The Children's and Family Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Performer in a Preschool, Children's or Young Teen Program honors performances in both television series and made-for-television/streaming films and specials. The category was established at the 1st Children's and Family Emmy Awards in 2022, and is open to lead, supporting and guest performers of all genders who are under the age of 18. The category is a counterpart to the Lead and Supporting categories honoring performers in live action series, and is one of two awards specifically designed to award younger actors, alongside the Younger Voice Performer in an Animated or Preschool Animated Program category.
The first winner of the award was Quinn Copeland for her role as Izzy on the Peacock series Punky Brewster. The current holder of the award is Christian Convery, who won at the 4th Children's and Family Emmy Awards for his role as Gus in the Netflix special Sweet Tooth.
On November 17, 2021, the NATAS announced the creation of the Children's and Family Emmy Awards to recognize the best in children's and family television. The organization cited an "explosive growth in the quantity and quality of childrenâÂÂs and family programming" as justification for a dedicated ceremony. Many categories of the awards were previously presented at the Daytime Emmy Awards. From 1995 to 2021, voice performers were honored with the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program however, this category was discontinued following the announcement of the Children's and Family Emmys.