Blippi makes learning fun. Now the children's entertainer is teaching kids about body confidence.
The children’s entertainer Blippi has helped children get excited to learn about numbers, colors and shapes. Now the popular character (originated by Stevin John and currently played by Clayton Grimm) will be teaching young people about body confidence and self-love.
New data commissioned by Blippi’s parent company, Moonbug Entertainment, and conducted by We Are Family Foundation and the Centre for Appearance Research (CAR) shows that body image concerns affect children as early as age 4. It notes that one in four girls ages 4 to 6 dislike something about their appearance, while one in five 6-year-old boys say they want to be thinner. This can have various ripple effects, including a child’s willingness to raise their hand in class or participate in sports.
The research is part of Moonbug Entertainment’s years-long partnership with the Dove Self-Esteem Project, which sheds light on the importance of early intervention. “Body confidence is a sensitive and crucial topic, and we found that introducing positive messages early on can have a lasting impact on self-esteem,” Katelynn Heil, head of brand marketing and former general manager of Blippi at Moonbug Entertainment, tells Yahoo Life.
How will Blippi be helping?
Episodes featuring Blippi and his pal Meekah’s quest to put together a talent show celebrating the unique strengths of its young participants have already begun to roll out on Blippi’s YouTube channel, which boasts more than 21.2 million subscribers. Fans can also watch music videos for new Blippi songs such as “My Body Is Amazing” and “Let’s Be Different Together.”
“Music, in particular, is a powerful tool to reinforce positive self-image through simple, memorable affirmations that kids can relate to and sing along with,” says Heil. “We also ensured that diverse representation in the visuals would allow all children to see themselves reflected, making the messaging even more impactful.”
The final Wonderful Talent Show will premiere as a 75-minute special available on Prime Video on Friday, Oct. 11. It’s said to “encourage kids to love their bodies and discover all the amazing things they can do — whether it’s dancing, creating magic or inventing something new,” according to a press release.
“It’s not just about learning — it’s about having fun,” says Heil. “We wanted to create something that sparks joy and curiosity in kids while also giving parents tools to talk about important topics like body confidence.”
Why this matters
Dove’s Real State of Beauty report from April 2024 indicated that media, including television, magazines and billboards, is most responsible for influencing negative feelings about appearance among boys and girls ages 10 to 17. The latest insight from CAR finds that the same is true for even younger children. That’s why using those same mediums for positive messaging is so important, according to Ally Duvall, a senior program development lead for the virtual eating disorder treatment program Equip Health.
“I think a lot of folks are surprised to hear that people are experiencing [body dissatisfaction] so young,” Duvall tells Yahoo Life. “And at the same time, it's no surprise because we live in a world where we are constantly inundated with messages around our body and how it's never good enough.”
She points to depictions of villains with larger bodies in media aimed at children — think Ursula in The Little Mermaid. A since-edited episode of the children’s show Bluey saw dad Bandit seeming upset about his body after weighing himself and grabbing his belly.
“Kids developmentally are going to notice that bodies look different for so many reasons, whether someone has different hair or they have scars or they're in a large body or they're in a wheelchair. That's normal,” says Duvall. “They're supposed to pick up on differences and categorize things.” But this becomes a problem when “we attach negativity” to those differences, she adds. “And as a society, we've latched on to this fear around fatness and that comes through in the TV shows and the things that they experience. When we can shift that message, we can give them a very different way of existing and looking at themselves.”
Singing a Blippi song about body confidence while looking in the mirror, for example, can set a positive foundation for a child's self-esteem. As Dakari Quimby, a clinical psychologist for HelpGuide Handbook, told Parents.com, “Educational media that teaches kids how their bodies work and celebrates individual differences can also make them feel more confident and accepting of themselves and others.”
