10 quality TV Shows for Young Children
Last Updated: August 14, 2024
For young kids, it’s true that nothing beats face-to-face interaction, hands-on experiences, and play. But a little healthy screen time can be okay, too!
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends no screen time for kids under 18 months, but they say FaceTime is okay. This is mostly because watching TV and playing tablet games are primarily passive activities, and we want little ones to move, explore, and experience new things. But for kids ages 18-24 months and up, they say some screen time is fine. Just don’t exceed 1 hour a day for children ages 2-5 years.
But of course, every family needs to make the choices that are right for them. So rather than having the debate if TV is inherently good or bad, I think we should be talking about how we can best navigate the fact that technology is a big part of our lives—and come up with a plan that works for our family’s needs.
With that in mind, in this post, we put together our top picks for kids’ shows. Each one is positive, educational, and of overall good quality for kids. We know you and your toddler will love them.
WE MAKE HEALTHY SCREEN TIME SIMPLE
Want to take a screen-time break without ever having to worry about ads, autoplay, or parent guilt? Then you’ll love Songs + Stories—the toddler screen time membership that supports language and literacy development.
It’s perfect for parents like you, who are intentional about what their kids learn, listen to, and watch!
Try it with your toddler! Your first 3 videos are free
Our Top 10 TV Show Recommendations for Kids (no particular order)
1. DUCK & GOOSE
What it’s about: Based on the best-selling children's books by Tad Hills, Duck & Goose features two best friends who love to explore. Common Sense Media explains that, "Even though they get along, Duck and Goose see the world differently and have a lot of contrasting ideas about how things should be done. Luckily, they learn that it's OK to disagree, saying "You be you, and I'll be me," and are able to work together in the end."
Who it’s for: Kids around age 2 and up
Why we like it: Calm vibes and helpful social-emotional messaging--we can get on board with that.
Where to watch: Apple TV+
2. TUMBLE LEAF
What it’s about: Tumble Leaf follows a small blue fox and his friends who live in a whimsical land. Tumble Leaf adventures will lead to learning about science and discovery.
Who it’s for: Tumble Leaf is great for preschoolers.
Why we like it: The animation is really different from other shows and lends itself to a nice, slow pace. We also love all the positive examples of problem solving and early literacy skills like rhyming!
Where to watch: Amazon
3. TRASH TRUCK
What it’s about: Calling all little transportation lovers! Is your little one obsessed with the garbage truck coming by? We know many little ones love it! Common Sense Media calls Trash Truck a “gentle preschool buddy tale celebrates imagination.”
Who it’s for: 2.5 years old and up
Why we like it: It’s a nice mix of relatable themes and imagination.
Where to watch: Netflix
4. Sesame Street
What it’s about: There’s a good chance you’re already familiar with the Sesame Street crew! If not, Sesame Street follows some beloved characters like Elmo and Big Bird as they learn new things and work through big feelings.
Who it’s for: Preschoolers! Sesame Street is full of early-literacy inspired educational value, so it’s perfect for littles who are getting ready for school.
Why we like it: Sesame Street is always educational and introduces kids to tons of positive messages and role models. I also love that Sesame Street helps kids make sense of big feelings and hard-to-understand situations like racism, the pandemic, and getting to know our friends with autism.
Where to watch: PBS kids
(PBS Kids online also has fun free games, videos, and art print-outs if you’re looking for more Sesame Street-inspired fun!)
5. BLUEY
What’s it about: Bluey is an adorable show created in Australia, and we love that it focuses on the themes of family and growing up.
Who it’s for: Bluey is great for ages 2.5 and up.
Why we like it: It’s honestly so heartwarming. We love the dad character. The episodes are short, which makes it easier to monitor the screen time. We like watching a few at a time.
Where to watch: Disney+
6. ADA TWIST SCIENTIST
What it’s about: Ada Twist Scientist features Ada, a little scientist who champions asking “why” and persevering when things don’t go right the first time. We love the lessons our kids learn as well as the representation of diversity. Who it’s for: Ages 2-4 years
Who it’s for: Age three and up
Why we like it: Ada Twist Scientist encourages curiosity, friendship, and is based on one of our favorite book series!
Where to watch: Netflix
7. PUFFIN ROCK
What it’s about: This adorable and calming show teaches science concepts to preschoolers and also depicts good examples of relationships.
Who it’s for: Kids 3+
Why we like it: Nice to look at, positive sibling relationship, slow pace appropriate for little ones
Where to watch: Netflix
8. OCTONAUTS
What it’s about: The underwater explorer crew is always up for an adventure! It's such a good show that will spark your child's curiosity and imagination.
