TV Smarts

Some broadcast and cable programs contain material included in the public school curriculum and on standardized examinations. Here are home-viewing tips:

* Today-- “Sing Faster” (KCET 8-9 p.m. Repeats Sunday noon-1 p.m.) An introduction to Richard Wagner’s opera masterpiece, “The Ring of the Niebelungen,” considered from the perspective of union crew members backstage. They comment on its surprisingly contemporary political, romantic and religious content. Available on video at (800) 525-0000. “It’s Elementary: Talking About Gay Issues in School” (KLCS 9-10 p.m.) This 1996 documentary airs on the Los Angeles Unified School District’s station, providing information on an issue being debated this month in the U.S. Senate.

* Friday--”Intimate Portrait: Profile of Rebecca Lobo” (LIFE 3-4 p.m.) A look at the star of the Women’s National Basketball Assn. Rosie O’Donnell narrates. “Dateline NBC” (KNBC 8-9 p.m.) NBC News special documentary traces the 22-year development of a problem gambler’s habit from boyhood to adulthood and showing the toll on him and his family.

* Saturday--”Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones” (Bravo 2:30-5 p.m.) Documentary about a modern musical and entrepreneurial genius. “Niagra: A History of the Falls” (HIST 5-7 p.m.) Science documentary about the famous site where amateur engineers tried crossing a river inside barrels and professional engineers built the world’s first railway suspension bridge. Massive hydroelectric generators there malfunctioned in 1965, blacking out the East Coast.

* Sunday--”Michelangelo: Self-Portrait” (KCET 9-11 p.m. Repeats Monday, 9-11 p.m.) Documentary about the life of the 16th century Italian painter and sculptor whose name, Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simono, is as grand and beautiful as his works--the Pieta, the Sistine Chapel, the Last Judgment.

* Monday--”Just Think” (Simulcast on TOON, DISN, FAM, FSN, HIST, NICK, USA, STARZ and TBS, 7:30-8 p.m.) Special airs on the first day of the TV cable industry’s “Kids and Family Week,” in which children and their families discuss the communications impact of certain words, actions and symbols. For more information, log on to https://www.ncta.com on the Internet.

* Tuesday--”The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” (TCM 5-6:30 p.m.) This is the 1939 movie version of Mark Twain’s classic novel about a Southern boy’s efforts to help a slave escape to freedom in the North. Mickey Rooney stars. Available on video.

* Wednesday--”National Geographic Explorer” (TBS 8-10 p.m.) This science program looks at three topics: biologist Joyce Poole’s controversial studies of aggressiveness in elephants, high-tech Arabian camel racing and a spider called the Sydney funnel, whose extremely toxic sting is a constant threat to city dwellers in southeast Australia. For more information, log on to https://www.nationalgeographic.com on the Internet.

Compiled by Richard Kahlenberg in consultation with Crystal J. Gips, associate director for teacher education, Cal State University. Columns available at https://www.latimes.com/tvsmarts.