New series of Nina & the Neurons starts today

Cbeebies launches a new series of pre-schooler science show Nina and the Neurons today at 4.30pm, called Go Engineering. In the clip above, lovely assistant producer Val Mellon explains how experiments in the show are developed.

I've written five of the 25 episodes in this series, tackling tricky questions about bin lorries, hovercraft, tunnels, diving and luggage. Not sure when my eps are due on, but once they are I'll post a link on the right hand side of this blog.

This ever-popular post describes the experience of writing for Nina and the Neurons.

Senses working overtime: more Nina & the Neurons

Delighted to report I've just signed a contract to write five more episodes for Nina and the Neurons on CBeebies, the acclaimed science show for pre-schoolers. I'm not revealing any secrets if I mention the forthcoming series is entitled Go Engineering. We're looking at how engineers invent, improve, shape, build and share ideas in all sorts of ways.

Had a blast writing for the previous series, Brilliant Bodies, and probably learned as much as those who watched the show. Plus working on Nina and the Neurons has done wonders for my street cred with various nieces and nephews [one of them even got a gold star for a project based on an ep of mine]. Makes a change from my writing gigs.

Read about the process of scripting Nina and the Neurons here. Meanwhile - onwards!

Writing for pre-school: Nina and the Neurons

Weekdays at 4.45pm Cbeebies is screening new episodes of Nina and the Neurons, a science show for audiences aged 4-6. The current series is called Brilliant Bodies and tackles the sciences of biology and medicine. I was lucky enough to write five eps for this series, two of which screened last week - Heart and Handy Hands.

[How did that happen? I was among a dozen writers selected for a development lab run by CBeebies Scotland and the Scottish Book Trust. Afterwards I pitched 26 episode ideas for a kids' health show. The Nina team was already working on the Brilliant Bodies but asked if some of my ep ideas might fit their series. Result.]

Nina and the Neurons is heavily formatted with similar elements in every show. Each ep usually comprises 13 sequences, of which several are fixed - the titles, a CGI sequence where the Neurons inside Nina's head are activated, a song that summarises the whole series, and the final goodbyes at the end of each ep.

There are usually three experiments per show - a senses experiment in the lab, another experiment out on location, and a final experiment back in the lab. The production team develops and storylines all of these in advance, so the writers don't need to be scientists themselves [a distinct advantage for non-boffins like me].

The challenge with experiments is writing dialogue so the intended audience can understand what's going on. In one of my forthcoming eps [spoilers!], there's an experiment involving replica bones. But some four-year-olds may not know what replicas are, so I had to rewrite the dialogue to call them pretend bones.

Medical science often involves words that are unfamiliar or challenging for a pre-school audience, so there's a need to write an explanation or pronunciation moment into the script. The Neuron characters can be useful for this, especially the young sibling Neuron Bud, with whom some of the audience might identify.

Recaps and repetitions are important learning tools, so several summary sections must be written into each script. [All the requirements are laid out by the production team, which is amazing at helping new writers cope with such challenges.] Arguably the major element of the writer's job is creating and crafting dialogue.

How hard can it be, you may be thinking, writing dialogue for a scientist character and the five Neuron voices in her head? Particularly when the whole thing's already been storylined and the science experiments worked out in advance for you? The writer's task is very specific, but constraint brings it own difficulties.

For example, each time a Neuron is seen speaking requires the creation of new, synchronised animation - which costs money. In-house productions like Nina have very limited budgets, so there's a strict rule about how many times the Neurons can be shown talking new dialogue in each ep [it's about 10 times, if memory serves].

To get around this, eps feature over the shoulder shots of Neurons watching Nina via a viewscreen, with Neurons in voiceover. [Actors saying extra lines is cheaper than extra CGI.] Capturing the voices of the Neurons and Nina is a challenge, but nailing the voices of the regulars is a requirement for writing any returning series.

One thing I found taxing was getting all five Neurons involved in every ep. Each character is related to a particular human sense - touch, sound, sight, smell and taste. Individual eps of Brilliant Bodies focus on different parts of human biology and sometimes there's no obvious or elegant way to involve all five sense.

That's where lateral thinking and imagination are your friend. You can't stray too far from the subject of that day's ep, but a brief diversion to your childish side can offer an answer. The Neurons add fun to the science bits, and are also a useful cutaway device to smooth transitions and storytelling during each ep.

It's all too easy to obsess about the constraints and forgot what is at the core of this show: making science fun and entertaining for the target audience, as well as educational. I wish we'd had shows like Nina and the Neurons when I was growing up, I might have done better at science in school. Oh well, such is life. Onwards!

Belly buttons, broken bones and blood

Contracts have been signed, so I can abandon my usual freelancer superstition to announce that I'm writing for pre-school science show Nina and the Neurons on CBeebies. The next series is all about biology and the human body. I'm scripting five episodes that answer questions which investigate belly buttons, broken bones and blood.

I'm having great fun writing for a younger audience, a nice change of pace from the usual sturm and drang. Plus I'm learning things that high school biology didn't teach me [or maybe I just didn't pay much attention at the time]. and I get to dip my toes into children's TV writing, opening up fresh avenues for my more playful stories.

Writing for Nina and the Neurons sprang out of the CBeebies Lab I took part in last year. CBeebies Scotland and the Scottish Book Trust hosted a series of one-day workshops for writers interested in creating TV for pre-school children. I was lucky enough to be on the lab, and worked hard to get the most from the experience.

I pitched some ideas after the lab and one of those led to an offer of writing for Nina and the Neurons. Like a lot of pre-school TV, it's a heavily formatted show. There are key elements that happen in every ep, and important points get recapped during the show to reinforce the lessons children learn by watching it.

The writer's job is to keep things entertaining, as well as educational. Your scripts have to find a balance of silly and sensible, being both fun and factual. If you ever get the chance to write for pre-school TV, grab it. You won't get rich [certainly not on an in-house production for the BBC], but you'll learn a lot and that's much more valuable. Onwards!