Sponsored by Disney’s Tomorrowland
When your kids are really young it’s easy to decide what sort of movies and TV shows to put on for them … if you stick with G rated programs then you are pretty safe.
That family movie rating means it’s not going to raise too many issues that you need to work through with your kids. Now I have to admit I love a lot of the animated movies and although they may touch on some adult concepts, or even include a few jokes that go over the head of the children, they can be enjoyed at any level. There will come a time though fairly soon when you need to start to filter their movies and you will move into that awkward PG rating area.
The Parental Guidance [PG] rating means exactly what it says … Is not just another level which is still safe for all eyes but rather something that puts the ball back into your court. It’s up to you as the parent to decide whether this content is suitable for your child. I say child and not children because no two kids are developing at exactly the same rate and so it gets quite tricky when you want to put something on for the whole family.
I know some parents take the approach that if something is an issue in the world, then why keep it from your children, but that ignores the fact that processing ideas well means that the brain needs to be ready, and it might require some time to talk through what something means with your kids. I want my children to be able to understand and deal with issues when they are ready to and when they need to. This is exactly why the PG rating is given that name.
When to Move On?
Its not that hard to know when to begin looking at some more advanced type movies because usually your kids will tell you … They will say things like “This is a baby movie!” or “The kids at school are all watching XYZ show.” Obviously other factors such as what books they are reading or topics that they are talking about will also give you an idea. Many families find that this happens around the 7-8 year old mark although most have probably watched PG movies before this anyway and I’m not trying to give any indication of a standard. In fact, if you go through your movie collection you will probably be surprised to find what movies are actually rated PG.
A rule of thumb that has worked well for us is that we tend to:
- Read reviews on some particular family friendly websites for a heads up of what is in the movie that we might need to discuss
- If we are unsure then one of us will watch the movie the first time with the kids
It’s very rare that we would stop a movie but rather if we watch it with them we can unpack it much better in our conversations afterwards.
What to Look For?
Once again it’s up to you what flags a movie as not appropriate for your child but some of the things that we look for as things to consider or discuss afterwards are:
- Positive / Negative messages
- Positive / Negative role models
- Violence – casual, graphic, etc
- Cruelty – sometimes this is worse than violence
- Sexual themes or content
- Consumerism – brands, themes
- Drug abuse
- Language
All of these are subjective which is why it can be so valuable to watch with your children when that is possible.
The Problem!
Actually the same goes for when we move into M rated movies too. The problem is that as children move closer to the top of the PG rated bracket and towards the M rated movies it begins to get very difficult … especially as they become more aware of what their friends are watching. They obviously don’t want to be left behind and yet we don’t want them watching EVERYTHING available if they are not ready. It can be hard to find a movie that includes enough excitement and action without a lot of the negative themes and ‘inclusions’.
Generally we’re looking for something that is not animated (in a childish way) and that looks like a real movie. Fortunately there are people producing movies that combine the two but you’ll have to do some digging to find them.
Disney are a company synonymous with family friendly productions and they are making some great PG movies that are designed for this in-between stage of development. They are amongst a group of brands that give me a little more confidence to show a movie right out of the box.
Their 2015 movie Tomorrowland (George Clooney, Britt Robertson) is a great example of an adventure film with plenty of positive themes but that doesn’t skimp on the action or production values that my pre-teen kids love. It still contains many issues that are great to discuss with your ‘developing minds’ and it will keep them entertained and watching throughout.
We actually watched this with our kids because after viewing the trailer I thought it would be quite fun and I wasn’t disappointed … It was action packed! We put it on for one of our regular Friday night movie nights (complete with pizza and popcorn) and the whole family enjoyed the movie. After watching it I just checked in with my youngest about how he felt during the scene where one of the characters passes away and we had a nice chat about that. If you are looking for a movie to keep the tweenagers entertained over the school holidays … pick up a copy of Tomorrowland – “Imagine a place where anything is possible”. It is available on Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital HD now.
So I guess like most parenting, what’s important is that we are intentional and manage or coach our kids as they develop. We want to expose them to the right things at the right time and be available to discuss any issues that may arise so that our children become well-adjusted and are able to fit in well with their peers. Take the PG rating seriously and look for those movies that are appropriate for your child at whatever stage of development they are at.
