You survived the unpredictable weathers in March and now you’re ready to hop on into April quicker than the Easter bunny thanks to the promise of warmer weather and that fresh smell of spring. But that doesn’t mean all your weekends this month will be warm and sunny. Looking for something to fuel that family movie night or what’s on for kids while you take a breather?
We’ve rounded up these fresh picks for kids (and parents!) of all ages that are streaming in Canada this month on Canadian services—including a handful that debut just in time for Earth Day on April 22.
Streaming in Canada: What’s On for Kids in April
Arctic Vets
Streaming Now on CBC Gem
This Canadian series is a great bet for families with older kids who adore animals. It follows animal care experts who have dedicated their lives to rescuing, protecting, and healing animals in some of Canada’s most frozen places. Think polar bears, snow leopards, harbour seals, and all kinds of other creatures your kids won’t necessarily see on other series. Arctic Vets is currently in the middle of its second season (it airs Friday nights on CBC), but the entire library of previously aired episodes is also available on the streamer so you can start bingeing right away.
Trivia Quest
April 1 on Netflix
If your family likes to play trivia together, Netflix has just made it easier to get your game on. This month it debuts its first-ever interactive series, a game show where you can’t actually win anything but those precious family memories. Every day the service debuts 24 new, multiple-choice questions, setting the scene for a fun family game night in which you can either team up or see who knows more: the parents or the kids.
CoComelon (S5)
April 1 on Netflix
Tired of hearing JJ and co. sing the same songs over and over? Hopefully this will give parents with younger kids out there a bit of a reprieve. The fifth season of the colourful singing series debuts this week, teaching new lessons through those repetitive songs we just can’t seem to get out of our heads.
Paw Patrol (s8)
April 1 on Netflix
Canada’s most famous animated dogs are still on a roll, which means you should get on the case and inform your littles there’s a new season this month. It could be just the thing you need to occupy them with on Saturday morning while you have a hot (yes, hot) cup of coffee, or during a long afternoon when you just need a few moments to collect yourself.
Better Nate Than Ever
April 1 on Disney+
Is musical theatre a thing in your house? How about movies about kids who aspire to be big Broadway stars? This fun and unique Disney original hits screens across Canada this week, bringing Tim Federle’s 2013 novel of the same name to life. It stars Rueby Wood as Nate Foster, a wannabe Broadway star who has a hard time breaking into the game (and fitting in with his seventh-grade cohorts). But when he and his best friend Libby (Aria Brooks) travel to New York for an audition and run into Nate’s estranged aunt Heidi (Lisa Kudrow), his luck begins to change.
The Hardy Boys
April 6 on Disney+ Star
You and the fam may have caught this Canadian series when it debuted on YTV in 2021, but if you haven’t (or if you loved it and want to watch it again), the series drops on the Star hub of Disney+ this month. The project shot across Ontario locations including Cambridge, Port Hope, and Hamilton, and stars Rohan Campbell and Alexander Elliot as Frank and Joe Hardy, respectively. James Tupper, meanwhile, plays the boys’ father Fenton, who brings the boys home with him to Bridgeport after their mother passes away.
Around the World in 80 Days
April 8 on CBC Gem
If you’ve got older kids you want to introduce to some classic yarns, the debut of this Jules Verne adaptation on the Canadian streaming service should speak to you. It stars David Tennant as the greatest explorer in literature, Phileas Fogg, who attempts to travel the globe in 80 days. He would never do that alone, of course. That’s why his valet Jean Passepartout
(Ibrahim Koma) and a determined journalist named Abigal “Fix” Fortescue (Leonie Benesch) are heading out with him.
Our Great National Parks
April 13 on Netflix
With Earth Day coming up this month, now’s a great time to add a few nature-inspired projects to your family’s viewing schedule and we think this one could be of interest. The stunning footage comes from national parks around the world—from Indonesia, to Kenya, to Patagonia and beyond. It’s also guided by a very familiar face: former U.S. President Barack Obama, who mixes the footage with some eye-opening insights.
Ice Age: Scrat Tales
April 13 on Disney+
If you’ve got Ice Age fans in the house then you’re probably already anticipating these six new shorts starting everyone’s favourite sabre-toothed squirrel. Here, he’s a dad contending with a mischievous Baby Scrat. Follow along as they both bond and battle for that famous movie treasure: an acorn. Chris Wedges and Karl Wahlgren star.
Eden: Untamed Planet
April 15 on CBC Gem
Looking for more Earth Day content to share with the kids? You may want to consider the Canadian premiere of this six-part UK doc, which exposes some of Earth’s few remaining, untouched lands. The cameras trace the animal- and plant-life from the Namib Desert to Patagonia, where pockets have been isolated from the rest of the world (a.k.a. human interference) and remain breathtaking havens of nature. Narrating all that action is Helena Bonham Carter, whose voice some children may recognize as the narrator from The Gruffalo.
Clifford the Big Red Dog
April 15 on Prime Video
There were big plans to debut this family film at the Toronto International Film Festival, but then it was pulled as a result of the pandemic. Luckily it’s hitting Amazon Prime Video this month so you and the fam can catch the famous pup from the comfort of your own home. Darby Camp stars as Emily, the girl at the centre of it all, whose love for a little red pup helps
him grow to an enormous (and quite impractical) size.
Curb Your Carbon
April 21 on Discovery+
Older kids who are concerned about the effects of global warming will get a kick out of this incoming series, which is narrated by VanCity’s own Ryan Reynolds. The show uses humour, stunts, and animation to show simple but effective ways we can all help to fight climate change at home, and it delivers the information in a practical and easy-to-understand way that you can then talk about with the family at the dinner table.
Sketchbook
April 27 on Disney+
If you have budding artists at home who love to sketch their favourite Disney characters, this instructional series may give them a leg up. The show pulls back the curtain on the talented artists and animators behind your fam’s favourite films, with each episode teaching us how to draw one of the studio’s iconic characters, step-by-step. Along the way you’ll also learn more
about the artists themselves, making this a fun but educational show for all ages.
Score: A Hockey Musical
April 28 on CBC Gem
If you missed out on this 2010 flick when it first debuted, the Canadian streaming service is bringing it back this week for all of the hockey-loving families out there. The movie stars Noah Reid (Schitt’s Creek) as a 17-year-old prodigy who has led a sheltered, home-schooled life. But when he signs with a major hockey league and becomes famous, he struggles to hold onto who he once was. Allie MacDonald, Olivia Newton-John, Marc Jordan, and Nelly Furtado also star in the project, which definitely requires some parental guidance but is still a fun foray into an alternative reality.
Pinkalicious & Peterrific
April 29 on Prime Video
If Victoria Kann’s children’s books starring this precocious, pink-loving girl and her brother Peter are a hit in your house, then you may have already discovered this animated series on Amazon Prime Video. If not, the service adds the fourth season to its collection this month, along with three additional specials: Pinkalicious: A Pinkatastic Summer, Pinkalicious & Peterrific: School Rules! and Pinkalicious & Peterrific: A Pinkaperfect Birthday.
Hop
Streaming now on Crave
If you’re looking for a silly Easter movie to enjoy with the kids, Hop is streaming now on Crave. Russell Brand stars as E.B., the heir apparent to the Easter Bunny gig who has no interest in the job and would rather be a drummer. He runs away from Easter Island to Los Angeles, where an unemployed slacker named Fred O’Hare (James Marsden) accidentally runs into him. Feigning injury, E.B. tricks Fred into giving him shelter, but an oversized chick is planning a coup back on Easter Island.
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