episodes and the shows were quite successful. MAETV syndicated them throughout the United States.[1]

About Safety
Starring	Clyde Frog
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	47
Production
Running time	3 to 6 minutes
Production company	Mississippi Authority for Educational Television (MAETV)
Release
Original network	PBS
Original release	1972 – 1973

The character of Clyde Frog later appeared in another MAETV show, Clyde Frog Show, which taught children about self-esteem, feelings, and attitudes, and ran for ten episodes. An animated version of Clyde Frog has been featured in several episodes of South Park as a favorite toy of Eric Cartman.

Educational goals

The current Mississippi Public Broadcasting School Resource Guide summarizes the goals of About Safety: "Clyde Frog and his puppet friends learn school safety, fire safety and first aid. The open-ended lessons are designed to help elementary children develop concepts of safe living. The puppets dramatize situations that explain the need for safety rules, and demonstrate safe and unsafe activities."

By grade level, the specific goals are: Kindergarten: Demonstrate safe behavior in daily activities. First grade: Explain the importance of first aid and emergency assistance; explain ways of preventing accidents; explain the importance of safety on the school bus and playground. Second grade: Explain the potential results of accidents. Third grade: Identify the safety procedures to follow in case of natural or man-made disasters.

Episodes

There are 47 episodes total, each 3 to 6 minutes long. The episodes, as grouped roughly by subject into 16 groups by MAETV, are:

Group 101

• Clyde Learns School Bus Rules
• Clyde Waits for the School Bus
• Clyde Gets off the School Bus

Group 102

• Clyde Walks to School
• Clyde Walks from School
• Clyde Finds His Way to School

Group 103

• Clyde on the Safety Patrol
• Clyde Explores the Way to School
• Clyde at the Bus Stop

Group 104

• Clyde on the Playground
• Clyde Learns About Classroom Safety
• Clyde Gets in Trouble at School

Group 105

• Clyde on the Safety Council
• Clyde Learns Responsibility
• Clyde Walks the Halls

Group 106

• Clyde Sets an Example
• Clyde Learns About Traffic Signals
• Clyde Learns About Reflective Tape

Group 107

• Clyde Goes Trick-or-Treating
• Clyde on Halloween
• Clyde Reports His Accident

Group 108

• Clyde at Home
• Clyde Gets a Taste of Kitchen Safety
• Clyde Discovers Bathroom Safety

Group 109

• Clyde Learns About Fire Safety
• Clyde Learns About Clothing Fires
• Clyde Learns About Gun Safety

Group 110

• Clyde Learns About Fireworks
• Clyde and the Firecracker
• Clyde Learns About First Aid

Group 111

• Clyde Learns About Winter Safety
• Clyde Learns About Safe Sledding
• Clyde Learns About Baby-sitting

Group 112

• Clyde Visits the Farm
• Clyde Rides in a Car
• Clyde Reads Traffic Signs

Group 113

• Clyde Takes a Hike
• Clyde on the Railroad Tracks
• Clyde Goes Hitchhiking

Group 114

• Clyde and the Tornado
• Clyde Flies a Kite
• Clyde Learns About Water Safety

Group 115

• Clyde Takes a Swim
• Clyde Learns About Germs
• Clyde Explores the Medicine Chest

Group 116

• Clyde Tests His Bicycle
• Clyde Enjoys Bicycle Safety

Summaries

The Hawaii Department Of Education website lists summaries for 19 of the 47 episodes, as follows:

Clyde learns School Bus Rules, A bus accident happens when Clyde Frog and his puppet friends ignore safety rules.

Clyde Gets off the School Bus, Clyde Frog and his puppet friends participate in a school bus safety contest.

Clyde Walks to School, Clyde Frog and his puppet friend Andy walk to school unsafely.

Clyde on the Safety Patrol, Clyde Frog panics when faced with school patrol responsibilities.

Clyde Walks from School, Clyde Frog is the subject of a TV special on walking home safely.

Clyde learns About Reflective Tape, Clyde Frog stumbles over his bicycle in the dark.

Clyde learns About Fire Safety, Clyde Frog learns fire safety tips when his toy is ignited by a campfire.

Clyde learns About Classroom Safety, Clyde Frog reads a story about school accidents.

Clyde on the Playground, Clyde Frog ends up in the hospital after playing baseball unsafely.

Clyde Goes Trick-or-Treating, Clyde Frog wears a dark costume with a poorly fitting mask.

Clyde Enjoys Bicycle Safety, Clyde Frog learns important safety tips while competing in a marathon bike rally.

Clyde Rides in a Car, Clyde Frog breaks safety rules and gets into trouble during a car ride with his father.

Clyde Gets in Trouble at School, Clyde Frog learns that he must practice safety, not just know the rules.

Clyde learns About First Aid, Clyde Frog learns first aid for bleeding and sprained ankles while reading about one of his ancestors.

Clyde Takes a Hike, While hiking with his puppet friends, Clyde Frog learns to recognize poison ivy the hard way.

Clyde Flies a Kite, Clyde Frog and his friend Andy learns from a book character how to fly a kite safely.

Clyde learns About Germs, Clyde Frog and his friend Max look at germs through a microscope and learn how to care for cuts and bleeding.

Clyde at Home, After several minor accidents, Clyde Frog learns that safety also must be practiced at home.

Clyde learns About Gun Safety, Clyde Frog almost loses his life when his friend Andy plays with his father's real gun.

Notes

1. Fine Arts Archived 2007-09-26 at the Wayback Machine

External links

• "MPB School Resource Guide" (PDF). 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-26. Retrieved 2007-12-15.
• "Hawaii Dept. of Education Teleschool". 2007. Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2007-12-15.