If you grew up in the early 2000s, you probably remember a pair of puppets living in a library. That show was Between the Lions. It wasn't just another kids' cartoon; it was a literacy powerhouse. One specific part of that show—the between the lions tiger words segments—remains a fascinating example of how television can actually teach kids to read. Honestly, it’s kinda rare to find media today that hits that perfect balance of being genuinely funny and educationally sound.
The segment featured a very "hip" tiger (voiced by the legendary Bertice Berry) who would appear in a colorful, rhythmic environment. She wasn't there to just roar. She was there to teach "sight words"—those tricky English words that don't always follow the rules of phonics. You know the ones. Words like the, was, and have.
What the Tiger Was Actually Doing
Most people think teaching a kid to read is just about "sounding it out." But phonics only gets you so far. The between the lions tiger words were designed to tackle the High-Frequency Words (HFW). These are the building blocks of sentences. If a kid has to stop and decode "the" every time they see it, their reading speed tanks. The Tiger segments used music, repetition, and visual reinforcement to bake these words into a child's long-term memory.
It worked.
Research from the University of Kansas and other institutions often pointed to Between the Lions as a gold standard for educational TV. Unlike some shows that just entertain, this one was built on the "Big Five" of reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The tiger focused heavily on fluency. By recognizing words on sight, kids can focus their brainpower on understanding the story instead of just identifying letters.
The Science of "Sight" and Sound
Why a tiger? Why the music?
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Basically, the human brain loves patterns. When the tiger sang those words, she was engaging the auditory cortex while the bright, bold text on the screen engaged the visual cortex. This is "dual coding." It’s a cognitive theory that says we learn better when information is presented in both verbal and non-verbal forms.
The Tiger didn't just say the word once. She said it, sang it, and showed it. It was rhythmic. It was "sticky."
I’ve talked to teachers who still use these clips in 2026. Why? Because the production quality holds up, and the pedagogical foundation is rock solid. Even with all the fancy AI-driven reading apps we have now, there is something about the human-like movement of the puppets and the soulfulness of the music that keeps kids engaged. It’s not just a screen flashing cards at them; it’s a performance.
Why Some Critics Were Skeptical
Not everyone loved the "sight word" approach back in the day. Some "phonics-only" purists thought that teaching kids to memorize words was "cheating." They argued that if you don't teach a child to decode every single letter, they’ll hit a wall later on.
But here’s the thing: English is a mess.
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If you try to "sound out" the word island or colonel using basic phonics, you’re going to have a bad time. The between the lions tiger words recognized this reality. You need a mix. You need the "Cliff Hanger" segments for the adventure, the "Gawain’s Word" segments for blending sounds, and the Tiger for those essential, non-phonetic words that hold the language together. It’s about balance.
The Legacy of the Library
The show ran on PBS from 2000 to 2010. It won multiple Emmys. But its real legacy isn't the awards. It’s the fact that it reached kids in "literacy deserts"—areas where books were scarce and preschool wasn't an option.
For a kid in a house with no library card, that tiger was a teacher.
The between the lions tiger words segments are now archived in places like the American Archive of Public Broadcasting. They serve as a blueprint. If you look at modern hits like Ms. Rachel or StoryBots, you can see the DNA of the Lions. They take those same principles—repetition, clear enunciations, and high-energy visuals—and modernize them. But the Tiger did it first with a certain level of "cool" that’s hard to replicate.
How to Use These Segments Today
If you’re a parent or a tutor, don't just let the kid watch the video. You’ve gotta be active.
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- Echo Reading: When the Tiger says the word, have the child say it back immediately.
- Flash Recognition: After watching, write the featured words on index cards. See if they can find them in a picture book.
- Context Clues: Ask the child to use the "Tiger word" in a sentence about their own life.
The goal isn't just to memorize a list. It's to build a bridge between the screen and the page. Reading is a physical act of the brain. The Tiger was just the coach.
Moving Beyond the Screen
The truth is, media is a supplement, not a replacement. The between the lions tiger words were a spark. To turn that spark into a fire, kids need to see those same words in physical books. They need to feel the paper. They need to see their parents reading.
We often overcomplicate education. We look for the newest app or the most expensive curriculum. But sometimes, the best way to teach a kid is the simplest: a catchy tune, a friendly face, and a word that pops.
The Tiger knew that. The creators at WGBH and Sirius Thinking knew that. And decades later, the kids who watched those lions are now the ones reading to their own children. That’s the real "ultimate" result. It’s a cycle of literacy that started in a puppet library and continues every time a child recognizes a word and realizes, "Hey, I can read this."
To make the most of this classic resource, start by identifying the "Dolch" or "Fry" sight word lists, which contain the exact words the Tiger prioritized. Find the archived clips online—many are available through educational portals or public broadcasting archives. Pair a five-minute Tiger segment with ten minutes of shared reading in a physical book. Focus on one "Tiger word" per day until it becomes second nature to the child. This consistent, multi-modal approach is exactly how the show was intended to be used: as a springboard into a lifetime of confident reading.