Episode 1446

Sesame Street
Big Bird goes to school
Air date	November 24, 1980 (season premiere)
Season	Season 12 (1980-1981)
Written by	Tony Geiss
Production October 17, 1980 Sponsors E, F, 8 Syndication Sesame Street Unpaved Releases Old School: Volume 3

Picture	Segment	Description
	SCENE 1	Big Bird sits at Hooper's Store coloring as Mr. Hooper and Maria wish Kathy a good day at school. Big Bird feels a bit left out that he's not old enough to go to school like the other kids, but Kathy says it's visitors' day and he can come along. This is too much of a surprise for Big Bird, who begins flip-flopping on whether to go as he talks it over with Mr. Hooper and Maria. The two help him get ready by quickly filling a school bag with supplies and an apple for the teacher, and Maria walks him over to the bus stop where Kathy and her mother are waiting. Big Bird asks Maria to wait at the bus stop when he comes back before following Kathy onto the bus.
	Song	"School Song" (First: Episode 0986)
	Muppets	Anything Muppets (including Farley) shout "E!" (First: Episode 0408)
	Cartoon	E Imagination Artists: The Hubleys (First: Episode 0001)
	Cast	Olivia sings "Sing" while Linda signs. (First: Episode 1330)
	Film	A film of camels eating. Music: Joe Raposo (First: Episode 0388) cut from the Noggin version
	Muppets	The Two-Headed Monster says RUN!
	Cartoon	Speech Balloon: E for egg A cow hatches a chick, which says "Moo." (First: Episode 0002)
	Film	Exploring on the ocean rocks (First: Episode 1414)
	Cartoon	The Typewriter: E-Ear (First: Episode 0807)
	SCENE 2	Big Bird arrives at school, though the teacher Mrs. Merkel is a little startled to see such a large creature in her classroom. She shows him to his desk and Big Bird tries to figure out whether he should sit on, in, or under it. Mrs. Merkel gives him a stool and recommends he sit next to it instead, and Big Bird is impressed with her intelligence: "You're probably as smart as the teacher!"
	Song	"The Ball Goes Up, The Ball Goes Down" (First: Episode 0773)
	Muppets	A shark sings about his "Perfectly Pearl-White Teeth."
	SCENE 3	Mrs. Merkel quizzes the students on insects, but Big Bird tries to answer her questions by yelling. Mrs. Merkel informs him that it's easier if he were to raise his hand (or wing, in this case) and wait to be called on. She does so when Big Bird gives it a try, though Big Bird doesn't know the answer to her question and is practicing his wing-raising technique.
	Cartoon	Eight legs on an octopus Owe Gustafson cut from the DVD version
	Muppets	Ernie & Bert — Ernie and Bert decide to use both Bert's canvas and Ernie's paints to paint a picture of something. Bert wants to paint a bowl of oatmeal, but Ernie wants to paint a purple monster. Finally, they decide to paint a purple monster eating a bowl of oatmeal.
	Cartoon	A moving truck takes the number 8.
	SCENE 4	Mrs. Merkel has the class count, but Big Bird is disappointed when he can only get to ten while the rest of the students can reach twenty. Mrs. Merkel reassures him that he should be proud to count to ten at his age, and wonders where he learned it. Big Bird proudly answers: "On Sesame Street! Do you wanna hear my alphabet?"
	Film	Blocks form a ramp and a tunnel.
	Celebrity	Telly Monster and Itzhak Perlman play Beethoven together -- Telly on the tuba, and Perlman on the violin.
	Film	Wild geese (to madrigal music) (First: Episode 0935)
	SCENE 5	Kathy teaches Big Bird about recess, and how to use the drinking fountain. He then wants to use the restroom, but is confused that if there is a boys' room and a girls' room, where can the birds' room be?
	Muppets	Game Show: Mystery Mix-up Game (First: Episode 0834)
	Film / Cast	Gordon rides his bike around the city. (First: Episode 0927) cut from the Noggin version
	Cartoon	F - finished (First: Episode 0128)
	SCENE 6	Mrs. Merkel asks Big Bird to read the list of letters above the blackboard. Naturally, Big Bird gets it confused and sings "ABC-DEF-GHI." Everybody else sets him straight as to what the alphabet really is, and Big Bird is amazed that it's spelled the same way as his mixed-up word. (The first season soundtrack is used for Big Bird's song, and the voice is noticeably different when compared to Caroll Spinney's modern performance of the bird.)
	Cartoon	F stands for flower, forest, fox, frog and fantastic. (First: Episode 1102)
	Muppets	Forgetful Jones and Buster the Horse brush each other's teeth.
	Cartoon	Toothpaste March Artist: Ray Favata
	SCENE 7	Worried about how to introduce himself to the other children, Big Bird sings "What's Your Name" as he rehearses with a garbage can. He gives it a try with the real kids, who invite him to play jacks.
	Cartoon	A father explains to his son why it is important to wear a seat belt when riding in a car. Artist: Cliff Roberts cut from the Noggin version
	Film	Mad Painter #8 (First: Episode 0326)
	SCENE 8	School is over and it's time for Big Bird to go home. Mrs. Merkel finds him trying to take "his" desk and explains that it will be waiting for him when he begins to go to school regularly.
	Film	A saxophone is made in a factory, while a solo saxophone underscores the process.
	Cartoon	Olga the lonesome robot
	SCENE 9	Big Bird arrives home from school and tells Maria about his day, even giving her an abstract project he made in woodworking. They continue their discussion as Mr. Hooper announces the sponsors.
	CLOSING SIGNS	Barkley is seen with the Sesame Street sign, while Deena holds the CTW sign.

Alterations

Picture	Segment	Description
	Cartoon	The Ringmaster #8 (First: Episode 1291) On the DVD version of this episode, the eight octopus legs segment is cut and replaced with this one.

Guest cast

• Cecilia Guerra as Kathy
• The Kids: Julia Labaton, Katie Rosin, David Patent, Nicholas Hughes, Johnna MacArthur, Tony Joe, Alice Giusti, Mitchell Levitz, Ricci Niles, Peter Joye, Vivian Lavitan

Notes

• This is the first season premiere to not be sponsored by the number 2.

Sources

Previous episode:	Next episode:
Episode 1445	Episode 1447