Play School - Season 9 (1974)

Aka ep#344 John, dressed as a clown, sings 'The Circus is Coming Today' with Lorraine. He performs circus tricks, lifting dumbbells, juggling and balancing. 'He Likes Dogs' is sung. It is six o'clock on the clock. The story is 'Benjie the Circus Dog' by Donald Bisset. The presenters invite participation in a clapping and jumping song. Through the windows there are circus puppets, elephant, seal and acrobats. In the Play School circus, Lorraine balances a ball, Hamble rides the rocking horse, Jemima swings on a trapeze and John tries to jump through a paper hoop. They ...

Aka ep#345 Lorraine and John make models with spoons and containers over which they sing 'The Farmer in the Dell'. 'He Likes Dogs' is sung. Through the windows dogs are rounding up sheep on a farm. Lorraine and John sing 'I Went to Visit a Farm': we hear sheep and a sheep farmer. It is five o'clock on the clock. The story is 'Can William Whistle?' about a boy who receives a dog for a present for his fifth birthday. Lorraine plays a finger game, 'Five Little Candles'. Through the windows Benita takes her dog for a ride in her truck. Lorraine and John sing 'Dog Goes ...

Aka 100.1 ep#346 Benita and John find some bits and pieces in the Useful Box to make masks. The song of the week is sung: 'When Someone Smiles at Me'. Both sing 'If You're Happy and You know It' with emotions 'angry', 'happy' and 'sad'. It is seven o'clock on the clock. The story is an adaption of The Ugly Duckling called 'The Strange Little Duckling'. Benita sings finger play 'Five Little Ducks' and repeats it with 'Five Little Swans'. Through the windows a little boy is playing with his friends the duck and other animals. John sings 'I Said Good Morning', finishing ...

Aka ep#347 Benita and John dress up to go to a fancy dress party. John dresses as a monster and Benita as a robot. The toys arrive in costumes, a couple of the toys being dressed as the characters in nursery rhymes: Hamble as a bride, Big Ted as a pirate, Jemima as a queen, Diddle with a fiddle for 'Hey Diddle Diddle', Humpty as a cook and Sam the lamb as an old woman who lived in a shoe. Both sing appropriate nursery rhymes. When all are at the party they sing 'The More We Are Together'. It is seven o'clock on the clock with hills and animals underneath. The story is...

Ep#348 Benita and John chat to the Play School pets and talk about how to take care of them. Benita sings 'When Someone Smiles at Me'. Through the windows there are unusual animal friends playing together. John and Benita have a mock dog-and-cat 'fight'. Benita sings 'Five Little Puppydogs', with finger actions. It is half past seven on the clock. The story 'Two Little Bears' by Ylla, about two little bears who have an adventure. Benita and John sing 'The Bear Went Over the Mountain' with Big Ted and Little Ted. They gather all the toys together and sing 'The More We ...

Ep#349 John helps Benita with housework. They both sing 'I Went to Visit a Friend' with actions of washing, drying, ironing and vacuuming. Through the windows a family is sharing activities on the beach. Benita sings 'How Many People Live at Your House?' Both count the number of people in Play School. It is half past seven on the clock. The story is about a lost cat. John sings 'I Bought Me a Cat' with the toys. Benita joins him and they mime taking photographs of each other, plus photo of the viewer. Both sing 'When Someone Smiles at Me'.

Aka ep#350 Benita and John weigh the toys, explaining how the scales work. Benita sings 'See Saw Marjorie Daw' as toys swing on the scales. John makes a see-saw from a block and planks of wood, and he and Benita have a see-saw. The see-saw is then turned into a balancing board and Benita does some balancing tricks on it. Both sing 'Elephant Song' while balancing on the board. It is half past seven on the clock. The story is 'Will I Have a Friend' by Miriam Cohen, and is about a little boy going to school for the first time. 'When Someone Smiles at Me' is sung. Both ...

Aka 101.1 ep#351 Lorraine and John make party hats for themselves and the toys. Paper and other items used are from the Useful Box. They sing 'Today I Feel So Happy'. The song of the week about jobs, is sung. The story is 'The Man Who Collected Hats'. Lorraine shows a book about a policeman at work, then sings the action song, 'I Went to the Beach'. Through the windows there is a hat factory. John does a trick with a magician's hat and they sing 'Never Saw Anything Like It'.

