So many of the cartoons that are on television nowadays are simply not what I want my kids spending time watching. Some, like Ed, Edd, and Eddy, I find to be somewhat disgusting-I cannot begin to tell you how many inane comments and insulting name-calling words my kids have picked up from just seeing that particular show a few times. Other cartoons, such as My Gym Partner is A Monkey, are just quite ridiculous in their premise. That show, along with Squirrel Boy, has introduced my sons to a wealth of fart jokes and anatomy-type jokes.
Because of the lack of quality children’s cartoons available today, I prefer my boys to stay away from the Cartoon Network channel most of the time. Sometimes Nickelodeon has a few good cartoons-even I cannot resist Spongebob Squarepants sometimes. While I can’t prevent what they watch when they are away from home, I can control our televisions, and at the moment we are choosing to go without cable or satellite service. So, what do our boys watch for entertainment? Videos and DVD’s-mainly ones I have purchased at a great discount from thrift stores, garage sales, and library sales.
Several of the movies I have purchased are ones that my sons enjoy watching over and over again. And, if our boys like them, chances are your boys will, too. Here is our list of ten favorite videos for boys ages 4-8 (in no particular order):
Shrek
My sons just can’t get enough of the giant green ogre and his donkey pal-they watch this video at least twice each week.
This movie wasn’t a fast favorite-it took a couple of showings for it to really catch on with the boys. They particularly enjoy watching the huge peach take off in the sky.
No movie list for kids would be complete without this movie. I have yet to find a child who doesn’t love watching Simba grow up and come home to take over the Pride Lands.
This is the original movie, the one with Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. My boys are hooked as soon as they see the introduction to this movie where they show the chocolate being produced in the factory. This is one of my personal favorite movies, too, so I love to watch this with them.
Monster House
We first watched this movie all together on a family movie night, just to make sure it wasn’t too scary for either of our sons. Quite the contrary-they loved it! This movie is on their must-see list at least once a week.
Transformers
The animated version of this movie (the one that came out at least 15 years ago) is the one the boys really like. My husband is the one that bought this movie-it was one he really enjoyed, so he wanted to share it with the kids.
It’s always fun to watch real animals in a movie, especially when the movie has a really funny premise. The boys’ favorite part is when the dog fights like a ninja.
Our sons actually have two versions of this movie-the Disney animated one and the live action version. They prefer the animated movie, but they do also like the live action movie once in awhile.
The Incredibles This is another movie that my boys watch at least once each week. I think they enjoy it so much because the kids are superheroes as well–not just the adults (and it doesn’t hurt that they also enjoy The Incrediblesvideo game that we have, either).
I’m sure you will notice that some of these movies do have silly jokes in them, and some of them do have inane comments and disgusting moments. But, you will agree that none of these movies are nearly as ridiculous as some of the cartoons on television these days. I, for one, and glad that there are so many quality videos and DVD’s available for kids to watch-I’m glad I don’t have to rely on the shows on Cartoon Network for my sons’ entertainment!
