17 CONTENT FOR KIDS Video at Home
hen the coronavirus lockdown began, millions of children
abundance and children need educating and entertaining, so it’s the perfect time.” On the first day of lockdown, TV presenter Maddie Moate and science journalist Greg Foot launched Let’s Go Live , a livestreamed version of their family science show, offering 30-minute videos with educational activities. “When lockdown happened, we realised there was a cry from parents overwhelmed with the fact they would have to homeschool their children,” Moate says. “Science is a tough thing to teach at primary school, so at home it’s really daunting.”
were suddenly without anything to do: schools
gone dark, parents stuck at home but working and playgrounds taped off by authorities. Suddenly, online video became the classroom, the gym and entertainment all in one. Overall viewing figures skyrocketed. Netflix saw 16m sign- ups in the first month of lockdown, YouTube gaming streams climbed by 15%, one in five people in the UK signed up for a new online video subscription and Sky said demand for child-focused content was up by 40%. Even before lockdown, more than half of eight to 12 year olds were watching online video daily, according to Common Sense Media. As a generation of children turned their undivided attention to online video, so too did artists, athletes, educators and more, flooding digital platforms such as YouTube and Instagram with high-quality content, such as theatre performances like The Wind in the Willows or the now- famous PE classes with Joe Wicks. Illustrator and comedian Olaf Falafel set up a video series for children called Art Club with Olaf Falafel that’s had thousands of views on YouTube. “It seemed like an obvious thing to do,” he says. “I’ve had the idea for a comedy art club in my brain for ages but never had enough time. Now there is no more live comedy, time is in
IT’S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE Maddie Moate and Greg Foot presenting their livestreamed family science show called Let’s Go Live
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