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Hey there!
So, as a muslim mom, I’m very particular about what my son watches. I’d like you to know that my son is currently 21 months old so the list below will be according to what a child in his age range (and perhaps even older) can watch.
First off, I’d like to mention that I don’t just hand over an Ipad or phone to him and just let him go on his own. He did not use a phone until after he turned 1 and even then, I’ve deleted 90% of the apps on it so it doesn’t hold his attention for very long. I’ve done this specifically to avoid addiction for as long as I possibly can. He plays with “his” (my old) phone for MAYBE 30 minutes (sometimes even less) and then just throws it away because there’s nothing interesting on it. Even if he uses my phone, the only thing he watches are photos and videos of himself. As far as watching videos, I stream everything onto my tv through Chromecast in addition to having a smart tv that already has Youtube built in. This way, we can watch everything together and I am able to monitor everything he watches even if I’m busy elsewhere.
I know it’s most convenient to just turn Youtube (or any other streaming app) on and let your kids watch while you do what you need to do, trust me, I get it. But it’s important to see what your kids are watching these days because even the most innocent sounding videos/clips may have something that goes against your beliefs or parenting styles.
If your child is in the learning/developmental stages in life where they are learning right from wrong, learning to speak, or any other required skills and personality traits needed, there are a few channels/shows you can check out for maximum learning.
Now, as a muslim, I do not want faces of pigs or other such dirty animals in my home so I may have a very different guideline of what my son watches then yours, but there are some channels that I will recommend here that do have those things in their videos but are still very educational channels so I just watch with my son and avoid those specific videos that I find inappropriate.
1. Omar And Hana
Omar and Hana is a channel that my son has been watching basically since he was born. It is a show (that comes in multiple languages to accommodate all types of populations) about a muslim family. Omar and Hana are brother and sister and they teach kids not only about Islamic values but also about human values. It teaches kids to be kind and never judge a book by its cover. They also teach kids about how to treat one another no matter your circumstance. They also have side stories about other children in the show such as Omar and Hana’s classmates (one of which is an orphan.). I love this show because I’ve never had to worry about what comes on this show because it complies perfectly with my religious and household values. Not only that but they even have a music and no-music version of their episodes!
2. Super Simple Youtube channels
Super Simple is a small children’s learning platform. The only thing about these is that there are some learning songs that have pigs in them so for the Islamically conscious moms and dads out there, you might want to keep an eye out until you know which ones have them in them and then you can either skip those episodes or just fast forward through them. They do, however have one channel called Super Simple Play where the main host of the channel, Caitie, is in a classroom setting and she teaches different topics aimed at young children. I’ve found these channels incredibly educational. My son has learned many of his first words from watching these, he’s also learned many of his first body parts/animal sounds from these shows. So while, for the first time, it’s a good idea to keep an eye out on what your child watches on these channels (if you’re muslim), I would recommend these channels to anyone who wants to entertain their kids in an educational manner.
3. LingoKids
Again, another channel to watch out for but once you know what is appropriate, it’s a very useful tool to have for your child if you’re wanting to teach them to speak. Unlike Super Simple, this channel centers less around learning through childhood songs and poems and focuses more on the linguistic part of the English language so not only do they have songs to teach kids but they also incorporate audiobooks and even ‘movement’ songs to get your kids active and moving — not recommended for those who want to avoid having music in their homes.
4. ABC Monsters
Another, you guessed it, educational show for young children! This one doesn’t really have much music in it nor does it have inappropriate images so it’s perfect for muslim children. This one is a good show because it has longer episodes, it teaches children about the alphabets but also puts an emphasis on teaching to spell the words that they talk about.
5. Morphle Tv
This is a new one that we just recently started watching but it’s a really good one as well. It holds my son’s attention well with it’s bright colours and sometimes funny scenes. They also have longer episodes and they have a different topic for each episode so your kids can learn about different things. Again, this is another good one for muslim children with its lack of music and abundance of learning.
6. Where’s Chicky
So this is not a speaking cartoon however it’s a great way for you to take the time to teach your child yourself. The show consists of a cartoon bird (or 2) where they get themselves in all types of circumstances where they are interacting with some type of object. I usually sit with my son and have him guess the item before they show it. It helps build his vocabulary, helps us bond and also, he has a lot of fun watching the birds being silly.
7. One4Kids
This one is all about teaching children about Islam. Again, another one where I don’t need to worry about what he’s watching because the content, lessons, and animation is all compliant with Islam. They teach Surahs, duas, manners, as well as Quranic stories and tafsir.
8. Miscellaneous
We also enjoy watching different cartoon shorts together just to change things up sometimes. One of his favourites is ‘Bao’ from Disney’s pixar. He especially gets a kick out of the ending (not going to spoil it for you lol). Another one we really enjoy is ‘Alike’ from CGMeetup. This one is really cute. It’s about a father and son, father goes to the same old job everyday, son goes to school everyday. Their world lacks creativity until the son sees a violinist in the park and becomes inspired. But when he reaches school, he is penalized for being creative and his light slowly begins to diminish. I will leave the rest for you to watch, don’t want to ruin it for you.
Now of course these are not all that is available. There are literally millions (if not billions) of videos on the platform. It is our job as parents to sit down with our children AT LEAST once to watch what they watch and make sure everything they are seeing is appropriate. Once you’ve confirmed that everything is A-ok, then by all means, leave your little ones to watch on their own.
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I hope you found this helpful. If you have anything you’d like to add, please feel free to let me know. And don’t forget to share!