Competition
We are giving 8 lucky families the chance to win a Disney Live Action Blue Ray Movie Pack valued at $329. The pack includes:
Cinderella LA
Maleficent
Into The Woods
John Carter
OZ: The Great and Powerful
Muppets: Most Wanted
Alexander and the Terrible
The Lone Ranger
For your chance to score this amazing prize all you need to do is answer this question on the blog post below:
Why would you love to win this Disney Blue Ray Live Action Movie Pack?
Terms and Conditions: Entering the Giveaway: To enter you must answer our question as part of the Giveaway entrance. You are able to only enter once via each entry option for this Giveaway. Do not submit duplicate entries or addresses as this will not improve your chances of winning. Use of Entrant Information: Any information you fill out for this Giveaway will not be used for any other purpose except to notify you if you are the winner. Drawings: The winners will selected based on the answers to the competition question. Prizes: Eight individual people will each receive a Disney Blue Ray Action pack valued at $329 including: Cinderella LA, Maleficent, Into The Woods, John Carter, OZ: The Great and Powerful, Muppets: Most Wanted, Alexander and the Terrible, The Lone Ranger. Eligibility: Each email address may win only once. The Giveaway is open only to legal Australian residents 18 years of age or older. School Mum is not responsible for (1) typographical errors, misdirected or incomplete entries; or (2) computer or telecommunication system failures or similar disruptions to email services and/or the Internet. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. The competition ends at 11.59pm on the 16th of October.
PG
50 Comments
Large age gap between myself and my sisters- just at the point of getting into some cooler movies like ghostbusters and back to the future- they are 12 and 14. Would love some new movies to watch with them !
What a fantastic prize! Snuggling under the doona with the kids, eating popcorn, and watching a quality Disney film sounds superb. My whole family would have a ball choosing what we should watch first for our next family movie night!
I love watching Disney Movies with my kids.
My children love to watch movies, I love that we can all sit together and it’s peaceful
I would love this pack, my kids are in at stage of changing away from animation so this would be prefect to introduce slowly while explaining that it is all make believe in true Disney fashion ??
Disney do movies that are age appropriate best
Toddlers, Tweens and adolescent movies that pass my test
Household of mixed ages
Winning suits all stages
This movie pack would keep my two little princesses happy and contain in the coming summer school holidays.
I’m Collecting Disney movies and haven’t got any of these new release Ones
Only got the classic I’d love to own these and entertain my whole family
Escape into a fantasy world of adventure, magical and mesmerising , enjoying hours of fun. Entertaining and interesting characters, Disney delivering the best variety pack the whole family can enjoy together.
With grandchildren at different ages & with different tastes this dvd pack would be fantastic
We recently got a bluray player and don’t have any bluray movies yet so this pack would be great to get our collection started!
This would be perfect to keep everyone entertained over the summer holidays!
We have four children aged from 3 to 15 and this amazing movie pack would have something to suit all ages and stages in our household!
I would love to win this as these movies are perfect to give my children the transition from G rated movies to M!
Kids really grow up too quick. It is important to dedicate time for ‘family time’ and with these movies we could have a fantastic movie night and enjoy each others company 🙂
I would love to win this movie pack for the family because they are all feel good family movies.
Family movies we all enjoy,
This pack suits both girls and boys,
Such a good variety,
Great Disney movies for us to see!
I would have loved to had some new movies over the school holidays the kids drove me mad because they were bored
I’d love this for my kids. They are 20 months & 4 years. We are hoping to find a house soon & with such a big move from the parents to our own place this would be soooo handy to keep them entertained in between getting sorted.
Plllease
This would be a win for my grand kids they dont have much and the are just the sweetest ever. They would be so happy to have these movies so they can enjoy them as they grow you sure would be blessing 5 children that would treasure these.
All these movies would be fantastic for my oldest daughter (8) and my friday night movie night, its just her and I curled up in bed watching a movie and chatting and sometimes eatting popcorn or icecream 🙂
I’d love this DVD pack as my girls are getting much older now, and we really are over all the G rated films, they are still great films don’t get me wrong, but these look like the perfect flicks to entertain my little growing chicks!!
our family is currently saving for our first family holiday and we are saving for Disneyland , i have made a countdown of weeks till our trip , each Friday 1 of my 4 daughters get to pick a Disney movie for our treat for the week , this movie pack would not only be very welcomed by my daughters but also me as i could save more $$$ to go towards our trip
I would love a Disney dvd pack….my 5 yr old loves friday night movie night
I would love to win a disney pack for my son. He absolutely adores disney movies and it would be a perfect selection for family movie night
My 7yr old would be ecstatic to win this. Our family movie night selection is usually a disney movie, there’s always something for everyone to enjoy!
