• 21
  • September
    2011

If you and your spouse are going through a divorce, it can be hard for your children to understand what life is going to be like in the future. This is most difficult for young children because they are not familiar enough yet with how things like divorce work out.

One surprising move family and relationship experts recommend in this situation is to show children movies with single parents as central characters. Seeing on-screen examples can help children process what is going on.

Here are five movies with strong central characters who are single parents:

  • "Sleepless in Seattle": One of the most iconic romantic comedies of the 1990s stars Tom Hanks as a grieving widower and a single father. What is good about this movie is that the chain of events that eventually winds up with Hanks' and Meg Ryan's characters meeting is set in motion by Hanks' character's son. This movie will introduce children to the idea that it can be a good idea for single parents to start dating again.
  • "Waitress": Keri Russell plays (you guessed it) a waitress in a small Southern town who finds herself pregnant with her husband's baby after she has separated from him. This independent film was praised by critics, but it does have some adult themes, so it is probably a good idea only for teenagers.
  • "Jerry Maguire": Renee Zellweger leapt to stardom with her portrayal of a single mom who falls for a callous sports agent (it's the role for which she uttered the famous line "You had me at hello"). This movie is rated R, so you probably do not want to schedule a screening for younger children.
  • "About a Boy": This Hugh Grant drama was not a big hit, but critics praised it for its moving themes and excellent acting. Grant plays a shallow, self-centered bachelor who mends his ways after he strikes up a friendship with a 12-year-old boy whose mother could use a friend of her own.
  • "The Holiday": If our female readers swoon over Jude Law, they are going to swoon even more when they see him playing a dedicated single father who is left to raise two girls after his wife dies. Luckily for him, Cameron Diaz is not only single, but loves making pillow forts with his daughters, too.

Source: Parenting, "11 Movies About Single Parent Families," Christine Coppa, last accessed Sept. 21, 2011