Products based on the puppet cast of PBS’ It’s A Big, Big World will be coming to a store near you.

Make no mistake, licensing and merchandising are a big and often necessary part of educational T.V. shows. In fact, most educational shows can’t survive beyond a season or two without some kind of merchandising revenue, a fact that was underscored by recent talk of the U.S. Congress cutting funding (again) for PBS programs like Sesame Street. So it’s not surprising then that T.V.’s latest preschool sensation It’s A Big, Big World is gearing up to take a ride on the licensing train.