Aka ep#352 Lorraine and Reg show a TV set made from a cardboard carton, corks and straws and pull a picture strip of children's pictures and magazine cut-outs showing drivers and their vehicles through it. They sing 'Humpty Dumpty' and sing the song of the week about today's job, a driver. They dress up as a service station attendant and the driver of a motor cycle, a car and a truck. Lorraine says a poem about the sound of petrol in the tank, air in the tyres and water in the radiator. The story is 'The Big Black Rubber Tyre' about a tyre's adventures as it rolls ...

Aka ep#353 Lorraine and Barry sing 'The Hello Song' to Cocky and Henry the mouse. 'The Job Song' is sung. We see pictures of a butcher, baker and greengrocer in their shops. Barry sings 'Listen to the Sausages' with finger actions and sausage sound-effects. Lorraine sings 'Five Currant Buns'. Barry tells the traditional story of 'The Great Big Enormous Turnip'. He and Lorraine play a pulling game. Lorraine makes potato prints of fish shapes. Through the windows is a fish and chip shop. Lorraine makes chips from a potato. Both sing an action counting song, 'One Potato,...

Aka ep#354 Lorraine and Alister use rags from the ragbag for a game of 'Doctor and Patients'. Lorraine treats the toys and applies a 'stethescope' and 'bandages'. The song of the week is sung about jobs. Humpty has measles. They sing 'A Spot on the End of his Nose'. Alister has his heart, chest and throat checked. Lorraine's diagnosis: appendicitis. Lorraine tells the story of 'Madeline' by Ludwig Bemelmans, who has her appendix removed in hospital. Alister sings an 'Ambulance Song'. Lorraine (now a nurse) looks after Jemima in hospital. Through the windows children ...

Aka ep#355 Lorraine, Alister and Benita sing 'The Hello Song'. They each say a nonsense poem with actions to accompany a variety of jobs: 'My Father is a Garbage Man'. Lorraine drums her knees and Alister drums his 'drum', a plastic bucket with brown paper stuck over the top. Benita shows some 'shakers' (empty detergent bottles), making the rattling sound with pebbles, buttons and milk bottletops. The story is 'The Baby and the Band' in which an old lady is disturbed at night by the music of a pop group next door, then by their baby (Little Ted). Through the windows ...

Aka ep#356 Jan and Alister make a collage picture during this week which illustrates 'The Paper Song'. They use crumpled paper for clouds, a carton top for the sun and pattycake 'flowers' have drinking straw stems. Alister makes a cutout car from a cereal box. A participation song 'Driving' is sung by Jan as she goes through car-driving situations. Alister shows bad road behaviour by walking in front of the car, bouncing a ball, then takes the role of a police officer. It is four o'clock on the clock. Alister illustrates the story 'Blobs and Lines'. After the story, '...

Aka ep#357 Alister draws the outline shape of Jan on newspaper then sings about their clothes as they are added to the drawing. Having compared her shape with the completed drawing, there is an activity song with shaking and stamping. Alister makes a 'gonk' with an old pillowcase filled with newspaper. It is six o'clock on the clock. The story is 'Noses Noses'. Pipe cleaners are made into spectacles for the Gonk, and Alister says 'Here are Grandma's Glasses'. Through the windows a newspaper is printed and distributed. Using newspaper, Jan draws the shape of the top ...

Aka ep#358 Brown paper bags are used for puppets. Jan makes a cat and sings 'Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat'. Alister makes a strange lady puppet with hair made of streamers. It is four o'clock on the clock. The nonsense story 'The Fat Cat' is told. Alister invites participation, being a fat man walking along, then a small thin man. Jan feeds the mice, drawing attention to the correct food needed by mice. Through the windows there is a collection of special gumleaves to feed koalas at the zoo. Alister sing 'Baby Koala Bear' with a paper bag puppet and Jan uses paper straws for ...

Aka ep#359 Jan and Alister open pictures from children and pin them on the picture board. Jan tears shapes in folded paper to make a holey mat and Alister makes shapes with paint, folding a sheet of paper in half, noting both shapes are the same. Jan sings 'Where is Thumbkin'. It is three o'clock on the clock. The story is 'A Letter to Amy'. Jan uses notepaper to write invitations to a party and Alister plays the postal officer. Jan makes dough for shape-making. Through the windows a doughnut machine is seen. The toys play pass the parcel receiving different shaped ...

