MANILA, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Children in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, will learn the importance of road safety and traffic rules in a fun way from Sesame Street characters Elmo, Cookie Monster, Big Bird and their friends.
The Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the agency in charge of the traffic situation in the metropolis, said it has teamed up with the Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind the iconic television series, for a three-year educational campaign for children.
The partnership was launched at the Children's Road Safety Park in Manila on Monday.
Sesame Street, a longtime U.S. educational television show, combines live action, sketch comedy, animations and puppetry to teach children numbers, colors, the alphabet, among others.
The MMDA hopes to mount a traveling road safety park of similar nature, which the agency will take to different cities around Metro Manila.
Within the partnership, the MMDA said the agency and Sesame Street "will work hand in hand on activities such as but not limited to wall arts along the major thoroughfares of Metro Manila, a family fun run, the MMDA Children's Handbook and a children's exposition, which is essentially a cross between an educational theme park and experiential museum."
The MMDA said the collaboration aims to help children and families learn about road safety, care for the environment and prepare for emergencies in the context of MMDA's functions. The traffic agency believes Sesame Street is the ideal partner for this endeavor since the show pioneered the educational program format for kids.
"We hope that through our line-up of activities under this partnership, the kids will carry out these lessons throughout childhood and into their adult lives as well," MMDA Chairman Danny Lim said in a statement.
Will DePippo, director of Sesame Workshop in the Asia Pacific, said he was proud to partner with the MMDA on a campaign where Elmo, Cookie Monster and Big Bird are helping to deliver educational messages in a fun and engaging way for children and their families.
Also on Monday, guests, including children, had an exclusive preview of the ongoing MMDA and Sesame Street Wall Art, which spans 500 meters. The street art is part of the ongoing rehabilitation and maintenance of the Children's Road Safety Park.
Children took a guided tour of the Children's Road Safety Park where they were taught about traffic rules and regulations through the miniature street-related structures in the vicinity.
