The 20 Best Educational Movies for Kids

Your kids are home from school, and you desperately need some time to do laundry/pay bills/chill out. The fix? Plunk ‘em down in front of the TV for a couple of hours. But if you’re feeling sheepish about screen time, we’ve got you covered. Here, the best educational movies for kids so you can press play without a pang of guilt.

Each pick has been vetted by a parent, but we’ve also included helpful notes about the movie’s rating and what educational value it provides. From Disney movies featuring positive messaging about kindness and friendship to nature documentaries highlighting the importance of looking after our planet, these films will entertain, teach and inspire young minds.

• Suitable for: kids ages 5+
• Run time: 103 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Andrew Stanton
• Cast: Ben Burtt, Andrew Stanton, Elissa Knight, Jeff Carlin, John Ratzenberger, Sigourney Weaver, Peter Docter
• Reviews: 95% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.4/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive messages about empathy, love and friendship; strong, educational themes on technological progress and the environment

This artsy Pixar gem is about Wall-E—a hopelessly charming robot who lives on Earth, centuries into the future when humans have trashed the planet and then left it to live unhealthy lives on a spaceship instead. If it sounds a bit dystopian, that’s because it is at first. However, the narrative takes a turn for the hopeful when Wall-E encounters another robot on Earth and falls in love. The object of his affection, Eve, is scooped up by the human spaceship and a romantic rescue mission ensues—one that has an unexpectedly positive impact on mankind. This eco-conscious film has plenty of relevant messages, too. And PureWow’s Editor-in-Chief, Jillian Quint, is a fan: “Although Wall-E was made long before chat GPT was even a glimmer in anyone’s mind, I think it’s an important lesson for kids now more than ever—that in the face of technological progress, we can’t forget our humanity.”

• Suitable for: kids ages 7+
• Run time: 109 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Adrian Molina, Lee Unkrich
• Cast: Anthony Gonzalez, Gael Garcia Bernal, Benjamin Pratt, Alanna Ubach, Gabriel Iglesias, Jaime Camil
• Reviews: 97% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.4/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: rich cultural themes, positive messages about family, love and ambition

Kids of all ages can get a dose of culture from this moving tribute to Mexican traditions, which features an impressive Latino cast, vibrant animation and stellar music. As for the storyline, Coco is ultimately a coming-of-age film about a young boy named Miguel, who is torn between following his passion for music and honoring his family’s rich history. "I was worried that the overarching theme—Day of the Dead—would be a bit too intense, but my seven-year-old asked thoughtful questions after watching (like about our own family traditions and relatives). And our whole fam is totally obsessed with the soundtrack,” says PureWow Senior Director Rachel Bowie. The takeaway? This kid-friendly number serves up a resounding celebration of cultural heritage, alongside positive messages about family, unconditional love and ambition.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 77 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Louie Schwartzberg
• Cast: Meryl Streep, Mélanie Laurent
• Reviews: 79% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.2/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: environmental themes and Earth science education

This Disney nature doc, a special Earth Day release, is all about the birds and the bees…literally. Narrated by Meryl Streep, this fascinating flick takes a deep dive into the important work done by pollinators. It’s also blessedly light on wildlife violence: There’s some squabbling between birds and a couple insect-related predator-prey scenes, but none of the carnage that could make a sensitive kid feel terrified of nature.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 94 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Pete Docter
• Cast: Amy Poehler, Richard Kind, Mindy Kaling, Phyllis Smith, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Kaitlyn Dias
• Reviews: 98% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.1/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive themes about teamwork and communication; strong educational value with regard to social emotional learning

“Inside Out might be the best movie ever about understanding emotions as we grow, and it’s equally edifying for adults,” says Jillian Quint about (another) one of her favorites. “I often find myself thinking about how emotions emerge for my kids and using the language of the Inside Out franchise to help them parse those big feelings,” she adds. This quirky and incredibly original animated film follows a tween girl, Riley, as she tries to navigate her daily struggles and the flood of emotions that adolescence has introduced. The twist is that it’s those very feelings, personified, that tell the story (and pull the strings) from inside her brain. The plot of this one has plenty of excitement and moderate peril, but what really stands out is the positive and emotionally evolved message it sends that all feelings are OK, even anger and sadness, and what matters most is how you express them.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 224 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Robert Wise
• Cast: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Charmian Carr, Heather Menzies, Angela Cartwright, Kim Karath
• Reviews: 83% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.1/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive messages about kindness, friendship and integrity; social emotional learning and educational historic context

