5 of the Best Halloween Movies for Kids

We all love spooky stories, but they aren’t always suitable for the kids. Here is our round-up of five of the best Halloween movies for kids when the trick-or-treating is all said and done for the night.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

Best suited for children aged 4 and up, there is very little spooky Hallowe’en imagery on display. Watch the Peanuts gang dress up in costumes and enjoy some popcorn with your little gang.

Monsters, Inc.

Best suited for children aged 5 and up, this funny movie full of fake frights is one all the children will love. Younger children may be spooked, however. The story is about a two-year-old girl named Boo who falls into the monster world and frightens the living daylights out of two ogres named Mike and Sulley. Boo befriends the two monsters, who then try to save her and fight the evil company they work for.

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad

Best suited for children aged 6 and up, the small amount of villainy that this movie displays could frighten the smallest of kids. As a classic animated double-feature, the first part of this movie tells the story of the Headless Horseman, which makes it a perfect pick for a spooky Halloween night.

Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland

Best suited for children aged 6 and up, this movie might make smaller children a little shaken up when some evil scenes appear. Little Nemo is not the most well-known of stories, but it is a goody. This fantasy features brilliant hand-drawn visuals and is a story of temptation, consequences and a few bad characters.

Jason and the Argonauts

Best suited for children aged 6 and up, the small amount of violence and unrealistic creatures may unnever smaller tots. However, this movie is full of fun and is a ghoulish alternative to many other kids’ Hallowe’en movies on the market.

Looking for more family fun reads and stories? Then check out www.viewermax.com today and sign your family up for some fabulous entertainment.

Growing your own can help get kids on the path to healthy eating

Getting kids to eat healthy food can be one of the toughest challenges a parent can come up against, but there is a way to make it fun and educate them at the same time.

While we all know that kids can turn their noses up at green vegetables, they also seem to be magnets to dirt. If you want to get kids to eat their vegetables, then playing on their seemingly constant desire to get mucky may be a path worth exploring.

Educating kids about where various fruit and vegetables come from is a good start, but instead of showing them pictures on your phone or in gardening books, why not take them along to real market garden where vegetables are grown.

Many small farms now allow members of the public to come in and pick their own produce for a small fee. If you tell your kids they can pull out vegetables from the ground and take them home and cook them, they will find this great fun and are more likely to try eating them too.

You can take things up a level by trying to start your own little vegetable patch at home and getting your kids to quite literally ‘muck in’.

This will have a range of benefits. For a start, it’ll give you an extra pair of hands in the garden. It will also encourage them to take responsibility and, when they do get to pick their finished produce, they will get a great sense of achievement. Then they can enjoy using their own homegrown produce in the kitchen by helping you cook a healthy meal.

Find more family fun ideas with the books from www.viewermax.com.

Benefits to less screen time

In this day and age, screen time is something we all enjoy quite regularly in our day to day routines. Whether it’s messaging friends of endlessly scrolling at cat videos on Facebook, unfortunately for most is a too common occurrence. We often forget to switch off our phones and enter into the real world and enjoy your surroundings. Here are some benefits on why you should spend less time on your phone.

You’ll rekindle old hobbies - When scrolling on our phones whether it’s on our lunch break or in the evenings, we often forget it could be a time to practice hobbies. Put the phone away and make time for things you love. It can be baking, crafting, going for a run or catching up with friends. Hobbies are so important!

It’ll help your eyes - Staring at a screen for hours on end isn’t good for your eye health, especially if you’re in a darker room. Step away from the phone and give your eyes a good break.

It’ll stop the screen addiction - Many of us will deny the fact that we are addicted to our phones and by taking time away from it, you’ll stop the need from going on it. You don’t need to share everything on Instagram or check in your location on Facebook. You can just live in the moment and enjoy it.

Family time - Family time generally happens in the evening after the kids have finished school and the parents have finished work. However, often we fill the relax times with scrolling but instead we should get off our phones and spend it together as a family. Family time is limited so you should enjoy it while it lasts.

Discover more health articles at www.viewermax.com.

Every kid has a story to tell, here’s how to help them

Children have a world of imagination running around in their heads and it frequently gets shown to the world when they are playing for drawing pictures. Parents know that cultivating a good sense of imagination in their children is important, but as they grow older that can be harder to do.

That’s why encouraging your children to write short stories is a great way to keep that fertile imagination ticking over and it can also have a range of other great benefits too, such as building self-esteem, improving their spelling and grammar and encouraging them to express themselves. Boys especially can be something of a closed book so getting them to get their thoughts down on paper is a great way of finding out what’s on their mind without firing a lot of questions at them.

If you’re children are not familiar with short story writing, or are simply a bit unsure about where to start, then you can help out with a few helpful tips.

