Films about the war for preschoolers and primary school students

Selecting war films for small children can be difficult. Although it’s crucial to introduce the topic to them, the content must be age-appropriate, avoiding graphic scenes and concentrating on concepts they can comprehend.

It’s best to choose movies for preschoolers and elementary school pupils that emphasize bravery, cooperation, and the importance of peace. These films can gently expose them to historical events while emphasizing the positive aspects of the narrative, such as friendship, bravery, and hope.

This post will discuss some kid-friendly war movies that teach important life lessons in addition to being entertaining. These films, which shield young viewers from overbearing or frightening content, teach children the value of kindness and standing up for what is right.

Girl from the city

A wonderful film, shot in 1984 by director Oleg Nikolaevsky based on the story of the same name by Lyubov Voronkova (by the way, you can find and read it to your child). A very touching and kind film about the war, in which the war itself is behind the scenes. The main character of the film, seven-year-old Valentina, was left an orphan. Father went missing at the front, mother and brother died under bombing. A girl who missed her train ends up in the village house of kind-hearted Darya, a mother of three. Now she has to get used to a new life, a new home, and most importantly – to the woman who will become her new mother..

A girl is looking for her father

This is a somewhat older movie; it was directed by Lev Golub in 1959 and was based on a 1949 play by Yevgeny Ryss. This is a full-fledged adventure film that boys will enjoy, unlike the previous chamber film. The story revolves around the valiant rescue of the four-year-old daughter of a partisan commander who was being held captive in the home of a forester.

Children’s viewing was considered during filming. There are fights, shootings, and deaths, but every time the camera carefully pans away, it emphasizes only a few heartbreaking moments. The heroes in the movie are split up into "good" and "bad" (honestly, unsympathetic) categories, and it’s easy to tell who is who at first look.

Lead actress Anna Kamenkova, then six years old, "pulls out" the somewhat strained plot before going on to become a well-known actress. The girl then won a special award at the International Film Festival in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in 1960 for having the best children’s role.

Oginsky"s Polonaise

By the way, director Lev Golub made the movie "Oginsky’s Polonaise" in 1971, continuing to explore the distinct genre of "the little ones about the big war." Once more, this is a heroic partisan tale, but this time, the protagonist is a courageous young violinist who was abandoned during the early stages of the conflict and rose to become a skilled combatant in a partisan unit.

There will be dramatic arrests, chases, and explosions on the one hand, but everything will work out in the end!

Son of the Regiment

Two films of Valentin Kataev’s well-known tale were made: one in 1946 by director Vasily Pronin and the other in 1981 by Georgy Kuznetsov.

Since the story is taught in schools, parents are familiar with the plot, at least for the most part: an orphaned boy wanders around in a combat zone for several months before joining an artillery division scout group. The military makes every effort to put the cunning young man behind bars, but in the end, the unit commander adopts the boy. Following his demise, the boy enrols in Moscow’s Suvorov Military School, where he will now succeed his adoptive father in the victory procession on Red Square and ascend through the ranks to become an official officer.

Sit next to me, Mishka!

The challenging subject of the Leningrad siege is the focus of Yakov Bazelyan’s 1977 film. The young heroes of the movie, overcoming the hardships of living in a famine-stricken, partially destroyed city, give concerts in hospitals in an effort to uplift the soldiers who are injured. They pick up knowledge of the horrors of war from them; this kind of presentation tempers the brutal and awful script material. Children’s optimism and belief in the best results instills faith in the unquestionable victory in us.

Introducing children to war films can help them acquire valuable life lessons about friendship, bravery, and standing up for what’s right. These tales also offer an age-appropriate forum for talking about the challenging parts of history.

Selecting movies for preschoolers and younger students should take into account their comprehension level and steer clear of anything too intense or graphic. Many movies have themes like compassion, hope, and teamwork, which can help kids relate to the characters and draw lessons from their experiences.

Parents and other caregivers can have an invaluable conversation about the value of peace and the effects of war on people’s lives by watching these movies together. Talking to your child about the movie themes will help you help them understand difficult subjects in a positive way.

It’s crucial to select age-appropriate war movies that highlight virtues like bravery, friendship, and the importance of peace without subjecting young viewers to the graphic realities of combat. Preschool and elementary school children should watch films that gently teach them about empathy and history. These films should also help them understand challenging subjects in a way that is both engaging and sensitive to their emotional development.

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