# Lyla in the Loop
**Lyla in the Loop** is an American animated children's television series on PBS KIDS that premiered on February 5, 2024, aimed at children ages 4 to 8. It follows Lyla Loops, a 7-year-old Black girl, her close-knit family, and her fantastical blue sidekick Stu as they solve everyday problems using creative and strategic problem-solving, critical thinking, and foundational computational thinking concepts.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [2](https://www.pbs.org/parents/shows/lyla) The series debuted in both English and Spanish.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Premiere | February 5, 2024, on PBS KIDS, in English and Spanish[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) |
| Target audience | Children ages 4–8; TV-Y rating[2](https://www.pbs.org/parents/shows/lyla) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/lyla_in_the_loop) |
| Premise | Lyla Loops, her family (who run the diner Loops Lunch), and Stu ("Something Truly Unique") solve everyday problems[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [4](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu) |
| Curriculum | Computational thinking: breaking problems into steps, loops, logic, and critical thinking without depicting computer coding[5](https://www.olin.edu/articles/story-millner-directing-curriculum-new-pbs-kids-show) |
| Creator | Emmy-winning producer Dave Peth (Mighty Picnic), with Pipeline Studios animating[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) |
| Lead voice | Liyou Abere as Lyla; cast also includes Izzy Woodbury (Stu), Isaac Ng (Everett Phan), and Morrissa Nicole[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) |
| Funding | Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant and U.S. Department of Education Ready To Learn Initiative[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) |
| Recognition | Common Sense Selection; a Kidscreen Award for PBS KIDS[6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) • [7](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/awards/) |
## Premise and characters
Lyla is the middle child of a close-knit family: mother Lydia and father Louis, who run the diner Loops Lunch; older twin sisters Liana and Louisa; younger brother Luke; and Stu, a fantastical blue creature who always does exactly, literally, what was asked.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) Stu's name is short for "Something Truly Unique."[4](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu) Lyla's best friend is Everett Phan.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
Episodes draw on ordinary family situations: creating a new daily special at the family diner, building homemade carnival games from repurposed materials, riding along on the neighborhood trash and recycling route, and making a puppet show of the Jamaican folktale "Anansi and the Goat."[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) One episode has Lyla help her sister navigate the ethics of creating an art project with Stu's help, an age-appropriate treatment of questions raised by real-world AI tools.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
## Educational design
The show's curriculum is directed by Amon Millner, PhD, Associate Professor of Computing and [Innovation](https://www.edgepedia.org/innovation) at Olin College of Engineering, who directs the Extending Access to STEM Empowerment (EASE) Lab.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [5](https://www.olin.edu/articles/story-millner-directing-curriculum-new-pbs-kids-show) Millner has been the curriculum director since the show's first pitches in 2015, reviewing scripts and visual designs for scientific and computational accuracy.[5](https://www.olin.edu/articles/story-millner-directing-curriculum-new-pbs-kids-show) Rather than depicting computer science as sitting at a desk and coding, characters work through problems aloud, breaking challenges into steps, repeating steps "over and over again in a loop," and debugging as they go.[5](https://www.olin.edu/articles/story-millner-directing-curriculum-new-pbs-kids-show) • [8](https://www.animationscoop.com/interview-the-creative-force-behind-lyla-in-the-loop/) • [4](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu)
**Advisors and funders.** Nermeen Dashoush, PhD, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education at [Boston University](https://www.edgepedia.org/boston-university), serves as Lead Advisor and advises on character design and the companion games and printable materials.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [9](https://www.bu.edu/articles/2025/learning-through-screen-time) Additional advisors cover [Universal Design for Learning](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-design-for-learning) (Yenda Prado, University of California, Irvine), career pathways (V. Scott Solberg, Boston University), and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (Cosette Strong).[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) Funding comes from a [Corporation for Public Broadcasting](https://www.edgepedia.org/corporation-for-public-broadcasting) grant and a U.S. Department of Education grant through the Ready To Learn Initiative.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
## Production and setting
The series was created and executive produced by Dave Peth, founder of the media production company Mighty Picnic; it is the company's first original series for PBS KIDS.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) Fracaswell Hyman serves as executive producer and head writer.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) • [6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) [Animation](https://www.edgepedia.org/animation) is by Pipeline Studios.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