This beloved classic has stood the test of time for a reason, friends. As the title suggests, the film is replete with amazing tunes. In fact, the wholesome narrative revolves around Maria, a nun-turned-nanny who wins over her reluctant charges (and their father) with song. Ultimately, this musical is full of romance and brimming with positive messages about kindness and integrity. That said, parents should know that the story takes place during the Nazi invasion of Austria—a historical context that plays a significant role in the film and may inspire questions from inquisitive kids.

Still, PureWow Executive Editor Dara Katz has some reassuring words on that front: “Our 4-year-old daughter just connected so much with 'The Sound of Music' (Maria), the kids and the puppets. In fact, she wants to be 'Sound of Music' (Maria) for Halloween. The story obviously has more mature themes, but our daughter is focused on the music and has been practicing her scales since 'Sound of Music' (Maria) taught her.” In other words, the soundtrack prevails.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 80 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Luc Jacquet
• Cast: Morgan Freeman, Jules Sitruk, Roman Bohringer
• Reviews: 94% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.5/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive messages about empathy and community; educational value centers around nature and animal behavior

March of the Penguins is a visually stunning nature documentary that follows—you guessed it—penguins as they make their yearly, perilous trek across Antarctica. The film is moving—tragic, at times—and ultimately serves up a display of empathy and community among the migrating birds that’s so beautiful you’ll want to have a box of tissues on hand.

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 112 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Doug Atchinson
• Cast: Keke Palmer, Laurence Fishburne, Angela Bassett, Sean Michael Afable
• Reviews: 86% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.4/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive themes about overcoming struggle, attaining goals and navigating dynamics with family and friends; educational value promotes literacy and dedication to learning

This poignant drama revolves around the struggles and triumphs of a young black girl, Akeelah, as she navigates her relationships with family and friends, whilst pursuing her talent as a champion speller. The story unfolds around a National Spelling Bee competition, but you definitely don’t have to be a bookworm to appreciate the complexity of the narrative and the empowering conclusion to the story.

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 109 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Michael Rianda
• Cast: Michael Rianda, Danny McBride, Alex Hirsch, Abbi Jacobsen, Maya Rudolph, Beck Bennett
• Reviews: 97% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.6/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes about family dynamics; positive messages about teamwork and communication; educational message about the pros and cons of technology

In The Mitchells vs. the Machines, a family road trip turns into an action-packed adventure when an AI robot released by a tech company turns on mankind. Needless to say, the film explores the pros and cons of technology and the growing role it plays in our lives. File under ‘screen time conversation starter.’

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 76 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Director: Catherine Gund
• Cast: Safiya Kai Riddle, Ana Angel, Bryant Terry, Scott Stringer
• Reviews: 67% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.1/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: food and nutrition education, environmental themes

There’s a pro-vegetarian message in this informative and engaging documentary about food, which covers everything from the global impact of consumption and waste to basic nutrition. It’s basically a kid-friendly version of Fast Food Nation and an educational watch, to be sure. That said, parents who choose this one for family movie night should be prepared to field some difficult questions about their own eating habits.

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Darren Foster, Cristina Constantini
• Cast: Jack Andraka, Kashfia Rahman, Serena McCalla
• Reviews: 97% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.5/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: positive messages teamwork, curiosity, the importance of STEM innovation and how children can overcome challenges to achieve their goals; lots of science and engineering information explained by children in understandable terms.

Young innovators steal the show in this documentary about teen participants in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. The film follows an impressively diverse group of contestants from a variety of economic and ethnic backgrounds, and the content is plenty engaging. Overall, it’s a compelling watch that will surely inspire science-minded tweens and teens to pursue their STEM goals.

