Not all media is created equal. Some shows are created purely for entertainment or designed to make money. Other shows have a team of educational advisors and researchers to make content that is engaging and educationally valuable. But how can you tell these shows apart?  It can be challenging as a parent to sort through all of the options to determine which shows are “high-quality”. Here are a few of our top tips for assessing a show:

DESIGN:

• Evaluate the speed and general appearance of the show. Try to avoid fast-paced content with oversaturated colors and extreme amounts of movement as this can be overstimulating to some children. Look for shows that are slower paced with fewer cuts between scenes, life-like colors, and peaceful music and movement.
• Opt for shows that encourage interaction, like a character asking the audience a question and pausing to give children the chance to answer. 
• If you have an educational goal for your child that you’d like to support through media, try to identify the main curriculum of the show. What type of content does it advertise teaching? How is this content conveyed? Research has found that educational television shows can successfully teach children core skills like vocabulary, math, and science, as well as socio-emotional competences. 
• Remember that the learning goal is not memorization, it’s comprehension and understanding with the ability to apply the information in other contexts beyond the screen. Look for shows where the educational content is well integrated with the narrative (story) to encourage easier processing and comprehension for your child. 

THEMES:

• Seek out positive messaging—friendship, creativity, kindness, playfulness, empathy. Themes like danger and conflict or scary images can have a negative impact on young children. Similarly, try to avoid shows (or episodes) where characters exhibit behavior like stealing, scheming, or hurting others. If a show models negative behavior, that will likely be your child’s main takeaway even if the negative behavior is corrected later in the episode. Children copy what they notice, and negative behavior is attention-grabbing. 
• If you’re seeking educational content, look for shows that have a consistent curriculum (e.g., vocabulary, math, social-emotional skills). Learning goals that are similar from episode to episode will offer predictability for you and your child.

BEHAVIOR:

• Listen to the language. Do the characters model language and interactions that you’re comfortable with your child hearing and seeing? Would you be okay with your child being spoken to in that way by a friend? Shows that use a rich vocabulary and model positive communication will have a greater benefit for your child. 
• Prioritize positive role models and diversity. Media can offer a fantastic opportunity to introduce your child to cultures, differences, and experiences they may not encounter in their everyday life. 

GENERAL TIPS:

• Stay involved with your kiddos’ screen time and engage them in discussions about what they saw and heard to help them process and make connections. 
• Try to utilize an ad-free channel or streaming service when possible to minimize commercialization. 
• When possible, avoid letting your child click through shows and videos on their own to prevent them from encountering inappropriate content that can unfortunately be tucked within child-directed content on platforms like YouTube. 

One way to check if a show meets these criteria is to pre-screen a few episodes before your child views it. Another way is to seek reviews from reputable source like Common Sense Media. We highly recommend checking out Common Sense Media’s website. They have a database of community reviewed and rated shows so you can sift through and find the content that you’re looking for based on your child’s age, interests, and the topics you’d like to introduce (or avoid). Common Sense recently became a subscription-based website but you can sign up for the free version and read 3 reviews a month. Bonus, if you’re an educator you can sign up for a free account! We don’t have any affiliation with them, we just appreciate what they do to help parents find content that fits their goals. Let us know if you check it out and find it helpful!