WTIU's 'The Friday Zone' kicks off new season of kids' programming

Every Friday in Studio six of the Radio-TV Center, children learn, create, play, compete and explore -- and it's all on tape for Indiana's viewing pleasure.\n"The Friday Zone," run by WTIU's Children's Programming, is a show that airs every Friday afternoon and encourages children to explore and experience the world around them. Reaching about two-thirds of the state, the show offers weekly challenges for kids to attempt. \nThe children log on to the show's Web site, www.thefridayzone.org and apply to be a part of that week's challenge. From those applications and meeting kids in public schools in Bloomington and the surrounding areas, the staff, headed by Nina Shelton, children's producer for the show, chooses kids between ages eight and 10 to participate in the week's challenge on the air.\n"The challenges help kids try something new and different that they haven't done before, and they learn a new skill in the process," Shelton said. \nPrevious challenges have included writing a newspaper, learning to rock climb and planting a garden.\nThe new season of "The Friday Zone" premieres at 4 p.m. Sept. 17 on WTIU and WFYI. During the season premiere's challenge, two teams of friends and neighbors will work with a professional builder from Lowe's to construct a clubhouse in less than an hour.\nOffered as college credit, IU students can participate in the behind-the-scenes aspects of the show as segment producers, camera operators, teleprompter operators and other various crew members.\nLast year, senior Gwen Rosenthal was able to take part as an assistant producer of the show. Rosenthal, a telecommunications major, took on many tasks such as copying scripts, running errands for the producer, writing content and writing questions for the host of the show.\n"It was a great experience because it's probably one of the only things that I've done here that's directly hands-on with what I possibly want to do with my major," Rosenthal said. "It's the most beneficial experience you could ever have, because you're in a real TV studio, working on a real show and getting advice from the producer. Just being in that environment was awesome."\nThe host of the show, junior Echo Shappell, commutes every week from IU-Kokomo. The sociology major has hosted the show for a year and half.\n"The drive is a pain, but it's worth it," Shappell said. "It's cool working with the kids and I've learned a lot from the adults on the show too. It's a blast."\nIn the future, challenges on the show include a bicycle makeover, pet adoptions and becoming a radio announcer.\nShappell said she is looking forward to the upcoming season.\n"I just want to do it justice," she said. "I want to be a better host than I was. I feel more comfortable now that I have a feel of the show. I want to see it become better." \n-- Contact staff writer Lori Snow at losnow@indiana.edu.