As parents, what criteria can we adopt to choose a suitable cartoon for our children?
Here are some pointers:
- the age of the protagonists must be fairly close to that of the viewers
- the duration must be between 5 and 20 minutes; after the age of 5, the time can be extended
- choose a story that runs linear in its development
- prefer relaxed narrative rhythms (slow sequences) so that the child can pause to observe, listen and understand (and thus be an active and not just a passive user)
- check what values are proposed: does the chosen cartoon encourage collaboration between the protagonists or not: does it or does it not talk about the theme of difference seen as a resource and not as a limitation; does it propose the importance of friendship, or care for the environment, etc.
- pay attention to the use of stereotypes: they do help understanding (so it is normal that they are present in a cartoon) but one must avoid those that cage the way of thinking, such as sexist stereotypes (dad reading the newspaper, mum doing the housework...), or cultural stereotypes (an ethnic group with only a few specific habits), or family stereotypes (only one type of family, compared to the variety present in our society), etc.
- favouring the choice of cartoons that create a connection with what the child experiences on a daily basis
- favouring ‘beauty’ (although everyone has their own perception of the aesthetic dimension and of what ‘is beautiful’): the parent should consider proposing well-edited and well-defined images, or figures and settings that are helpful in following the plot
- the choice could also include the presence of a didactic and teaching objective: the importance of rules, managing emotions, a second language or, perhaps for older children, conveying an education on logical-scientific, artistic, linguistic themes.