New York — November 21, 2011 — Scholastic Media, a division of Scholastic Inc, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, announced today that the Emmy® Award-winning series WordGirl® will debut a special two-part holiday episode, “A World Without WordGirl,” Friday, December 16 on PBS KIDS GO! (check local listings). The show takes a playful spin on the classic holiday film “It’s a Wonderful Life” and envisions a city devoid of its resident superhero.

"Having WordGirl in our world makes learning vocabulary both fun and educational," said Deborah Forte, President of Scholastic Media and Executive Vice President of Scholastic Inc. "In imagining a world without her, viewers will be reminded of how necessary her heart, humor and love of language are to children and families alike."

Voice talent for this episode includes Dannah Phirman ("MadTV") as WordGirl, Chris Parnell ("30 Rock," "Saturday Night Live") as the Narrator, Fred Stroller ("Everybody Loves Raymond," "Seinfeld," "Friends") as Chuck the Evil Sandwich-Making Guy, and Tom Kenny ("SpongeBob SquarePants," "CatDog," "Rocko's Modern Life") as Dr. Two Brains.

Friday December 16 – PREMIERE EPISODE

"A WORLD WITHOUT WORDGIRL, PART 1"
When Becky's most amazing birthday party ever gets interrupted one too many times by citizens in need of WordGirl's assistance, Becky makes a wish for a WordGirl-free world. Now her wish has come true. What has she done?!
Vocabulary Words: Obligation, Antsy

"A WORLD WITHOUT WORDGIRL, PART 2"
After wishing for a WordGirl-free world, Becky’s wish has come true. Not only does WordGirl not exist, Chuck is now King and has the city following all sorts of strange rules. Will Becky find the last piece of enchanted birthday cake so that she can wish for the return of WordGirl and make things go back to how they were before? Vocabulary Words: Enchanted, Unusual

WordGirl airs on PBS KIDS GO! (check local listings) and has won numerous industry excellence awards since its debut, including seven Emmy nominations and a 2008 Emmy Award win for "Best Writing in Animation." The show has also won two Gracie awards for its portrayal of a strong female character, a Television Critics Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Animation,” a KidScreen Award for Best Voice Talent, and an iParenting Media Award. WordGirl books are published by Scholastic, series-related games and puzzles are available from Briarpatch and an app is available for iPhone.

For more information on WordGirl, visit mediaroom.scholastic .com/wordgirl, ">PBSKIDSGO.org/wordgirl and PBS.org/pressroom.

For more information, episode review copies, and images please contact:

Meghan Newton
Goodman Media International
mnewton@goodmanmedia.com
212-576-2700

Katherine Morrison
Goodman Media International
kmorrison@goodmanmedia.com
212-576-2700