Pediatricians recommend that children watch less television than they currently do, but movies may have unseen benefits for kids.
For eons, stories have been a source of learning and inspiration for children. They nourish young minds, allowing them to explore the depths of imagination and knowledge. Today, most kids no longer huddle by the fire listening to tales from their grandparents, but these stories live on in a new form: films.
Of course, there is concern about kids having too much “screen time,” but research has shown stories in films can have the same impact as folktales in the past. One study published in the Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal showed that Disney films could help boost a child’s cognitive and behavioral development by exploring themes like love, friendship, evil, and sacrifice.
In this study, researchers from the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work analyzed 155 Disney films between 1937 and 2020. They found that kids’ movies have shifted their focus from romantic love to essential aspects like family, emotions, love (for oneself and others), and social skills over the last decade.
This study’s findings, among others, underpin the benefits of movies for kids. Read on to see how children can learn meaningful lessons from films.
Movies can boost social intelligence
Cinema is all about storytelling; these stories help kids understand the world and empathize with the characters. They sharpen their social intelligence by identifying with the characters’ feelings, motives, and behaviors.
Why did that character have to sacrifice themself? What moral values make the main protagonist overcome adversity and defeat the villain? Which emotions did a character feel when they lost someone or eventually achieved their goals?
It helps them process emotions and build character
Movies help kids identify with the characters because they are designed to stimulate sensitivity. The next step after this is learning how to understand and process these emotions. This ability is critical in your child’s development because they learn to process positive and negative feelings in the real world. When confronted with a minor issue, they are likelier to think their favorite superhero would do this, not this.
Develop cognitive skills
In almost all films, the main character must overcome hurdles before coming out victorious. These characters face puzzles, riddles, dilemmas, and challenges that require analytical reasoning and focus. So through films, your kid can develop essential cognitive skills like maintaining focus, problem-solving, critical thinking, and long-term memory.
They also learn to look beyond what is presented on the screen. Beyond visual stimulation, movies also engage their hearing and reading skills.
Movies may encourage learning
Movies often feature various themes, ideas, historical contexts, arguments, cultures, names, music, geographical features, etc. This makes them an excellent medium for introducing multiculturalism and global education and enhancing learning and retention.
Kids can also remember critical details and concepts when presented in a visually stimulating and context-rich environment. Also, most Disney films are adapted from great books, which may encourage kids to read and learn more about the characters.
Developing linguistic skills
Dialogue in movies builds your kid’s vocabulary and helps them improve their communication skills. It also develops their sense of humor.
Unlike folktales in the past, films today have a visual stimulus. However, this doesn’t mean that movies can’t boost your child’s imagination and creativity. The visuals help kids learn about specific objects and ideas, helping them develop spatial awareness and other artistic skills such as storytelling, arts and crafts, music, and more.
Movies give kids insights into life
Like adults, kids can also grow with a character and learn the same thing the character learns on-screen. Movies can be inspirational, giving children insight into adversity, perseverance, courage, and triumph. They will know the benefit of not giving up when facing struggles because good things come in the end.
How to help children learn from movies
Parental guidance and involvement are crucial because movies can also negatively impact a child’s development. These adverse effects include attention deficit, slower language development (when parents let the TV do the parenting), and health disorders related to a sedentary lifestyle.
You can set aside movie time, find age-appropriate movies, and help your kids learn from these movie characters. Remember, don’t become so hung up about teachable moments in films; sometimes, you’ve got to let them enjoy the movie.