Aka ep#360 Jan and Alister use building blocks of a variety of shapes to build a ship and a house. They sing 'Build it Up'. A story is told without words called 'Changes, Changes', showing wooden toys and blocks in an ever-changing story. Jan sings the song of the week. It is two o'clock on the clock. The story is 'The Square Dog' illustrated by Norm Hetherington. Circles, triangles and squares are shaped for an activity with Alister. Through the windows there are things going around. Jan and Alister move arms and bodies around, singing.

Aka 103.1 ep#361 Lorraine and Alister start a farm picture made with collage. They will add to it daily with items associated with the day's theme. Items from the Useful Box include matchsticks, pop sticks, cotton wool, magazine pictures, dry grass, lids, boxes and corrugated cardboard. Lorraine makes a farmer with a wooden clothes peg. A sun, clouds and rain are added to the picture and the relationship between these things and plant growth is explained. Alister sings 'I Hear Thunder'. The story of 'The Little Red Hen and the Grain of Wheat' is told with glove ...

Aka ep#362 Cottonwool ball sheep are added to the collage. Lorraine sings 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'. Through the windows there are sheep mustering with a motorbike and sheepdog. Alister dresses the toys for farm work. Dressed as a shearer, Alister mimes shearing a sheep. Lorraine, as shearer's cook, provides the smoko; tea and rock-cakes. A nonsense tale about farm animals is told. A 'stretching, snoring, clapping' song is sung.

Aka ep#363 A cow made of a box, cork, paddle pop sticks and matches, and a horse from a box, peanut, wool and paddle pop sticks are added to the collage. The song of the week 'Farmer Brown' is sung. Alister has a cattle-dog pup, a Queensland Blue Heeler. He plays with the pup and discusses the farm work it will do when its older. 'BINGO' is sung. The story is about a boy on a farm getting a birthday present for his mother. With hugging, laughing and smiling as ways to make someone happy, Lorraine introduces the song 'When Someone Smiles at Me'. A horse is made of ...

Aka ep#364 Children's farm pictures are put on picture-board. Alister draws some fruit and vegetables for the viewer to identify. Lorraine sings with finger actions 'I Like Oranges'. 'Five Little Peas in a Peapod Pressed' is a featured finger game. From a real orange tree, Lorraine picks fruit then climbs the toys up it singing 'Humpty Climbed the Tree'. 'What Do You Suppose', introduces bees and Lorraine says 'Here is the Beehive'. The story of 'The Little Red House' is told. Lorraine sings 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star', having cut an apple to reveal the 'star' ...

Aka ep#365 'Old Macdonald' is sung with pictures of animals for the viewer to identify. We also hear the animal noises of the farm animals. With Lorraine, we look at baby chicks and eggs in an incubator, finding out how they hatch and grow. There is a finger play about chickens. Through the windows there is a free range poultry farm and a plan commercial egg farm with laying, collection and packing of eggs. Alister and Lorraine make eggshell puppets for an action song, including crying, laughing and yawning. The story is 'Farmer Small' by Lois Lenski. A cumulative ...

Jan and Don have drawn Jemima's body, and Big Ted's head, on cardboard. Don and Jan cut the drawings to make jigsaw puzzles. Song of the Week: "A Head Song". Jan at Useful Box does expressions: puts on glasses, hat and shower cap. Clock: 4 o'clock. Story: The Lonely Dragon. Don is at Useful Box blowing up bobbly balloon to make a dragon with paper wings. Film: Dinosaurs. Jan animates her hand to make a dinosaur and encourages the viewer to do likewise. Don sings "I Wish I Was" - a dinosaur, a tiny ant, an elephant. Jan and Don roar and trumpet together. Big and little...

Don is drawing the heads of Jemima, Hamble and Humpty - all three without hair. Don draws hair (long or short) on each toy from memory. Don and Jan sing "Humpty Dumpty". Song of the Week: Head Song. The viewer is made aware of different kinds of hair. Don mimes and sings to the actions of washing and drying his hair. Film: Visit Hairdressers with Lorraine. Don pretends to give Humpty a haircut. Clock: 5 o'clock. Story: Two Little Caterpillars is told with two short caterpillars made of cotton reels and a third long caterpillar. Don uses his hand to imitate 'humping' ...

