Helloooooooo, does anyone remember this cute little guy?

He was a little dog with a big imagination! His owner was a boy who loved basketball, whose mom was a librarian.  The eccentric next door neighbor, btw, was played by a talented lady who graduated from one of my alma maters, SWTSU! The story was shot north of Dallas, TX in Plano.  Wishbone made his literary loving debut around 1995, when my son was born.  For any life event in this dog's hometown of Oakdale, he imagined how it correlated to literary classics of yore.  While telling children about the classic, he'd imagine himself all dressed up in the cutest costumes and with some of the best lines!  My children were raised with him!  Even though they were toddlers, they loved the little dog!  My children were getting introduced to Shakespeare, Homer and the Bronte sisters because of a cute dog's antics! 

One year we got to meet "Joe", at the local bookstore, who shared about the show and autographed some of our books.  If you can get your hands on any of these books, now only to be found in the used bookstores or ebay, grab them!  They are a wonderful way to introduce children to the classics.

Today we watched "The Tempest" by William Shakespeare.  Wishbone played Ariel.  Last week the children read Tales From Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb.  (This book is excellent for the dialectic level!)  "The Tempest" was one of their favorites.   Seeing the little dog dressed up is hilarious, allowing us to smile as we listen to the wonderful lofty words of Shakespeare.  Even I am still learning how to understand his works, and this is a terrific way to break everything down to appreciate the real thing!

Then we watched "The Muttketeers" based on what else but, "The Three Musketeers" by Alexander Dumas.  We even have a copy of this book, the Wishbone version, as I've designed and sewn my son's costume for our unit celebration.  He will be D'Artagnan and has made his own sword and researched various fencing posters.  I did wish one of my blogging friends was close by so that she could give us first hand tips!  We did reference the pictures on her blog!  ;)  

I think the very first episode of Wishbone was "Romeo and Juliet".  I thought I had taped that too, but we can't find it.  So why do I consider this a flashback?  Because the tv show has not been made since 2000 or around that time.  This was a high quality children's show, an asset to homeschoolers as a leg up into the classics.  Wishbone is a wonderful way to introduce young children to some of the best stories written, and has been known to bring more than one smile to many an adult face as well!  One of our Wishbone tapes, which I had recorded over 10 years ago, is on the fritz.  How I'd love to buy the series on DVD.  Oh well, we do have the stuffed animal, three costumes, and many books grabbed from our used bookstore!  Oh, and we also have a card game on the classics we forgot to get a picture of!

Here is a close up of "Joe" whom we got to meet.  He gave us this photo, as well as autographing a book for each of the kids. 

www.wwwishbone.com