''Alma's Way'' is an animated children's television series from

Fred Rogers Productions Fred Rogers Productions is an American non-profit organization specializing in children's programming for public television in the United States. Founded by Fred Rogers, it was initially renamed The Fred Rogers Company in his honor after his dea ...

created and executive produced by former ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...

'' actress

Sonia Manzano Sonia Manzano (born June 12, 1950) is an American actress, writer and speaker. She is best known for playing Maria on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 2015. She received a Lifetime Achievement Daytime Emmy Award in 2016. Her memoir, ''Becoming ...

and animated by Canadian animation studio Pipeline Studios. The series premiered on

PBS Kids PBS Kids (stylized as PBS KIDS) is the branding used for nationally distributed children's programming carried by the U.S. public television network PBS. The brand encompasses a daytime block of children's programming carried daily by most PBS ...

on October 4, 2021. The show is set in

The Bronx, New York The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County to its north; to its south and west, the New York City bo ...

and revolves around Alma Rivera, a 6-year-old Puerto Rican girl, as she ventures out into her Latino neighborhood to demonstrate decision making and social awareness skills. The title's meaning refers to Alma's ability of thinking things through, to help her solve problems within each episode. On August 2, 2022, it was announced the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on September 18, 2023. The second season introduced a new female character named Yolette, new voice actors for Eddie and André, and a new live-action, post-episode segment called ''My Way.'' On February 28, 2025, it was announced the series was renewed for a third season.

Premise

The series centers on Alma Rivera, a six-year-old girl residing in the

Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

with her family and friends. Each day presents her with various challenges, and she consistently takes the time to stop, listen, observe, reflect, and articulate her thoughts to navigate these everyday issues.

Episodes

Characters and interstitial shorts

The Rivera family

* Alma Rivera (voiced by Summer Rose Castillo) is an optimistic 6-year-old Puerto Rican-American girl. She seems to have a role as the leader of the group. She likes solving problems. Her favorite baseball team is the Sweat Sox. In "Alma Goes to Puerto Rico", it was stated that she's named after her great-grandmother. * Ruben "Junior" Rivera (voiced by Neo Vela) is Alma's 5-year-old younger brother who loves

dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic Geological period, period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the #Evolutio ...

and dancing. His favorite singer is Elyssa B, and his favorite baseball team is the City Seagulls. It was stated by Lulu in the episode, "Alma Goes to Puerto Rico", Junior is named after Ruben but goes by Junior (Ruben Rivera Jr.) as a nickname but is actually Ruben Rivera Jr. * Lulú "Mami" Rivera ( ''née'' Mambo; voiced by Annie Henk) is Alma and Junior's mother, and Ruben's wife. She is a musician and music teacher. She is a great cook, but isn't good at making mofongo. Her favorite singer is Elyssa B. * Ruben "Papi" Rivera (voiced by Jesús E. Martinez) is Alma and Junior's father, and Lulú's husband. He's a

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...

, and hosts his own show called ''Ruben to the Rescue''. His favorite baseball team is the City Seagulls. * Gustavo "Abuelo" Rivera (voiced by Danny Bolero) is Lulú and Gloria's father, and Alma, Junior and Eddie's maternal grandfather.

Recurring

* Eddie Mambo (voiced by Jacob Crespo in Season 1, Adrian Marrero in Season 2, and Luca Silva in Season 2, Episode 19 - Current) is Alma's next-door neighbor and cousin. He is a gifted musician who plays drums, guitar, and horn. He wears leg braces and uses crutches due to cerebral palsy. He is 7 years old (later 8 years old). * Uncle Nestor (voiced by Marco Antonio Rodriguez) is Alma's uncle and Eddie's father. He is a playwright and musical director of a Bomba ensemble. * Tía Gloria (voiced by Sharon Montero) is Alma's aunt and Eddie's mother. She is a

New York City Transit Authority The New York City Transit Authority (also known as NYCTA, the TA, or simply Transit, and branded as MTA New York City Transit) is a New York state public-benefit corporations, public-benefit corporation in the U.S. state of New York (state), New ...

