There are so many television shows on that are geared toward young children. Every time I search for something there is something always new. I sometimes get overwhelmed with all of the choices because I never know what is actually good and actually teaches life lessons. There are so many shows that have a silly premise or drive me insane. I sometimes am confused by some of the shows. The Youtube videos of families opening up eggs are just the most insane thing, why do my kids like that stuff? Well, I have found some great shows over the years, and here are the best shows that actually teach valuable life lessons.
Why Handy Manny Is The Most Underrated Children's Show On TV
- Daniel Tiger Neighborhood: This is one of the best shows on television! This show is a spin-off of the ever so popular Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood. Daniel Tiger was one of the puppets that Mr. Rogers played with during his show. Daniel Tiger lives with his mom, dad, and his baby sister Margaret. He has best friends that he interacts with every episode; O the Owl, Katarina Kitty Cat, Miss Elana, and Prince Wednesday. Together, the friends learn life lessons and embrace growing up. With each new life lesson, they learn a new song as well. There are hundreds of songs that address feelings, how to be a good friend, new transitions, and learning new things. Toddlers can relate to Daniel because he is going through very normal and applicable experiences.
- Handy Manny: I am obsessed with Handy Manny. Manny Garcia is a Hispanic man who works as a handyman for his small little town. He has a set of talking tools that he brings around with him. The tools are constantly learning life lessons from Manny. Manny is always serving others and having to problem solve difficult tasks. He lives in a town with a collection of different people. Some of the people are quite eclectic and yet Manny is extremely friendly to everybody. The show includes Spanish vocabulary and teaches the viewers about the Latin culture. There is also an amazing character named Kelly. She is a woman who owns the hardware store. She is such a great example of a strong independent woman.
- Octonauts: The Octonauts are all about saving life under the sea. They go around in their submarine and have missions to save different sea life and choral. Through their adventures, the Octonauts teach their toddler viewers about different fish, sharks, whales, and even the coral reef. They sometimes give very detailed information about different life and so it keeps my whole family interested. I really do like this show.
- Little Einsteins: The Little Einsteins are so cute! Although some of the parts drive me crazy like, "pat pat pat...we need more power" kind of gets on my nerves but it really does teach some good lessons. Little Einsteins focuses on the arts and so they teach many things that I have no knowledge of and things that they won't necessarily focus on in school. They teach about music composers and also about famous artists. They teach toddlers about different types of artistic styles and also how to recognized famous musical pieces. I learn something from every episode. It is really cute.
- Bubble Guppies: This cute show is all based under the sea. All of the characters are sea life and it is such an adorable concept. There is a teacher named Mr. Grouper and he is a fish. He has school every single day and the children come to his classroom. The children are all merpeople. Each of the children is different and unique. The show really does a great job showing how every kid looks different, has different qualities and things that that they worry about but are all friends. Little Nonny is just the cutest little boy ever. He has curly red hair with big glasses. Nonny is very intelligent but is a little shy and is intimidated by sports and other athletic activities. The kids just love him though and try to make him feel comfortable. Since the whole show is all about the relationship the children share within the classroom, Mr. Grouper has a lot of opportunities to teach the children a lot of things.
- Super Why: Super Why is every child's dream wrapped up in one show. Wyatt Beanstalk is the main character and he is the leader of the super-secret group, the Super Readers. The whole show is in a storybook land that features all our favorite stories like Jack and the Beanstalk, Three Little Pigs, and Little Red Riding Hood. Every episode of the members of the Super Readers club will come together and talk about their problem. The Super Readers then have to fix the problem by changing our words to make sure that the story makes sense. This book teaches children about the alphabet, the sounds that letters make, and sight words. The show gives plenty of opportunities for children to participate and guess what Wyatt will do next. It is a great interactive and educational show with adorable characters.
- Creative Galaxy: This is such a great show and this has been my six-year-old's favorite show for a few years now. The show is about a little alien named Arty. He lives on a planet with his mom and his dad. He believes that everything can be better with art and so he is constantly creating. Arty and his friends fly around the galaxy to different planets depending on what they need for their piece of artwork. He usually travels with his shape-shifting friend Epiphany. They go to worlds likes Paperia (the home of all the paper products and Captian Paper) and Fabrictopia. There is also Galleria who is the curator at the museum on the Museum planet. Builder Ben & Builder Betty are on the building planet. The show really is amazing and has so many beautiful and wonderful things to see. Arty is constantly creating things. Then the animated series flips over to real-life children trying to replicate what Arty did on his show and then at the end of their scene they say, "bye Arty." So, then my son is inspired to do so many crafts. It is amazing. The show has opened up his world to so many different creative activities.
- Word World: My favorite thing about this show is that every object is created using the letters that spell the name of that object. So a dog would be created with the letters D.O.G. So my children able to see an object and know exactly what letters are involved in creating that word. This show is perfect for preschoolers and early learners. My toddlers have loved this show because it makes reading and learning a lot of fun for them.
What are some of your favorite shows that your toddler watches? I know scream times are often looked down upon but I have my children watch shows if I need to get something done, or if they are getting a bit rowdy and I have to settle them down for a second. No shame here! I am always looking for good educational shows for my children so that they aren't just watching silly Youtube videos that teach nothing.