Who it’s for: Kids 2 and up
Why we like it: It's educational, positive, fun, and the new vocabulary your child will learn makes our Speech Language Pathologist hearts happy!
Where to watch: Netflix
9. DANIEL TIGER’S NEIGHBORHOOD
What it’s about: Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood comes from the Fred Rogers Company, so if you love and trust the Mr. Rogers show, then you’ll love Daniel Tiger. Each episode follows Daniel as he has positive experiences, learning moments, and disappointments. He helps kids make sense of their emotions and teaches positivity through songs, stories, and make believe play.
Who it’s for: Kids ages 2-4
Why we like it: Daniel Tiger is our personal favorite pick for kids!! We love just listening to the music with our kids, too. Daniel Tiger has a song for all occasions (learning to use the potty, making new friends, leaving your grownup for school, and more)!
Where to watch: PBS Kids, Amazon
10. WEE TALKERS SONGS + STORIES
What it’s about: So, our “show” isn’t on a major streaming service (you can sign up via our website) but we have to share it with you! Songs + Stories is our online membership that is intentionally created by us to support language and early literacy development. We love the fact that it’s slow paced and features real people.
Who it’s for: Ages 2-4 years
Why we like it: We created this specifically for the Wee Talkers community.
Where to watch: Our private, ad-free app!
SCREEN TIME RECOMMENDATIONS BY AGE
When it comes to screen time, personally, we follow the recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics, but of course with a flexible mindset.
We recommend taking a look through them and seeing how they feel for you. Remember, at the end of the day, they are just guidelines. It’s okay to consider what works best for YOUR family.
The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests the following:
Birth to 18 Months: No screen time (other than video chat)
18 to 24 Months: Co-viewing only high-quality programming (if any), and helping children understand what they're seeing
2-5 Years: Co-viewing a maximum of 1 hour of media per day
All ages: Plenty of designated media-free time together
We also encourage families to make a family media plan. You can reassess this at any time!
TIPS FOR MAKING SCREEN TIME HEALTHIER
We’re not “anti-screen time” parents—but we’re not “unlimited screen time” parents, either. We fall somewhere in between. We are okay with it in moderation—but we want to make screen time as healthy as possible for our kids.
Here are a few tips that help us do that:
Avoid Overstimulating Shows for Kids
All kids are wired differently. And how they respond to screen time can vary so much. Some kids can watch television and not appear to be too affected by it. Other kids watch one more episode than normal, or watch something fast-paced and are incredibly dysregulated upon turning it off. Their executive functioning system has clearly been impacted.
No matter how your child is wired, our preference is that toddlers watch slower shows because they mirror more of the pace of daily life, they can more easily follow the show, and generally have better moods when they watch shows that fall towards the calm side. Plus, it really helps their attention skills as they grow and develop. When they are watching lots of overstimulating content, their little brains start to require that amount of stimulation to pay attention. And I don’t know about your house, but we aren’t exactly circus performers over here 🤪
Avoid Screens 1-2 Hours Before Bed
Studies like this one from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, find it’s best for children to avoid screens before bed. Professionals agree it’s best to stop using screens approximately 1-2 hours before going to sleep. This is because screens can lead to difficulty winding down for bed and cause disrupted sleep (and we know how important sleep is to your child’s overall development).
We recommend picking a time earlier in the day that works for your family. We don’t like to be too rigid, but when kids have a predictable rhythm to their day, it really helps them know what to expect and helps decrease those screen time struggles.
Avoid YouTube
Yep, we said it. We know it’s not the most popular opinion, but we don’t love YouTube for young children. It’s not that nothing good is on YouTube, there definitely is decent content. It’s just that YouTube is not our preference because its:
An endless rabbit hole of options, keeping your child wanting more and more (which is YouTube’s goal)
The opposite of calm vibes
Pop-up ads you have to run over to click out of
Creators make more money the longer your child watches, so many shows are designed to keep kids wanting more and more
Even with parental controls set, inappropriate content can still slip through
Many kids shows on YouTube are designed to be highly stimulating with face-paced images and sounds that are not ideal for a developing brain
It’s why we created our own kid “show”--we wanted a safe, developmentally appropriate, and low-stress option!
Get The Screen Time Break You Need. Without Ads, Autoplay, or Parent Guilt!
Our Songs + Stories membership gives you access to screen time that supports your child’s development. Episodes are taught by speech therapists and inspired by library storytime, so each one is safe, developmentally-appropriate, and engaging. And never requires you to pre-watch, co-watch, or skip ads!
TAKE A GUILT-FREE BREAK ↴