Dora gives kids early ‘Present’

If you’ve ever seen your preschooler jumping around in front of the TV, calling out numbers and shapes and phrases in English and a little Spanish, “Dora the Explorer” is obviously a regular guest in your home.

The animated tyke and her pet monkey, Boots, have been a fixture on Nickelodeon for just over two years, taking young viewers on scores of problem-solving adventures.

But Dora is not content to merely provide passive entertainment. She’s fond of stopping the action cold, turning to the kids at home and asking for help with the task at hand. It might be a counting riddle, a call to recap the steps needed to get from Point A to Point B or just a nudge for kids to pitch in on a song or dance. And the fact that Dora is a bilingual member of a Latino household adds a neat little spin on learning activities that are rather skillfully disguised as gentle fun.

The show, created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh and Eric Weiner, airs in back-to-back episodes from 11 a.m. to noon weekdays on Nick Jr., but tonight at 8, little Dora and her friends get their shot at the big time with a half-hour Christmas special, “A Present for Santa.”

Although all the episodes are primarily in English, Dora always tosses in a handful of Spanish words and phrases that can’t help but build bilingual skills in young viewers.

Even Santa drops a little Spanish on his visitors tonight and rewards them for playing along by delivering a swinging version of “Feliz Navidad,” sung by guest voice Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys.

With an avalanche of Christmas programming aimed at folks who no longer have feet in their pajamas, it’s nice to know that the small fry can still count on Dora.