Texas Mathematics Teacher Spring/Summer 2021 - 13

TEKS and Toons: How Modern Cartoons Align With the TEKS
Christopher Hiatt, Ph.D

Being a parent of a kindergarten-aged child, I became
interested in what math skills are promoted in modern
cartoons. When I was growing up, shows like Sesame
Street and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood were popular. Now
there are many choices in cartoons for children to
watch. Some of the modern cartoons
like Team Umizoomi, Rusty Rivets, and
Blaze and the Monster Machines claim at
the beginning of an episode to promote
Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics (STEM) concepts. There
has been a lot of research on the positive
effect some cartoons have on children's
learning. The following are the results
of a few of these studies. Kearney and
Levine (2019) found positive impacts on
the educational performance of children
who experienced their preschool years
when Sesame Street was on the television,
and that watching Sesame Street helps
more children enter kindergarten at grade level. Children
who watched PBS Kids Peg + Cat exhibited statistically
significant improvements in the mathematics skill areas of
ordinal numbers, spatial relationships, and 3-D shapes as
compared to children who did not watch Peg + Cat (Pasnik
et al., 2015).

After watching an episode of Blue's Clues, children
showed interest in learning the topic shown, and watching
improved their learning motivation (Mousavian et
al., 2014). I decided to dig into some of these modern
cartoons and compare them to some of the elementary
mathematics Texas Essential Knowledge
and Skills (TEKS) for grades K-2 (Texas
Education Agency, 2012). I also decided
to analyze these cartoons concerning
wait-time for questions. I chose to look
at cartoons that are currently showing
on Nick Jr., Disney Channel, and PBS.
One reason I chose to analyze cartoons
on these channels is that these channels
are available through most cable
providers. The cartoons I analyzed are
Team Umizoomi, Rusty Rivets, Blue's
Clues, Blaze and the Monster Machines,
Peg + Cat, Sesame Street, and Mickey
Mouse Clubhouse.
Analysis
The following table is a summary of the elementary math
TEKS that were addressed in the episodes of the cartoons
that I analyzed. The tables will serve as a reference for the
analysis of the cartoons.

Table 1: Summary of Elementary Math TEKS Referenced in this Article
TEKS Number
(Grade Level)

Summary of what this TEKS Addresses
The student is expected to:

111.2.b.1.a (K)

Apply mathematics to problems arising in everyday life, society, and the workplace

111.2.b.1.b (K)

Use a problem-solving model that incorporates analyzing given information,
formulating a plan or strategy, determining a solution, justifying the solution, and
evaluating the problem-solving process and the reasonableness of the solution

111.2.b.1.c (K)

Select tools, including real objects, manipulatives, paper and pencil, and technology as
appropriate, and techniques, including mental math, estimation, and number sense as
appropriate, to solve problems

111.2.b.2.a (K)

Count forward and backward to at least 20 with or without objects

111.2.b.2.b (K)

Read, write, and represent whole numbers from 0 to at least 20 with and without
objects or pictures

111.2.b.2.f (K)

Generate a number that is one more than or one less than another number up to
at least 20

111.2.b.2.g (K)

Compare sets of objects up to at least 20 in each set using comparative language

111.2.b.3.a (K)

Model the action of joining to represent addition and the action of separating to
represent subtraction

111.2.b.5 (K)

Recite numbers up to at least 100 by ones and tens beginning with any given number

111.2.b.6.a (K)

Identify two-dimensional shapes, including circles, triangles, rectangles, and squares
as special rectangles

111.2.b.6.c (K)

Identify two-dimensional components of three-dimensional objects

111.2.b.6.e (K)

Classify and sort a variety of regular and irregular two- and three-dimensional figures
regardless of orientation or size

111.2.b.6.f (K)

Create two-dimensional shapes using a variety of materials and drawings

111.2.b.7.a (K)

Give an example of a measurable attribute of a given object, including length, capacity,
and weight

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