Jan and Don examine a Grandfather Clock, they recite and sing "Hickory Dickory Dock". They look at an Alarm Clock, an Electric Clock and a Cuckoo Clock. Some of these clocks make loud noises and others make soft noises. Don sings "I Went to Visit a Farm One Day", making loud and soft animal noises. Clock: 3 o'clock. Story: Benjy and the Barking Bird. Don attempts to coax live Cockatoo into speaking and develops a chant. Film: Birds and their sounds. Jan and Don sing "Laugh, Laugh...if you Feel You Want To", similarly: cry, snore, sneeze and sing. Don and Jan make '...

Jan and Don are finger painting with cornflour paste and powder paint. The viewer is invited to finger paint in the air and change painting action according to music e.g. sharp, strident, broad, sweepy, squiggly and wriggly. Song of Week: Head Song. Clock: 3 o'clock. Story: Mr. Jumble: Jan and Don dramatise story about buying clothes. Jan cleans and tidies the things used for finger painting. Film: Window Cleaning. Don sings "Wash Your Dirty Knees". They mime washing hair, ears, face, necks, elbows, knees, feet and hands.

Jan is drawing faces while Don is cutting faces from newspapers. Jan draws happy, smiling face and sad face. Don sings "If You're Happy and You Know It". Jan has drawn two faces and cut them out to make jigsaw puzzles; one happy and one sad. Don re-assembles the puzzles. Song of Week: Head Song. There is a game to find the 'opposites' e.g. shouting and whispering, smiling and crying. Clock: 4 o'clock. Story: Thomas is Little. Don plays at being asleep and awake. Film: Puppet Show. Jan and Don dress and make themselves up to be sad and happy clowns. They sing "If ...

Play School is full of boxes. Benita and Peter play a Jack in the Box game. They make a television set from a box cutting the base out to form the screen. Benita makes a commercial for the TV set by sticking pictures onto a long strip of paper, which can be pulled through the frame. Benita gives the news - and pretends that Jemima is Looby Loo in "Andy Pandy" - she dances "Here we go Looby Loo" and Peter asks the viewer to participate. Clock: 4 o'clock. Story: about the adventures of a line - has also been drawn on a length of paper and is shown in the box TV set. ...

Aka 105.2 ep#372 Benita and Peter are making a washing line out of an old umbrella frame for the cardboard box house. Peter pretends to be a rotary clothes line and asks viewers to stand up and be one too. Benita sings the song of the week, "How many people live in Your House", and Peter takes off the toys' clothes ready for washing. Clock: 3 o'clock. Story: "Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing". Peter is dressed up as an "elegant elephant". Benita comes in with a basket of dressing up clothes, and they play a dressing up game. Film: a chimpanzee dressing in a...

Jack and Jill, the Play School guinea pigs are being brushed and fed. Then Benita sings "Jack and Jill went up the Hill", using her fingers as Jack and Jill. Peter has a collection of backyard creatures including a worm, some snails and a caterpillar. Benita uses arm movements to represent them and sings the song "How Does a Caterpillar Go". Clock: 4 o'clock. Story: "Sally's Secret". Peter discusses "visitors" and sings the song of the week, "How Many People Live at Your House". In the cardboard box house, Jemima is awaiting visitors. Hamble comes to tea, Big Ted to ...

Mary Ann and Peter are making furniture for the bedroom of the box house. The sing the song of the week. Mary Ann pretends that Hamble is to go to school and Peter sings a song demonstrating various activities to do with getting up and dressed, e.g. stretching, dressing, brushing hair etc. Clock: 7 o'clock. Story: "Lucy and Tom go to school". Mary Ann puts on a record with strong, heavy music, ripply music and galloping music to move to. Film: a typical school backyard with infants' classes in their lunch break. The program ends with Peter asking the viewer for full ...