• Suitable for: kids ages 9+
• Run Time: 97 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Haifaa al-Mansour
• Cast: Waad Mohammed, Abdullrahman Al Gohani, Reem Abdullah, Ahd
• Reviews: 99% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.5/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes about women’s rights, family, political and religious oppression; positive messages about independence

Wadjda is an empowering and beautiful film about a spirited, sneaker-wearing Saudi girl who wants to learn how to ride a bicycle, despite the fact that such activities are forbidden for women in the conservative Muslim tradition to which she belongs. Thought-provoking and full of charm, this one serves up a subtle and complex perspective on oppression, culture and religion. Parents should know that the movie is relatively free of violence and other explicitly disturbing elements, but it is subtitled and also sophisticated compared to other kid’s movies. In other words, this one is best-suited to tween and teen audiences.

• Suitable for: kids ages 10+
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Domee Shi
• Cast: Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Sandra Oh, Rosalie Chiang, Sherry Cola, Jordan Fisher
• Reviews: 95% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.9/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes of independence, family dynamics, emotional regulation; age-appropriate sexual education with regard to puberty

“I'm bracing myself for my daughter's tween years, but thankfully, this movie opens the door to those conversations,” says PureWow’s VP of Editorial Content, Candace Davison. “I loved how the story captured the awkwardness of growing up—and more importantly, how parents' and kids' relationships can shift during that time. As the 13-year-old protagonist, Mei, navigates puberty and enters her teen years, it offers so many opportunities to talk about developing a sense of independence, carving out your identity, regulating emotions and dealing with those times when you feel like your parents just don't understand. Not to mention entire convos every millennial parent can relate to about life in the early aughts, when boy bands ruled the world,” she adds. 

 I also watched Turning Red with my tween daughter. We both loved it, and I can’t for the life of me understand why so many people had their panties in a bunch over the heartwarming story. The animation is lively, the characters are likable, and the sweet coming-of-age narrative perfectly captures the highs and lows of adolescence, while highlighting the importance of friends and family alike. Plus, the “red panda” metaphor is so much better than the tired “it’s that time of the month” business. (Right?)

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 82 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Elliot Berlin, Joe Fab
• Cast: Sandra Roberts, Dagmar Schroeder-Hildebrand, Tom Bosley
• Reviews: 71% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.3/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes of tolerance and diversity; age-appropriate Holocaust education

When it comes to age-appropriate Holocaust education, Lois Lowry’s Number the Stars is a classic; and then there’s “Paper Clips,” a documentary about a group of students and a remarkable teacher who introduced the subject in a way that adequately captures the profound injustice of the historic event without all the violent details. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more family-friendly movie for teaching tweens about tolerance, diversity and the horror that was the Holocaust.

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Brett Morgen
• Cast: Jane Goodall, Kim Akia
• Reviews: 98% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.8/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: conservation and environmental responsibility, scientific curiosity and discovery, personal resilience

Jane Goodall, the famous primatologist and chimp whisperer, is the subject of this engaging documentary, which explores both her pioneering work and the fascinating primates she studied. Most importantly, though, this heartfelt biopic boasts a powerful and far-reaching message about perseverance and compassion that’s sure to make an impact on animal-lovers, budding scientists and pretty much everybody else. “I remember learning about Jane Goodall when I was a kid (she actually visited my school once!) and being in awe of her and so inspired—I can’t wait for my kids to watch this and feel the same,” says PureWow executive editor Alexia Dellner.

• Suitable for: kids ages 8+
• Run Time: 105 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Director: Todd Thompson
• Cast: Martin Luther King Jr., Whoopi Goldberg, Neil Armstrong, Pharrell Williams, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Maxine Waters, Vivica A. Fox, George Takei
• Reviews: 100% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.7/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: powerful themes about social justice, racial inequality and women’s rights; strong female role model; educational value emphasizes the importance of STEM

Here, another empowering documentary about a strong female role model. This time the subject is the life and work of Nichelle Nichols—the Star Trek actress who, at the series’ end, passionately devoted herself to a NASA special project that focused on the recruitment of female and minority astronauts. Her poignant story is a lesson in the importance of diversity, as well as the impressive progress that a single person can bring about by simply using their voice to champion a worthy cause.