Train Conductor. * André King (voiced by Niason DaCosta in Season 1 and Ja'Siah Young in Season 2) is Alma's friend. He is great at drawing and sketching. His mother is Nea and his father is James. * Rafia Huda (voiced by Naysa Nishash Shokeen) is Alma and André's

Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( ) are the citizens and nationals of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centred on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the Bay of Bengal, eponymous bay. Bangladeshi nationality law, Bangladeshi citizenship was fo ...

friend. She loves to play sports. She is 7 years old. * Lucas Reed (voiced by Julian Lerner in Season 1 and Declan Fennell in Season 2, Episode 9 - Current) is Alma, André and Rafia's friend. He is a gifted singer. * Becka (voiced by Emily Isabel) is a

Jewish-American American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are Americans, American citizens who are Jews, Jewish, whether by Jewish culture, culture, ethnicity, or Judaism, religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of Am ...

keyboard player. She is 12 years old. * Safina Huda (voiced by Jenna Qureshi) is Rafia's older sister. She volunteers at Ruben's pet clinic. * Harper (voiced by Uschi Umscheid) is Alma's friend, an only child whose father away serving in the military. * Owen Reed (voiced by Andy Talen) is Lucas's father. * Anik Huda (voiced by Ratnesh Dubey) is Rafia and Safina's father. He owns a small grocery store. * Nea Omema King (voiced by Justine J. Hall) is André's mother. She owns a bookstore. Alma introduces her as Mrs. Omema in the episode, "Alma's Masterpiece". She doesn't go by Mrs. King. * James King (voiced by

James Monroe Iglehart James Monroe Iglehart (born September 4, 1974)"Iglehar ...

) is André's father. He is a cook and likes experimenting with different kinds of foods. * Frankie Four Feet (voiced by Victor Cruz) is the owner of the Bronx Community Center. * Granny Isa (voiced by

) is Alma's maternal grandmother who travels the world. *Howard (voiced by Dwight H. Clarke in Season 1, Episode 15b - Season 2, Episode 7a, Chance Smith in Season 2, Episode 8 - Season 2, Episode 9a, and Dwayne H. Clarke in Season 2, Episode 10b - Current) is Alma, Junior, Lucas, Rafia, Eddie, André, and Harper's friend. He loves playing water tag. *Yolette (voiced by Khloe Bruno) is Alma, Junior, and André's friend.

''Jelly, Ben & Pogo''

Starting from the show's premiere, television airings are followed up by '' Jelly, Ben & Pogo'', which are shorts that focus on

Filipino culture The culture of the Philippines is characterized by great ethnic diversity. Although the multiple ethnic groups of the Philippine archipelago have only recently established a shared Filipino national identity, their cultures were all shaped by ...

. * Jelly (voiced by Vanille Velasquez) is an optimistic 8-year-old Filipino-American girl. She seems to role as the leader of the group. * Ben (voiced by the creator Jalysa Leva) is Jelly's 5-year-old little brother who serves as the smallest and youngest of the trio. * Pogo (voiced by Christina Sivrich) is the kids' green Scottish-Filipino Lochness

Ogopogo In Canadian folklore, the Ogopogo is a lake monster said to inhabit Okanagan Lake in British Columbia, Canada. Some scholars have charted the entity's development from First Nations in Canada, First Nations folklore and widespread water monster f ...

-like sea monster friend. * Lola (voiced by Diadem Faith) is Jelly and Ben’s grandmother.

Other shorts

Beginning in November, 2022, it was replaced by ''Molly of Denali: The Big Gathering'', which are shorts based on ''

Molly of Denali ''Molly of Denali'' (stylized in all caps) is an animated children's television series produced by WGBH-TV, WGBH Kids and animated by Atomic Cartoons, created by Dorothea Gillim and Kathy Waugh for PBS Kids and CBC Kids.

''. On December 26 in the same year, television airings are also followed up by '' City Island'', a series of shorts centered on civics that follows a group of sentient object characters.

Related Media

Games

# Party at Alma’s # Bop or Pop # The Alma Train # Boom, Boom, Bah # Alma on the Case # Dominoes # Create With Alma # Dino Dance Party

Reception

Adiba Nelson of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' wrote, "Afro-Latino children finally have characters they can relate to."

Awards and nominations

References

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alma's Way 2020s American children's television series 2020s American animated television series 2021 American animated television series debuts 2020s preschool education television series American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated fantasy television series American flash animated television series American preschool education television series American television series with live action and animation Animated preschool education television series American English-language television shows Fictional American people English-language education television programming Spanish-language education television programming Fred Rogers PBS animated television series PBS Kids shows Animated television series about children Animated television series about siblings Animated television series set in New York City Television shows about disability Television shows set in the Bronx Hispanic and Latino American television Spanish-language television programming in the United States