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 wishes he could go to school like Kathy. She says it's visitors' day at school and he can come along, but it's too much of a surprise for him. He talks it over with Mr. Hooper and Maria, who quickly fill a school bag, and goes to meet Kathy at the bus stop.
	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 Artist: Jeff Hale (First: Episode 0807)
	SCENE 2	Big Bird arrives at school, although Mrs. Merkel, the teacher, is a little hesitant at first. Big Bird tries to figure out how to fit in a school desk. Mrs. Merkel gives him a stool to sit on.
	Song	"The Ball Goes Up, The Ball Goes Down" (First: Episode 0773)
	Muppets	A shark sings about his "Perfectly Pearl-White Teeth."
	SCENE 3	Big Bird learns to raise his hand.
	Cartoon	Eight legs on an octopus Owe Gustafson cut from the DVD version
	Muppets	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	Big Bird counts to ten, but the rest of the class can count to twenty.
	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	Big Bird wants to know what to do during recess.
	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	Big Bird looks at the alphabet written on the wall, and sings "ABC-DEF-GHI" (First season soundtrack is used here).
	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. The kids 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 explains that he can't take his desk home with him.
	Film	Saxophone factory
	Cartoon	Olga the lonesome robot
	SCENE 9	Big Bird arrives home from school, and tells Maria about his day. Mr. Hooper announces the sponsors.
	CLOSING SIGNS	Barkley is seen with the Sesame Street sign while Deena holds up 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.

Notes

• This is the first season premiere to not be sponsored by the number 2.
• Because the first season soundtrack of "ABC-DEF-GHI" was used in this episode, Big Bird's voice is noticeably different when he sings due to his change in character over time.

Cast

Will Lee - Mr. Hooper Sonia Manzano - Maria Alaina Reed Hall - Olivia Linda Bove - Linda Roscoe Orman - Gordon Paul Benedict- The Mad Painter Jerome Raphel- Mad Painter's Victim

Caroll Spinney - Big Bird Jim Henson - Ernie, Guy Smiley, Fat Blue Man Frank Oz - Bert, Pumpkin Orange Girl, Mrs. Rooney Jerry Nelson - Two-Headed Monster (left half), Farley, Announcer Richard Hunt - Two-Headed Monster (right half) Michael Earl - Forgetful Jones Brian Muehl - Telly Monster, Clementine, Shark Kevin Clash - Buster the Horse

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