In March 2020, the world changed almost overnight.
Schools closed. Activities stopped. Children were suddenly isolated at home. Like organizations everywhere, Superniños had to pivot quickly. Programs that had always been built around relationships, conversation, and hands-on learning moved online.
Our facilitators worked hard. They recorded videos, hosted virtual sessions, and found creative ways to stay connected with students. But something was missing.
(Virtual Theater of Frozen from 2020)
The children missed being together.
The facilitators missed being together.
And everyone was tired of staring at screens.
When planning began for the 2021 school year, Paraguay was still facing significant restrictions. We knew we couldn't simply repeat the previous year. Virtual learning had kept us connected, but it wasn't inspiring anyone.
We wanted to create something that would excite the children—and ourselves.
One idea began to emerge: What if we brought learning to television?
At first, the concept seemed simple enough. We could film lessons and broadcast them to students across the region. But Superkids founder Estee Katcoff challenged the team to think bigger.
If we were going to be on television, why not create something children would genuinely want to watch?
Not a teacher talking to a camera.
A real show.
What followed was one of the most creative projects in Superniños history.
Our facilitators—most of them college students—became writers, actors, filmmakers, puppeteers, set designers, and producers. They invented characters, developed storylines, wrote scripts, created educational games, and learned the basics of video production along the way.
Arturo designed colorful backgrounds. Teams experimented with costumes, puppets, and visual effects. Every episode became an opportunity to learn something new while creating something fun.
The project was called Mita'i TV.
What began as a response to a crisis became much more than an educational program. It became a collaborative creative adventure that challenged young leaders to develop skills they never imagined they would need.
And it worked.
Mita'i TV aired throughout the Department of Caaguazú, reaching children and families far beyond the communities Superniños normally served. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Families tuned in together. Children looked forward to new episodes. Learning once again felt joyful.
By 2022, classrooms began reopening and communities were eager to reconnect in person. Superniños returned its focus—and funding—to the face-to-face programs that have always been at the heart of its mission.
But Mita'i TV remains an important chapter in our story.
It stands as a reminder of what can happen when young people are trusted with big challenges. Faced with a pandemic, our facilitators didn't simply adapt. They created.
And somewhere on YouTube, the episodes still exist—a lasting record of a moment when a group of college students, determined to serve children during an impossible time, ended up making a television show.