My girls and I have only watched the Cinderella movie out of all of these and we absolutely loved it! We’d love to have the opportunity to snuggle up and watch all these other fabulous Disney titles too.
Oh my goodness, I’d love to win this pack. Our kids are at a fantastic age at the moment, they still enjoy little kids stuff but are old enough to enjoy things all four of us like, like these kind of live action movies! We’ve only seen one of the movies in this pack, so this would fuel our ‘Friday Family Movie Night’s’ for weeks!
I look after my granddaughter a few days a week, all the Disney movies are a great way to entertain her.
Hi! I live in western Queensland and have almost dial up speed internet which means we can’t download movies to watch at home. Because of our isolation, we also dont have access to a video store. I have to buy all of my DVDs online or when I go to the city (rarely). This prize pack would just be the perfect gift for my three young children. Just amazing! X Lovely giveaway idea! X
Not only are these films great for the kids, I can get some enjoyment out of them as well. Plus I love that some of these films are based on many of my childhood favorites.
I would love to win this Disney Blue Ray Live Action Movie Pack because…our family are Disney tragics that way it will keep not only myself but the rest of the family entertained for hours and hours on end…Yay!…Hooray!
I’d love to win this Disney Blu-ray Live Action Movie Pack because my kids are now at that age/stage you are talking about. They class most G rated movies as ones for babies or their friends at school think are a for babies.
i am a big kid when it comes to watching movies both my children love them too now a new generation of lovers my grand-children can enjoy them too
We enjoy watching Disney movies together as a family and sometimes recreate the singing/dancing scenes which is always fun and makes us laugh.
I would love to win this amazing DVD pack for my family, our Friday Family Film night could use a few new additions!
these great movies will entertain children & parents alike
I’d love to win this movie pack,
Disney brings my childhood memories back.
Now my own kids enjoy the magic of Disney,
So I’d love to watch these titles with my whole family.
I’d Love to win This Awesome Disney Movie Pack as there’s something for everyone in our family of 7, Ohhh and I just Looove Disney, brings back so many childhood memories.
Looks like an excellent mix of movies to watch as a family and keep us entertained. This pack would give us lots of Friday nights of fun, snuggling up together with our popcorn. Love a good Disney flick, brings back memories.
My children are so lovely,
My children are so sweet.
Would love to win this Disney Movie treat
So I can rest my achy feet!
While we aren’t huge fans of too much ‘screen time’, its wonderful having family movie nights. Disney is absolutely the best for relaxing together with some caramel popcorn. We escape the chaos and ‘real life’ for 2 hours and its wonderful!
We love Disney action movies, fun and very groovy. Rainy day fun, movies nights not glum, Disney have made some real beauties!
Love the fact that the whole family can sit down to watch and enjoy these without my husband falling asleep or getting bored and wandering off like in normal “kid-friendly” movies – haha.
We love our family movie nights;
Winning these DVDs would mean more delight!
More cuddles on the couch with my fella;
While we introduce the kids to Cinderella.
I remember the Muppets from my childhood;
And would love to see the musical Into the Woods!
Maleficent proves that not all is what it seems to be;
The Lone Ranger, for a good story – and some eye candy!
8 movies, 8 reasons I’d love to win;
8 excuses for a family night in!
This great Disney Movies Blu Ray Prize Pack would be wonderful for the whole family to sit together and watch with some yummy popcorn and chocolate 🙂
Disney movies create lasting moments in young lives, from the Friday night family movie sessions, to inspiring an adventurous childhood imagination.
So my son can start his own great Disney collection
I would love to win this pack for my daughter as she always gets excited about watching new movies. She is constantly telling me she is a “big girl” now but I still like to keep a check on what she is watching.
Life is one big fairytale, this wonderfull disney pack highlights my growth through storytelling that would enhance our bonding experiences with our beautiful daughter encouraging imagination, respect and thoughtfulness