Aka 105.5 ep#375 Mary Ann and Peter are filling the water tray. Mary Ann sings and does the actions of "Pitter Patter Raindrops". Peter does various floating and sinking experiments. Mary Ann sings the finger-play "Here is the Sea", and shows a picture of the song in the Play School Blue Book. Clock: 11 o'clock. Story: "Hole" - also taken from the Play School Blue Book. Peter shows various holes in his clothes, then sings "Hey Betty Martin". Film: a boy having a bath. In the bath is a colander, plastic bottles, straws, some plastic tubing etc. with which he plays. ...

John makes a wagon from a cardboard box with lids for wheels and pencils for axles. We see that round shapes roll best, and therefore make the best wheels. Poem: about wheels with photographs to illustrate. Lorraine chants 'Roly poly' with participation activity. John gives Jemima a ride in his wagon - sings "Jolting Up and Down in My Little Red Wagon". Clock: 11 o'clock. Story: "The Box with Red Wheels". Lorraine sings "Five Little Ducks Went Out One Day". John mimes being a duck. Some examination and Play with the Play School wagon. Film: Wheeled Toys. John and ...

John fixes the wheels of the wagon and oils it. Jan dresses up as a garage mechanic. Sings "A Mechanic I Am". Poem: "Wheels, wheels, wheels". Jan fixes up John's cardboard box car. He takes it for a "test run" and sings "Take me Riding in Your Car". Clock: 11 o'clock. Story: "The Happy Man and his Dump Truck". Jan sings "I don't know why I'm happy". Film: Motor Bike Scramble. John and Jan ride a pretend motorbike in the studio.

Lorraine is printing shapes with paint and paper. She prints a car. John guesses what she's used to make the shapes of the car. He takes the car for a drive in the country. Poem: "Wheels, wheels, wheels". Lorraine does "Roly, poly" with participation. We see Henry the mouse on his wheel. John sings "The Wheels go Round and Round". John runs on the spot and sings "Running Land". Clock: 11 o'clock. Story: "Professor Twill's Travels". John assumes movements of the animals in the story e.g. elephant and snake. Film: Whitbread Horses. We see them working and exercising. ...

John makes a train out of matchboxes a cork and cotton wool. A shoe box serves as a station with clip-on pegs for people. John sings "Down at the Station" and then we watch a model electric train with Lorraine. Poem: "Wheels, wheels, wheels". Lorraine sings "The Railway Train". Clock: 11.30. Story: "The Listening Walk". Lorraine and John walk in different shoes asking for participation. Film: a little girl and her mother walk through the park. They hear and see, traffic, a bus, a train, a tractor, a clock, some pigeons. John dresses the toys and they go for a walk. ...

Lorraine and John draw wheel shapes. John demonstrates how to make a circle by tracing round something circular. He turns a circle into a wheelbarrow and Lorraine draws Humpty out of circles. They sing "Round Eyes". Poem: "Wheels, wheels, wheels". Lorraine makes wheels with different parts of her body. Sings "Round and Round". John enters pushing a barrow. He gives the toys a ride and sings "Riding in a Barrow". Clock: half past eleven. Story: A dramatised one showing the use of a simple pulley. It is about a boy who enlists the help of an inventor with a machine to ...

Aka 107.1 ep#381 Don and Jan blow box-boats across a water tray. Jan makes a paper sail (on pencil mast) so that her boat will go faster. They conjure up a storm and sing 'Two Little Boats'. After the calendar, Don adds a peg sailor to his boat and sings 'Here is the Sea'. It is ten o'clock on the clock. Jan tells the story of 'The Sailor' by Dick Bruna. Don sings 'A Sailor Went to Sea Sea Sea'. Jan introduces a battery-driven motor-boat to the water tray. Don introduces a lighthouse (a torch) and they demonstrate the function of a light-house. Through the windows we ...

Aka ep#382 Jan and Don make a caravan for the toys using a large box and smaller boxes for the furniture. They use illustrations of real caravans as a guide. When finished, they sing the 'Holiday Song'. They discuss what else is needed for a holiday, and Don establishes a participation chant for each item. All in readiness, they attach a car to the caravan and set out singing 'My Car'. It is half past eight on the clock. The story, about a Caravan Holiday, is told, using the toys as puppets. Animal noises that occurred in the story are included in the song 'Owl At ...

