Catchy Hooks

Like many kids, Lola loves animals. Much to her dismay our apartment does not allow them. We compensate for this with trips to local zoos and aquariums. ‘Becca’lise has also supplemented this with a healthy number of animal docs like the Netflix series Night on Earth which features stunning low-light photography of animals all over the world. 

When we ran out of episodes, ‘Becca’lise rolled the dice and tried out the hour-long special on how they filmed the series. Lola was totally into it. There was just enough animal content to hold her attention and at the same time she was learning about cameras and all the work that goes into making such a series. Animals served as the hook.

Whatever your child’s interests, there is at least one, non-obnoxious film out there about your child's interest. Or maybe it just features/touches upon that interest. The mere presence of animals was enough to get Lola to watch Life of Pi for Pi Day this year. Richard Parker could do no wrong and the flying fish sequence had her laughing harder than most comedies.

Does your child like auto racing? Instead of an endless loop of the Cars Trilogy, might I suggest Speed Racer? Lola and  her Porsche-nut Poppy (my dad) loved it. If your child likes space and you feel like rolling the dice, maybe try 2001: A Space Odyssey! If they’re not feeling it, turn it off. At least you gave it a shot. Robby the Robot was enough to get Lola to watch Forbidden Planet and make her request The Invisible Boy. Now she has a Robby toy that walks and talks. You never know what will click until you try.