Sneak Peek Review of Two Children's DVDs: Families of Kenya and Families of Afghanistan

This is a sneak peek review of two children's DVDs from the Families of the World series: Families of Kenya and Families of Afghanistan . They're from Master Communications and is due to be released November 2. I was provided these children's DVDs for review, but was under no obligation to recommend Families of Kenya or Families of Afghanistan. My observations are my own.

Synopsis of the Families of the World Children's DVD Families of Kenya

This half hour video focuses on the daily lives of two 11 year old boys, Prince, who lives in Nairobi, and John, who lives in rural Kenya. By Kenyan standards, Prince has a pretty well-off family, as his mother owns a pre-school and his father is a purchasing agent. His day starts off by being awakened by the neighbor's dogs and getting out of his bed that's covered with mosquito netting. Later, he takes a bus to his private school, where 25 are in his class that's sparsely furnished. Viewers see him getting a biology lesson and him later eating dinner with his parents, then playing video games on a nice home computer. On Saturday, Prince sees traditional tribal dances with his family and then attends church on Sunday, looking forward to the after-church meal at a Chinese restaurant plus a visit to the coastal city of Mombasa, where viewers see men doing acrobatic moves using a jumping rope on this Families of the World children's DVD.

John starts his day off at 5 am, because he must leave for school at 6 am and walk an hour to get there, where 1,000 students attend Monday - Saturday. He readies for a schoolwide celebration of a dorm opening, and talks about how "harambee" (Kiswahili for "pulling together") has helped the country education-wise. After school, he stops by his parents' small grocery store to get a snack before going home to do more chores like feeding the family cow. Before bedtime, he takes a bath with hot water from a pan. Viewers of the Families of Kenya children's DVD get to see some stunning safari footage of animals like lions, giraffes, elephants, etc. because John's cousin is a safari guide. The ISBN Number for the children's DVD Families of Kenya is 978-1-60480-048-7.

Synopsis of the Families of the World Children's DVD Families of Afghanistan

This roughly 25 minute video focuses on two girls, Zamora and Madina. Zamora is 13 years old and lives in rural Afghanistan. Her life is very busy, as she is expected to do many chores before school like feed the cows, so they will eventually produce milk for yogurt that's sold by the family. She's able to attend school in the afternoons, but is expected to do washing and ironing of clothes afterwards. Viewers of this Families of the World children's DVD get to see how naan (bread) is made as well as Zamora prepare for one of her five daily prayers, for she's a devout Muslim.

Madina's life is much easier, in that she doesn't have the labor intensive chores as a city girl in Kabul. Both her parents are professionals, and she attends school, where her classes are just for girls. To prevent cheating, Madina and her classmates are paired up with one tablemate each (who each gets different questions on quizzes). Madina tutors another student on computer use, and has a computer and television in her room, which she shares with her older sister. Madina is shown on this Families of the World children's DVD making nut and raisin packs for her relative's upcoming wedding of 200 people.

Both girls were indirectly affected by the Soviet war in their country. Zamora must help feed her uncle, who was blinded and maimed because of the conflict, and Madina's family resided in Pakistan for ten years. Nonetheless, this children's DVD shows how close family ties help each girl deal with life in Afghanistan. The ISBN Number for Families of Afghanistan is 978-1-60480-111-8.

More about the Families of the World DVDs Families of Kenya and Families of Afghanistan

I strongly recommend these videos because American children need reinforced appreciation and gratitude lessons for what they have in America, compared to many other countries, where life is about just making it through the day, hoping for enough to eat and drink plus a warm place to reside without being caught in the crossfire of a war zone or catching disease from bad water or insects. But children will learn to appreciate the cultures of other countries through these videos and also see kids eating much more healthier foods rather than a continuous diet of fast food.

These two Families of the World children's DVDs are due for release to retail outlets like Amazon.com on November 2, and has a Suggested Retail Price of $29.95 each. The language is in English for both products with English subtitles and Closed Captioning options. For more information about Families of the World, go to the website