Structure the story

Remind them that all stories need a beginning, middle and end. It may be a good idea to get them to think about how they want the story to end and work back from there.

Write about what you know

They shouldn’t waste time trying to wrack their brains for some amazing and original idea – we’re not looking for the next JK Rowling here. Get them to think about their own life experiences and things they are familiar with as the basis for their stories.

Let it flow

If they have a good idea, let them get on with it and just let the words flow. They can edit and tidy it up later when they’re finished.

For more great kids and family reading check out the books at www.viewermax.com.

Substitute these worn out parenting phrases for more positive ones

Parenting – it's probably the biggest job you don’t a qualification for and also the one you won’t get much hands-on training for. It’s also the most important job you’ll ever have as it involves not only keeping a child clothed, housed and fed, but also helping them grow into well-adjusted and independent adults.

Yep, it can be tough sometimes and when you are tired and frustrated, it can be easy to resort to abrupt and unhelpful language with your children. That might help get you through a short-term situation, but sometimes the way we communicate with our children can have a lasting impact on them.

We might think that we are exercising some tough love, but often negative and judgemental language can do lasting damage.

For starters, you may want to start replacing some tired out old phrase with these more positive and encouraging alternatives:

‘How are you feeling?’

It may be obvious to you that your child is angry and lashing out, but simply tell them to calm down or chill out doesn’t always get the job done. By asking them how they are feeling, you are encouraging them to identify their feelings and better explain why they are lashing out.

‘I’m here for you if you need help’

Impatience can cause us to simply take over with a short ‘let me do it’ whenever a child is struggling with something. But that is merely short-term solution. Instead, letting them know that you are there to support them will give them greater confidence.

‘Respect yourself and those around you’

A simple ‘be good’ or ‘stop being bold’ doesn’t let a child know how destructive bad behaviour is, it just lets them know you don’t like what they’re doing. By urging them to show respect for themselves, you’re letting them know that how they’re acting is doing them harm.

Find some other great reading for families with the books from www.viewermax.com.

Meal ideas for larger families

Meal planning can be a tricky game all year round and especially for a family that includes picky eaters. However, meal planning doesn’t have to be boring or hard as there are loads of simple and tasty recipes even the fussiest eater will eat.

Fajita night - Mealtimes should be a fun and inclusive experience for all the family, and that’s why fajitas are a great idea. You'll be able to cook and prep all the fajitas and lay everything out on the table - and then everyone can pick what they want in theirs. It’ll save some family members picking things out they don’t like and allow everyone to take control of their dinner - plus they’re extra yummy.

Mac & cheese - If you’re interested in creating a hearty dish for a family with no allergies, Mac & cheese is a classic. It’s one of those easy dishes that don’t involve much work but are really appreciated by kids as it’s more of a ‘treat meal’.

Lasagna and salad - The beauty with lasagna is there are loads of ways you can alter a traditional recipe, from changing out the meat to changing the different cheeses. It’s a layered meal that can be accompanied with loads of sides such as salad and bread. Like fajitas, lay all the sides on the table so everyone is able to pick what they like to eat.

Homemade pizzas - Dinner as a family is always that extra bit of fun when everyone has got involved. Homemade pizzas are a great way to do that as everybody can choose which toppings they’d like and watch as it cooks in the oven.

Discover more recipe inspiration for family dinners over at www.viewermax.com.

The Golden Globes: The start of awards season

Actors, directors and all manner of crew members will be busy in the coming weeks scribbling down speeches they hope they’ll get to deliver while gratefully clutching an award of some kind.

Awards season for stars of film and TV begins in earnest in the next few weeks and first up is the 76th Golden Globe Awards. They will hand out awards across a wide range of categories, recognizing excellence film and television for the calendar year of 2018.

The first Golden Globes ceremony took place in January 1944. The awards are voted on by the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and cover films and television programmes in the US and internationally.

They are often compared to the Academy Awards, but differ greatly. Not only do they hand out awards for television, but they also have sub-categories such as musical/comedy and drama for film and TV.

However, there are similarities with the Oscars as some familiar names top the lists of multiple winners. Not surprisingly, no-one was won more acting Golden Globes for motion pictures than Meryl Streep, who has seven Globes from 29 nominations. Three-time Oscar winner Jack Nicholson is just behind Streep on the list with six acting Golden Globes and a total of 17 nominations.

In television, Alan Alda has won six Golden Globes for his MASH while Carol Burnett has five for her self-titled TV show.

British actress Helen Mirren holds the distinction of winning Golden Globe acting awards for both film and television in the same year when she won awards in 2007 for the movie The Queen and the television show Elizabeth I.

Read more about entertainment and the stories behind it with the books from www.viewermax.com.