The LA-based outfit behind the Baby Prodigy DVD franchise is developing SENSATIONAL 5!, its first series for a slightly older three to six demo.

The concept features five animals who solve problems by using all of their senses: seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and tasting. Andrew Viner (Bookaboo) has been tapped as a screenwriter to craft the 10 x 11-minute episode scripts.

The Baby Prodigy Company has traditionally specialized in programming for kids under the age of three. It started out in home entertainment (DVDs and CDs) and now streams content on the Kartoon Channel! Jr. on YouTube. But coming out of COVID, the company spotted an opening in the market for teaching three- to six-year-olds how to engage in sensory play.

“I have a few friends with young children in preschool and early elementary school, and they told me they were worried their kids were falling behind from a lack of structured education in Zoom elementary,” says founder and president Barbara Candiano-Marcus, recalling how the pandemic helped shape the idea for the series. “That got me thinking.”

“I wondered if the basic fundamentals of Baby Prodigy—sensory stimulation—could be used to aiding development with older age groups,” Candiano-Marcus explains. “What I found was astonishing. Not only did older children benefit from sensory exploration; it could also help adults with Alzheimer’s, autism and other learning disabilities.”