Kids have a very short attention span; therefore, getting hold of kids and teaching them anything about history is quite challenging, especially when they aren’t enjoying themselves. That is why historical movies are a great way to help children learn about historical events they may otherwise find boring!
Why Should Children Watch Historical Movies?
Imagining the events written in a textbook can be difficult for children to comprehend. But, watching historical films can make a difference as children can visualise the scenes and relate to them. Kids approach movies the same way as when watching their favourite cartoon. Movies are interactive and dynamic, making it easy for children to memorise an event’s dates, stories, personalities, and characters.
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Watching movies can also help children develop their cognitive skills, like forming long-term memory, developing logic, maintaining focus, reasoning, and visual and auditory processes. It also introduces children to a lot of vocabulary.
Note: Keep checking what your child is watching and ensure they adhere to the screen time limit you’ve set!
We’ve curated a list of historical movies that you can make your children watch on your next movie weekend!
Historical Movies For Children To Watch
1. Ben Hur
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie is one of Hollywood’s best biblical epics. Children will explore many themes like friendship, family, and betrayal through this movie, as a Jewish man tries to escape from the Roman authorities as they try to enslave him during the time of Jesus.
2. Gandhi
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie will teach your kids that we should not lose our patience when things go wrong. The movie talks about the tremendous power of nonviolent mass action, the struggle for Indian independence, Gandhi’s saintliness, the difficulties caused by the Hindu/Muslim rivalry in India, the operation of the British Empire in India, and so much more.
3. The Sound Of Music
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie teaches your little one new and easy songs to sing and teaches them a little about World War II and how people managed their lives in those years.
4. Apollo 13
Why It’s Made The Cut: The movie has a very strong message for children that success can be found even in failure. For the Apollo 13 mission, that success was the achievement of bringing the crew back safely against all odds.
5. Hidden Figures
Why It’s Made The Cut: The movie can be a great inspiration for children as this is based on the true story of a group of African-American women who manually computed the calculations that powered America’s space race.
6. Fiddler On The Roof
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie is a great introduction to a classic musical piece for children. Kids can learn a lot about the Jewish community, their traditions and why these traditions are important to them through this movie.
7. Lagaan
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie can introduce your kids to the time when India was under British rule and how the Britishers imposed an unprecedented land tax on its citizens. This Oscar-nominated movie will also teach kids about a common man’s fight for justice.
8. Bhagat Singh
Why It’s Made The Cut: This extraordinary film will introduce your kids to one of India’s prominent and renowned freedom fighters – Bhagat Singh. The children will also be able to look closely at India’s fight for freedom.
9. Parmanu
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie can introduce your kids to the historical event of India becoming a nuclear state. The movie is based on the real nuclear bomb test explosions conducted in 1998 by the Indian Army at Pokhran.
10. Border
Why It’s Made The Cut: This movie, while teaching your kids about bonding with fellow mates or peers, will also give them a blow by blow account of real life events that happened during the Battle of Longewala in 1971.
What we love is that these movies will help your little one by sparking an interest in learning more about the evens theyv’e seen. So, plan a perfect historical movie night for you and your kids this weekend. You can also check our Instagram profile for more such movie recommendations. Don’t forget to take a photo on your historical movie day and tag us at @firstcryintelli.
