Animal-Friendly Books and Movies for Children
Off of the top of my head, here are some animal-friendly books and movies that can be used as a spring board to talk to kids about vegetarianism, or make veg*n kids feel good about their diets:
Books:
Herb the Vegetarian Dragon by Jules Bass-not for kids who are too young. It takes a while to get there, but the message is that meat eaters and veg people can live in harmony even if they don't agree on diet
A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Eve Bunting-sounds suspicious, but don't worry, the turkey doesn't get eaten
Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey-comical, and the kids end up saving turkeys from a farm and having a veg thanksgiving at the end
Turk and Runt by Richard Jackson-Two turkey brothers on a farm who outsmart a lady who wants to buy and eat them
Benji Bean Sprout Doesn't Eat Meat by Sarah Rudy-a vegetarian boy who gets teased at school-it all ends well
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein (not ALL of it, but there is a poem called "Point of View" that speaks of dinner from the animals' point of view)
Friendship for Three by first graders of Samuel Nixon School-a story about a bird who is injured by a hunter and how his animal friends help him out
Charlotte's Web by E.B. White-see below
It's OK to be Different-by Todd Parr-the title says it all
Movies/TV:
Finding Nemo* my all time favorite!!! Uses the PETA slogan, "fish are friends, not food!" and shows the evils of the commercial fishing industry
Babe-a talking Pig who learns that his only purpose is to be eaten-will he ever prove them wrong! ** Babe 2 is HORRIBLE and I don't recommend it. We walked out the movie half way through at the theater
Charlotte's Web-I am sure you are familiar with the book and movie about a spider who saves a pig from being eaten. It will bring you to tears!
Ice Age-a tale that equates humans and animals on the same level and shows their compassion toward each other
Teen Titans-a cartoon with a vegetarian superhero-not much else good I can say, but my son loves it
Over the Hedge-not the best movie, but a great message of how urban sprawl affects animals and their habitats-I liked it!
Shark Tales-not a huge fan, but the lead shark is a vegetarian
Bambi- you know the story! Those evil hunters!
Chicken Run-a group of chickens tries to learn to fly to avoid being turned into chicken pot pies
Wallace and Grommet-although there is a lot of cheese eatin' going on, the 2 main characters are trying to get a town to use human methods to help with the rabbit overpopulation. Anyway, I think it was Follow your Heart Cheese they were eating ;)
Heck, adults like these too!
Add to the list if you can think of more. I am always trying to find things to expose my son to so that he doesn't feel so alone. Seems to be working! He has never once complained of being a veg*n kid!
One day, I will write and illustrate my own book aimed at kids about vegetarianism......
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