Analysis: Children's Television

Children can be tough critics, so Julian Smith (aged 13) casts his eye over what's on telly when gets home

Recess

DISNEY

Recess is about six kids, T J Vince, Mikey, Gus, Spinelli and Gretchen, and their adventures at break time. T J makes all the decisions. Vince is the sporty one. Mikey is the poet of the gang and also the most overweight. Gus was the new boy, Spinelli the hard nut and Gretchen is the brains. Its a very good programme for young kids. It shows them how important friends are and that school is not as boring as many people think. Overall, it makes for entertaining viewing.

The Simpsons

SKY

Out of all the programmes I was asked to look at this is my all-time favourite. It is a comedy which amuses all ages. The main characters are Homer, Bart, Lisa and Marge, not forgetting Maggie the baby. Bart is the naughty tearaway. Lisa is the very smart one. Homer is the universal male - always at Moe's pub and trying his hardest to be a good family man. Marge is the housewife always stuck at home doing chores. It is fantastic and you'll laugh all the way through.

My Parents Are Aliens

CITV

This is about an alien couple Ben and Sophie who parent four orphan children, CJ, Sophie, Josh and Mel, and it is about what happens in their weird lives and how Ben and Sophie try to learn how to behave in the world. They don't seem to do very well. As they try to learn the ropes, Ben kills an animal and as he is so sad makes his own animal sanctuary, where he feeds the animals junk food. This is the sort of thing that happens. I think this is a really good and funny programme.

Rugrats

CITV

Rugrats is about a group of babies - Tommy, Chuckie, Lil and Phil - and the adventures they encounter. They turn small mishaps into big adventures. In the episode I watched there was something wrong with Tommy's father's car so he was going to get a new one. Tommy and his friends turned his car into a spaceship, a submarine and much more. This is really good for young kids because lets their imaginations run wild. When I was young I watched it a lot.

Blue Peter

BBC

Blue Peter is a programme which everyone loves. It is fun to watch as well as educational; they do role-plays for writing and drawing, and among all this they get famous bands into the studio to perform and presenters do things like wind boarding, going into sewers and doing shows in different countries. Overall I think this is a very good children's TV programme: it is convenient and starts when children arrive home; it is educational and also fun to watch.

Art Attack

CITV

This is a very good programme for young children. I think it is a very interesting show which will appeal to a wide audience. The presenter is very talented and good at explaining things so they can be easily understood. The presenter comes up with some very creative pieces and I think the audience will like to make them. Overall I think Art Attack is a very good show which teaches us a lot about art in a new easy way.

Sabrina - Teenage Witch

ITV

This show is about a witch called Sabrina and the adventures she gets in, as she fights the forces of evil in the magic world as they try to do things like steal magic objects which we thought were just ordinary. I think that this is a good show and can make kids imagine things. I think it is a good show to watch after school - it starts when most children get home. My opinion is that it will appeal to all young children, and it is a good one to watch.

Jimmy Neutron

NICKELODEON

This programme is about a boy genius who makes inventions, tests them and they go wrong and he has to save the day. Like with one of his inventions on Hallowe'en he turns everyone into zombies and has to try to turn them back. I think this is another very good show with clever animation much like in the Shrek films. I think this is a good appealing programme; it is a good adventure and it is also funny. This is a good programme which even I liked.

Tracy Beaker

CBBC

This is a programme set in an orphanage. The main character Tracy Beaker is always causing mischief and is adamant that one day her wonderful mum will come back to get her and be rich and powerful. I think this is good programme as it is set on Jacqueline Wilson's books which were very popular and I think this programme is very good and very watchable. The characters are funny and make it a very good programme.

T-Titans

CARTOON NETWORK

This programme is about superheroes Robin, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy and how they fight evil forces on different planets. They fight evil geniuses who plan to take over the earth. I think T-Titans is a good programme for young kids as everyone likes superheroes like Spider-Man or Batman. This programme has a mix of different superheroes which I think makes it more interesting.

Yu-Gi-Oh

NICKELODEON

This programme is a lot like Pokemon. It has magical creatures which are used to fight. In this they summon Duel Monsters from cards to fight evil. They fight evil people like Pegasus who wants to defeat Yugi and take over the world. The main character Yugi is very powerful; he has his own shadow of him - his dark side - which helps him to fight. It lets kids' imaginations wander in a world outside their own.

Dick and Dom

BBC

This is a comedy programme with two men who host a funny game show with kids. As well as the competition, they show cartoons in between. It is shown every Saturday from 9am to 10.30am, so the parents will still be in bed and won't mind their children watching it. Their most well-known game which is played by all is Bogies!, where go to a quiet place and see who can shout "bogies!" the loudest. I really enjoy this programme as it is hilarious and entertaining.