The setting draws inspiration from Philadelphia, Peth's home base, and the theme song, composed and performed by Grammy-nominated musician Divinity Roxx, includes vocals by students from the public School District of Philadelphia.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) Peth has said the show concept grew from a question posed by PBS: how to make a show about coding and computational thinking that does not involve sitting at a computer typing.[8](https://www.animationscoop.com/interview-the-creative-force-behind-lyla-in-the-loop/)
## Representation
The Loop family is Jamaican American, and the neighborhood features mostly people of color, including a family from Vietnam.[6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) • [4](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu) Episodes celebrate Jamaica Day and highlight Black inventors and history-makers such as [Mae Jemison](https://www.edgepedia.org/mae-jemison).[10](https://www.axios.com/2025/02/20/black-history-kids-tv-education-pbs) Peth has said the show was designed to feature a female lead of color, noting that women of color are traditionally underrepresented in tech and engineering fields.[8](https://www.animationscoop.com/interview-the-creative-force-behind-lyla-in-the-loop/) PBS KIDS premiered four new episodes on February 3, 2025, as part of its [Black History Month](https://www.edgepedia.org/black-history-month) lineup, alongside a new game, "Lyla and Stu's Hairdos."[11](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/pbs-unveils-2025-black-history-month-lineup/)
## Research and interactive episodes
The producers plan interactive episodes that incorporate AI-assisted conversation with Lyla: during episodes, Lyla asks the viewer questions, responsive AI technology interprets what the viewer says, and Lyla responds accordingly, with efficacy research planned before release.[1](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/) A between-subject randomized study of 160 children aged four to eight is examining whether such AI-assisted dialogues improve children's learning of computational thinking and narrative comprehension compared with the broadcast version.[12](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102149) Separately, SRI is conducting a randomized controlled trial of roughly 150 children ages five through seven evaluating the program's impact on computational thinking skills (abstraction, sequencing, problem-solving, and control structures), task persistence, and early STEM identity over a six-week period.[13](https://overdeck.org/research-repository/joyful-rigorous-stem/evaluating-the-impact-of-lyla-in-the-loop-on-childrens-computational-thinking-and-persistence/)
**Reception and specials.** Common Sense Media rates the show suitable for age 5+ and named it a Common Sense Selection, citing its introduction to basic coding and multi-step problem-solving with very little iffy content.[6](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop) A holiday special, *Lyla in the Loop: When We Met Stu*, which reflects on how Stu first came into the family's life, premiered on November 14, 2025.[4](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu)
## References
1. [New PBS KIDS Series, LYLA IN THE LOOP, Launches February 5, 2024, PBS Publicity](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/new-pbs-kids-series-lyla-in-the-loop-launches-february-5-2024/)
2. [Lyla in the Loop, PBS KIDS for Parents](https://www.pbs.org/parents/shows/lyla)
3. [Lyla in the Loop, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/lyla_in_the_loop)
4. [Lyla in the Loop: When We Met Stu, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop-when-we-met-stu)
5. [Millner Directing Curriculum for New PBS KIDS Show, Olin College of Engineering](https://www.olin.edu/articles/story-millner-directing-curriculum-new-pbs-kids-show)
6. [Lyla in the Loop, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/lyla-in-the-loop)
7. [Awards, PBS](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/awards/)
8. [INTERVIEW: The Creative Force Behind "Lyla In The Loop", Animation Scoop](https://www.animationscoop.com/interview-the-creative-force-behind-lyla-in-the-loop/)
9. [Learning Through Screen Time, BU Today](https://www.bu.edu/articles/2025/learning-through-screen-time)
10. [Black history is getting more screen time in kids' TV, Axios](https://www.axios.com/2025/02/20/black-history-kids-tv-education-pbs)
11. [PBS Unveils 2025 Black History Month Lineup, PBS](https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/pbs-unveils-2025-black-history-month-lineup/)
12. [The effects of interactions with AI-enhanced media characters on learning computational thinking, Learning and Instruction](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2025.102149)
13. [Evaluating the Impact of Lyla in the Loop on Children's Computational Thinking and Persistence, Overdeck Family Foundation](https://overdeck.org/research-repository/joyful-rigorous-stem/evaluating-the-impact-of-lyla-in-the-loop-on-childrens-computational-thinking-and-persistence/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Animated television series (individual series) › Children's animated adventure and fantasy series › Preschool and educational series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license