5 Cartoons that Actually Teach Kids Important Life Lessons

As a parent, it’s hard to sort through the so-called “educational programming” aimed at children to find the few gems. Ideally, parents want programs that aim to teach their children valuable skills, or try to instill life lessons based around social skills and personal responsibility. At the same time, shows need to be reflective and appropriate for the age range they advertise to; a show aimed at four year olds should deal with behavior issues like sharing and cooperation, while one aimed at older children might have a storyline about what it takes to be a good friend.

If you can find a show that manages to accomplish both endeavors, and teach academic skills as well as social skills, you have hit the parenting jackpot. Below are five shows that attempt this feat on a regular basis.

#5: Martha Speaks
This show is based around a cartoon dog that accidentally learns to talk, and focuses on vocabulary development. It also takes on issues like nutrition, friendship, and telling the truth. It can be appreciated by a wider range of age groups, because the little ones may not understand the life lessons, but can still learn new words.

#4: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
This show about Mickey and his cohorts follows a particular formula (using provided objects throughout the episode to solve problems) based on educational theories of early childhood development. Problem solving, friendship, and loving yourself for being you are all important and repeated key points.

#3: Veggie Tales
This show is clearly not for everyone, and does have a religious bent with biblical characters and stories. But the overall theme is about what it takes to be a good person, and why it is important to be nice to others.

#2: Clifford the Big Red Dog
He’s a giant dog whose size always gets him into trouble. But he is affable, and has human and animal friends who are always learning the errors in their ways.

#1: Jane and the Dragon
This show may be completely new to you, as it was a joint effort between Canadian and New Zealand programming. The story follows Jane, a medieval girl who wants to be a knight rather than a lady, and her dragon friend with a propensity for trouble. This show teaches that girls do not need to be girly, and that hard work and honesty always trumps evil plans.

The post was shared by Annabelle, a loving and caring mother of 2 kids. She lives outside of Milwaukee, WI and loves cheering for the Bucks and Badgers. She is a blog enthusiast and loves writing, if she is not writing she is cleaning up after her two lovely angels. She is trying to make the most of their TV time so it is benefical to everyone and we can learn from it. You can get plenty of channels by using www.ExpertSatellite.com be sure to see if you have the proper channels to watch these fun shows.