The Children's Museum of Indianapolis to Create Dora & Diego Exhibit with Nickelodeon

Exhibit to Debut February 2011 with Partial Funding by WellPoint Foundation

INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Children's Museum of Indianapolis and Nickelodeon are partnering to create a new interactive exhibit for preschoolers based on the hit television series Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go!  The exhibit, Dora and Diego — Let's Explore!, sponsored in part by the WellPoint Foundation, will debut at The Children's Museum in February 2011 before embarking on a 5-year traveling exhibit tour.

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"We bring extraordinary learning experiences to millions of children and their families both in the museum and through our traveling exhibits. The beloved characters Dora and Diego inspire millions of children to learn and play along while introducing preschoolers to problem-solving concepts," said Dr. Jeffrey H. Patchen, president and CEO, The Children's Museum of Indianapolis. "Our partnership with Nickelodeon will bring the valuable educational concepts of Dora and Diego into the immersive environment of a museum exhibit where preschoolers will be able to engage in hands-on learning."

Dora and Diego — Let's Explore! is based on the animated children's series, Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go! Dora the Explorer follows the adventures of the 7-year-old Latina heroine Dora and her friends in an imaginative, tropical world. Go, Diego, Go! stars Dora's 8-year-old cousin Diego, a bilingual action-adventure hero who protects animals and their environment. The exhibit will take children and their families into the worlds of Dora and Diego where they will engage in problem-solving and active play. Young children will play along as they join an adventure and learn how to solve problems, be a good friend, and care for animals and the environment. Spanish vocabulary will be incorporated throughout the exhibit to introduce Spanish-speaking skills to preschool children.

"Partnering with The Children's Museum will allow us to bring the educational and fun elements of Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go! to life in a great learning environment," said Howard Smith, EVP, Nickelodeon Recreation. "We're thrilled that the WellPoint Foundation is also supporting this project and that kids around the country will be able to enjoy this interactive experience when the exhibit goes on the road in 2011."

Nickelodeon recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of Dora the Explorer with a TV movie and documentary – a special 12-minute tribute to Dora's cultural and educational impact. Dora the Explorer is a ground-breaking children's show in part because of its incorporation of play-along viewing and interaction in every episode. Dora and Diego — Let's Explore! will carry the play-along theme throughout the exhibit as children are encouraged to actively play while they solve problems, share and learn about the natural world.

The exhibit is funded in part by a grant from the WellPoint Foundation. The WellPoint Foundation's support of Dora and Diego — Let's Explore! will provide underwriting for preschool field trips to the museum for youth populations identified as most at risk for childhood obesity. Information about healthy, active lifestyles will also be provided to parents via the exhibit's Family Guide and website, and free school curriculum will be available to teachers as well.

"The opportunity to partner with The Children's Museum of Indianapolis for this youth outreach is exciting, because we know hundreds of children will take away important lessons about problem-solving and making good health and fitness part of their daily lives," says Lance Chrisman, executive director of the WellPoint Foundation. "Learning is an adventure; lifelong fitness of mind and body are the rewards; and we couldn't have wished for a more adventurous community partner than The Children's Museum to help teach these lessons to young children."

Dora and Diego — Let's Explore! will debut Feb. 5, 2011, at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis before embarking on a 5-year international traveling exhibit tour.

About The Children's Museum of Indianapolis

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is a nonprofit institution committed to creating extraordinary family learning experiences that have the power to transform the lives of children and families. The 472,900 square-foot facility houses 11 major galleries. Visitors can explore the physical and natural sciences, history, world cultures, the arts, see how dinosaurs lived 65 million years ago in Dinosphere: Now You're in Their World®, experience Dale Chihuly's Fireworks of Glass and examine children's impact in shaping history in The Power of Children: Making a Difference. The Children's Museum, situated on 19 acres of land in Indianapolis, presents hundreds of programs and activities each year. For more information about The Children's Museum in English and Spanish, visit www.childrensmuseum.org.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, now in its 31st year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 16 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).

About WellPoint Foundation

The WellPoint Foundation is the philanthropic arm of WellPoint, Inc. and through charitable contributions and programs, the Foundation promotes the inherent commitment of WellPoint, Inc. to enhance the health and well-being of individuals and families in communities that WellPoint, Inc. and its affiliated health plans serve. The Foundation focuses its funding on strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease states and medical conditions. These disease states and medical conditions include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long-term activities that decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company's annual associate giving campaign and provides a 50 percent match of associates' campaign pledges. To learn more about the WellPoint Foundation, please visit www.wellpointfoundation.org.  

SOURCE Children's Museum of Indianapolis