When Elmo goes back to work this TV season on Sesame Street (on Feb. 4), he'll find fun changes:
THE STRUCTURE: Instead of the old free-flowing format, 10 segments will run in the same order every day. "Now kids will have a sense of mastery, predicting what happens next," says Rosemarie Truglio, Ph.D., vice president of education and research at Sesame Workshop.
THE SET: It has new places to visit, like the Mail-It Shop, where Muppets can e-mail faraway friends.
THE SKITS: In one new segment, Big Bird hunts for Ernie in an animated world.