'Sesame Street' Is Coming to the Cereal Aisle

In 2020, it's safe to say that many parents have had their hands full. Figuring out how to get kids to eat a decent breakfast can be challenging even in normal times, and now it's one more part of a hectic schedule that often includes balancing remote learning with job responsibilities as the stress piles up.

Luckily, as they have in so many ways across generations, Sesame Street has found a way to make parenting a little bit easier. In this case, that help comes in the form of a cereal partnership with General Mills that'll fill kids up on the good stuff with a little help from familiar characters.

Starting this winter, Sesame Street's cereal will be available in two distinct alphanumeric flavors. First, there's 1 2 3 Berry, a lightly sweetened, fruity cereal. Somehow, the Count doesn't get a spot in the box's cover shot, but I'm sure he'd approve.

Conversely, C is for cinnamon combines letter-shaped cereal and the aforementioned sweet, spicy flavor. If Cookie Monster's photo on the box is any indication, he doesn't seem that upset that his catchphrase has been misused to sell something healthier than cookies. Speaking of letters, the added benefit here is that these Sesame Street cereals seem to take nutrition seriously. They're billed as a good source of vitamins D and E, as well as fiber and calcium.

The cereal also can serve as a useful education tool. Beyond the fact that the letters and numbers can be used for interactive spelling and math lessons, each box opens up like a book to tell six bilingual short stories starring Elmo. It can't replace school, but it can sure teach a lot more than the average cereal box.

Ultimately, whether or not your kids actually like the cereal is the biggest test here, and that remains to be seen for now. Still, there's no harm in presenting them with a cereal that seems to hit the right notes of taste, relatively nutritious, and educational and hoping for the best. Elmo will thank you.