Sebastian has well and truly fallen in love with ‘In The Night Garden’ (ITNG) over the last few weeks. I had been debating whether or not to introduce it to him for a while, and I ultimately concluded that I was comfortable letting Seb watch an episode of ITNG as part of our evening routine.
Given that ITNG has proven to be such a hit with my son, I decided to do some research on the psychology behind the programme so that I could be better informed about its developmental and educational benefits. Children’s television is an extremely contraversial subject and many parents strongly object to shows like ITNG, but I believe they can be a useful tool in helping a child make sense of their world.
ITNG is all about a magical place that exists between waking and sleeping in a child’s imagination. Igglepiggle is the central character and he is seen floating out to sea in a small sailboat at the start of each episode. This serves as a metaphorical explanation for sleep with Igglepiggle sailing away on a sea of sleep before he starts dreaming of a fantasy land.
The Night Garden is inhabited by a number of funny and eccentric toy-like creatures. The characters have a simple language system and each of the key characters have their own trademark song. For those of you just starting out with ITNG, I have summarised the various different characters below:
- Igglepiggle – a well-loved teddy who always carries around his red comfort blanket; curious and adventurous but often needs reassurance from the narrator.
- Upsy Daisy – a happy and optimistic dolly; best friends with Igglepiggle.
- Makka Pakka – cave-dwelling creature who likes collecting and washing stones; he always has his sponge and soap which he calls his “Agga Pang”.
- Pontipines – family of 10 peg dolls that live in a semi-detached house at the foot of a tree; children often go missing but always return home safely.
- Tombliboos – pepper-pot creatures that live inside a topiary bush; totter about as a group; called Unn, Ooo and Eee.
- Ninky Nonk – funny train with different sized carriages.
- Pinky Ponk – airship that the toys can travel in.
- Haahoos – 5 enormous pillowy characters who roam the garden at a leisurely pace.
The songs from ITNG are catchy to say the least, to the point that Mr G and I can regularly be found humming or whistling them around the house. The best bit about them is that they are so conducive to ad libbing. Once you know the tune, you can just make the words up as you go along. Makka Pakka’s song gives you an idea of how weird and wonderful the lyrics are…
Makka Pakka, Akka Wakka, Mikka Makka moo!
Makka Pakka, Appa yakka, Ikka akka, ooo
Hum dum, Agga pang, Ing, ang, ooo
Makka Pakka, Akka wakka, Mikka Makka moo!
One of the creators of ITNG trained as a speech therapist and the play-language developed for the programme is rooted in his knowledge of speech development. It therefore emphasises the key sounds typical of a toddler’s first attempts at talking. The programme also utilises subliminal association techniques to help children with learning first words. The best example of this is the names given to the Tombliboos:
- Tombliboo Unn
- Tombliboo Ooo
- Tombliboo Eee
The 3 Tombliboo characters are always referred to in this order and it is helping the child to learn One, Two, Three. It’s a very obvious association but I had never noticed it until I did this research.
The other example is the name given to Upsy Daisy which sounds remarkably similar to ‘Ups a Daisy’, a phrase often used by parents when picking up a child who has fallen over.
ITNG has a real innocence about it and the consistent structure from episode to episode is both reassuring and comforting. The whole premise of the programme is that bedtime is a time for calmness and it attempts to diffuse tantrums by creating a situtation that the child can relate to.
I definitely have a soft spot for Makka Pakka and his OCD tendencies, and I love how the creators have used this character to diffuse another potentially difficult situation. Like many children, Sebastian absolutely hates having his face washed after meals. Makka Pakka loves to wash and dry the faces of the other toys and this playful version of face washing can assist parents to overcome battles with their toddler.
Having done my research on the psychology behind ITNG, I feel reassured that it has been created with a view to helping Sebastian understand his world. ITNG respects the young child’s ability to use symbolism and transports them to a world of rich fantasy. Sebastian is transfixed from the moment the programme starts and it obviously speaks to him in a way that is both entertaining and captivating. Provided that his exposure to children’s television is kept to a minimum, I do not see it as harmful and I will not deny him the happiness he so obviously gets from watching ITNG.
Project Mum 