A little kindness can make a big difference.
Hundreds of families joined us for Be My Neighbor Day! – a free, bilingual celebration inspired by Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood and the values of caring, compassion and community.
Children hugged Daniel Tiger, created crafts exploring emotions and kindness, paged through books at a Lincoln City Libraries book pop-up, decorated Welcome Boxes for families receiving assistance from the Food Bank of Lincoln and watched the PBS KIDS series on a big screen in our Ron Hull Studio.
Every family received take-home activities in English and Spanish to continue learning together.
We extended engagement with bilingual Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood story times at Lincoln City Libraries and a community food drive benefiting the Food Bank of Lincoln.
Supported by a grant from Fred Rogers Productions, Be My Neighbor Day! encouraged Nebraska's youngest residents to discover that even small acts of kindness can help build stronger, more connected communities.
Did you know? Last year, over 130 public, private, and home schools accessed Nebraska Public Media's local and national online education resources. Additionally, over 1,500 children and families in over 25 communities engaged with our education team at learning events.
Partnering with educators is at the heart of our educational efforts to build what’s next. Together, we create resources that strengthen classroom learning, connect students with real world experiences and prepare Nebraska’s future workforce.
Working alongside Concordia University pre-service agricultural education teachers from Seward, we co-developed six classroom-ready lessons tied to Steak Science, our local documentary that explores cattle breeding, research and food safety, as well as the development of a perfect steak. The goal is practical, engaging content that meets classroom needs.
Our education team also collaborated with the documentary’s producer to create companion video segments, while experienced teachers piloted the lessons and provided feedback. Their insights are guiding final revisions and standards alignment before the resources are published statewide, with potential for national distribution through PBS LearningMedia and other PBS stations.
The collaboration gives future teachers valuable hands-on curriculum development experience and strengthens our ability to create high-quality educational resources. By listening to educators and developing materials rooted in Nebraska’s number one industry, we’re expanding meaningful learning opportunities and helping prepare the next generation of agricultural leaders.
“It was really fun to watch these kids problem-solve. You can hear their feedback and growth in this process.”
Jason Hirschfeld, Adjunct Instructor, Concordia University