• Suitable for: kids ages 7+
• Run Time: 100 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Shawn Levy
• Cast: Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Rami Malek, Owen Wilson, Dick Van Dyke, Carla Gugino
• Reviews: 42% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.5/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes about resolving family issues and following dreams; moderately educational historical content

New York’s Museum of Natural History has a new night watchman—and he’s wholly unprepared for the fantastical adventure that his first shift turns into. Ben Stiller, Dick Van Dyke and Bill Cobb are just a few names on the all-star cast of this action-packed movie, which brings history to life in ways that are slightly terrifying but mighty entertaining. (Psst: Considerable peril and occasional bad language make this one best for the tween and up crowd.)

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 125 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: multiple
• Cast: Leopold Stokowski, Deems Taylor, Jimmy MacDonald, Julietta Novis, Paul Dukas
• Reviews: 95% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.7/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: introduces kids to classical music, provides wholesome sensory stimulation

“This is such a fun, engaging introduction to classical music for younger kids (not to mention sweet relief from the tunes of Cocomelon). Beethoven, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky are just a few of the composers featured, and it's neat to see how these songs inspired such rich, whimsical storylines,” says Candace Davison.

And given that it was one of my personal childhood favorites, I can attest to its timelessness of this entirely dialogue-free animated film, which is best described as a compilation of visually enchanting short stories that unfold to the tune of the greatest compositions from the 18th and 19th century. There’s nothing flashy or objectionable about this one, friends, so you needn’t worry about overstimulation. In fact, Fantasia is one of the best ways for kids of all ages to experience screen time and discover a love of music in the process.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 75 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Bill Kroyer
• Cast: Robin Williams, Tim Curry, Samantha Mathis, Christian Slater, Tone Loc, Cheech Marin
• Reviews: 67% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.6/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: strong environmental messages about deforestation

Long before Wall-E hit the theaters, there was Ferngully—an animated gem from the 90s with a similarly powerful environmental message. There’s a deranged but charming bat (voiced by Robin Williams), a courageous fairy apprentice (Samantha Mathis), and an evil spirit (Tim Curry) that they must stop from destroying the rainforest. Spoiler: Humans are responsible for said evil spirit, and your kid will become a veritable treehugger after just one watch. It had this effect on me at least, and I'm not the only one. “No movie got me caring about the environment quite like Ferngully…and yes, it's a movie about fairies—and that certainly draws kids in—but it's really a tale about the pitfalls of deforestation, sparking conversations about caring for our planet. Plus, Robin Williams as the voice of Batty Coda? His quips alone make it a must-watch,” says Candace Davison.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 70 minutes
• Rating: G
• Director: Don Bluth
• Cast: Judith Barsi, Gabriel Damon, Candace Hudson, Will Ryan, Diana Ross
• Reviews: 65% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.4/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: themes of friendship, family, loss, courage and perseverance; introduces species of dinosaurs and concept of environment/habitat;

You might remember this popular film (and the many, many sequels) from your own youth. Our suggestion? Start from the beginning with the original animated movie about a courageous and diverse band of dinosaur babies who overcome their differences so they can overcome the adversity of parental separation in the aftermath of the legendary (and continent-creating) giant earthquake that broke up Pangaea.

• Suitable for: kids ages 6+
• Run Time: 98 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Director: Pete Docter
• Cast: Pete Docter, Edward Asner, Bob Peterson, Jordan Nagai, Christopher Plummer, John Ratzenberger
• Reviews: 98% Rotten Tomatoes, 8.3/10 IMDb
• Content Themes, Messaging & Educational Value: aging and loss; love and friendship

Pixar tackles old age, illness and death in this surprisingly uplifting film. The unlikely protagonist is a curmudgeonly old man who aches for his deceased wife and decides to honor her memory by departing on a grand adventure with the help of a whole bunch of helium balloons…and the (unwanted) company of a boy scout on board. Humorous and touching, this kid-friendly flick will have viewers of all ages pondering the meaning of life, love and friendship.