Sesame Workshop prepares kids for emergencies

Sesame Workshop is set to release a family emergency preparedness kit for families. The nonprofit educational organization says the number of emergencies people in the U.S. have faced in the past five years, including hurricanes, storms, floods, wildfires and on-going threats of terrorism, has spurred the need for an instructional emergency kit. Banking and brokerage firm Bear Sterns partnered with The Workshop to develop and produce the educational outreach program. Some 25,000 kits are being distributed next spring via health care, emergency preparedness and childcare networks.

A print guide for parents containing tips such as how to create a plan as a family and help children memorize basic personal information is also part of the package. The kids content will include an activity book and DVD starring Sesame Street Muppets in a story about being prepared for emergencies.

It’s your great 40th Anniversary, Charlie Brown

In celebration of the 40th anniversary of the classic Peanuts Halloween special, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, grocery stores across the U.S. will be stocked with pumpkins featuring Peanuts-branded stickers. United Media has inked a deal with Hinkle Produce to supply approximately 10-million pumpkins to populate in-store Peanuts Pumpkin Patches this fall. Additionally, Snoopy.com is hosting a dedicated Great Pumpkin mini-site featuring a celebrity page and trivia, while Paramount Home Entertainment is releasing a 40th anniversary DVD of the special that will air nationally on ABC.