Aka ep#383 Jan and Don are looking at Henry and Henrietta, the white mice, to see how they move and hear what noise they make. Don sings 'Can You Hear the Mouse' and Jan adds actions. Don shows us another creeping creature - a caterpillar. He notes the humping movement and sings with actions 'How Does a Caterpillar Go?' and extends song to other creatures. It is three o'clock on the clock. Jan reads the story 'The Zoo in my Garden' by Chiyoko Nakatani. After, she recalls animals with finger play. Don continues with animal sounds and movements leading to 'Stamping Land...

Aka ep#384 Jan and Don are rolling garbage can lids and tyres to find the best wheels for a bike (to be made from blocks and chairs). They take the toys for a ride and sing 'There Were Five on the Bike' to the tune of 'Ten in a Bed'. They all fall off. Jan, on her back, pedals legs in the air and invites participation. It is seven o'clock. Don tells the story of 'The Bike Lesson' by Stan and Jan Berenstain. Jan is learning to ride the block bike and sings 'If You Ride Along the Street', finally losing balance. Don tries balancing on one leg, leading to hopping and ...

Aka ep#385 Don, with count down, launches matchbox into the air by means of a lever (a strip of wood on a matchbox). He turns the lever into a see-saw by balancing it in the centre then puts the toys on the see-saw and sings 'See Saw Marjory Daw'. On the toys' TV set, we see another kind of see-saw (Richard Bradshaw's shadow puppets). Jan has made a cow and rocket for launching. The see-saw becomes a lever again. Daisy the cow is launched, and they sing 'Hey Diddle Diddle'. Next they launch the rocket with a countdown. Through the windows we see astronauts, a ...

Aka 108.1 ep#386 Lorraine and John sort boxes into big, little and middle sizes. They sing the Box Song with appropriate hand movements. The poem of the week is illustrated with big, little and middle-sized balls and fire engines. John makes a fire engine using boxes, pencils, cotton reels, sticky tape and using a peg as a driver. He makes a ladder with sticks and pipe cleaners, then introduces a finger play of climbing up a ladder singing 'Up and Down'. John adds a hose to the fire engine, using cotton reel and pipe cleaner. They conjure up a fire and play out a game...

Aka ep#387 Lorraine and John sort through boxes looking for a big, a little and a middle-sized box to make a police car. John shows and discusses a picture of a police car. The 'Box Song' is sung. Lorraine makes a police car from boxes and adds a flashing light. She draws wheels then establishes sound: bleep-bleep-on-off to accompany the flashing light. She adds crepe paper seat belts. John, Ted and Hamble put on big, little and middle-sized police hats and John sings Three Policemen. The poem of the week is recited about 'Big, Little and Middle'. After a police car ...

Ep#388 Lorraine and John are feeding guinea-pigs with lettuce. They sing 'Jack and Jill'. John talks about the guinea-pigs, introducing concept of size. Guineapigs are little, elephants are big (sings 'The Elephant Song'), monkeys are middle-sized. Mimes these three animals for the poem of the week about size. Lorraine tells the story 'Happiest Elephant in the World' by Minami Nishiuchi. She sings about elephants to the tune of 'Did You Ever See'. John introduces a kitten in a travelling box. Through the windows there are baby animals. John sings 'Animal Babies'. He ...

Aka ep#389 Lorraine and John show letters received in Play School with attention to address, stamp, etc. John talks about things that come in envelopes: letters, party invitations. He shows big, little and middle-sized boxes, saying the poem of the week and sings 'The Box Song'. He then wraps one box with brown paper, sticky tape and string and addresses it to Hamble. Through the windows there is a postal officer and the work of the Post Office. Lorraine sings 'The Postman Song' while delivering parcels to toys: a guitar to Ted, Swanee Whistle to Hamble and Congo Drum...

Aka ep#390 Lorraine and John play a bowling game with a big, a middle-sized and little box and a ball. 'The Box Song' is sung. Lorraine examines her eyes in a mirror, sings 'Open, Shut, Them'. The story is 'Look At Your Eyes' by Paul Showers, about a little boy playing games (winking, etc.) with his eyes in a mirror. John shows us the eyes on photographs of Play School presenters. Lorraine sings 'Put Your Finger on your Nose'. John looks at his finger under a magnifying glass. Through the windows there is an optometrist. John and Lorraine play at being optometrists.