Too Cold to Go Outside? Check Out the Top 10 Movies for Kids

Complaining about the weather is pretty much a waste of time. I mean, it’s weather. What are you going to do about it? (Besides move, which isn’t always a viable option.)

That said, complaining about being stuck indoors with your kids for the 277th weekend in a row is totally acceptable. My husband and I are trying really hard not to let our children watch/play/zone out in front of a screen all day. We air them out, run them across an icy playground, and bribe them into playing board games, but there are just so. many. hours. in. the. day. (I’m willing to bet there’s even a Waldorf parent out there who has recently caved to the screens. Come on—raise your hand! No shame!) Don’t know what’s up in your house, but in ours, we’ve cycled through The Boxtrolls and The LEGO Movie and the usual episodes of Octonauts and America’s Funniest Videos—and even the entire Fawlty Towers DVD set.

What’s a parent to do? Why, turn to Scholastic—the best company ever!—of course, for their list of the 100 Greatest Movies for Kids.

Their selection is solid but also surprising: You’ve got your classics (The Wizard of Oz, Willie Wonka), your animated hits (101 Dalmations, Wall-E), your nostalgics (Karate Kid, Princess Bride), but also a few fun suggestions that aren’t in the usual rotation (Newsies, Bend It Like Beckham, Searching for Bobby Fischer, and Time Bandits…”Don’t touch it…it’s evil…”).

I plan to dig deep into the catalogue this weekend, and I can’t decide what I’m looking forward to more: watching some of these with my kids, or hotly debating the list with my husband and other equally stir-crazy parents.

The Top 10 from Scholastic’s list of the 100 Greatest Kids Movies:

1. The Wizard of Oz

2. E.T. The Extra Terrestrial

3. Mary Poppins

4. Toy Story 2

5. The Princess Bride

6. Beauty and the Beast

7. Star Wars

8. Iron Giant

9. Walt Disney’s Pinocchio

10. A Little Princess