Jokes for Kids
They say that laughter is the best medicine, so here is a whopping dose of hilarious family friendly jokes to sprinkle into your day. We've put together a bunch of great jokes for children of all ages and for you to enjoy.
Our jokes are separated into lots of fun specific categories including: animal jokes, hilarious history jokes, zany math jokes, seasonal jokes (Halloween jokes, Thanksgiving Jokes, Christmas jokes), Disney-themed jokes, comical computer jokes, and more.
Making Sure They're Family-Friendly
Of course it's super important the these jokes be family friendly. There are a lot of joke websites out there, and as we started searching for a great set of jokes, we were surprised how many websites mixed in a number of inappropriate jokes along with ones that are fitting for kids.
You'll find that our entire collection is family-friendly and sure to deliver some giggles and smiles for kids of all ages.
Although our joke collection is suitable for kids of all ages, there may be some jokes that older kids might just find to be too childish. That's why we've classified jokes by age group so that you can find the jokes most fitting for the ages of your kids.
Picking Jokes They'll "Get"
Kids have a tendency to laugh at sillier things than grown-ups, but on the flip side some jokes might just be over their heads. And indeed, there's nothing as unfunny as having to explain humor. If the kids need to have the joke unpacked for them, chances are it'll be lost on them. That's why we've been extra careful to choose jokes that are not only appropriate for them, but also ones that they'll be likely to "get."
Keep Your Family Laughing
While these jokes are funny for people of all ages, they are geared toward children and young adults. Each has a simpleness about them that allow kids of all ages to get a good laugh.
Knock Knock Jokes
Some people believe knock-knock jokes developed as a result of “call and answer” routines that castle guards used to identify people after dark in the Middle Ages. When people would approach the castle after dark, they would have to call out to the guards to get inside.
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The guards would answer, “Who’s there?” They would then carry on a back-and-forth conversation about their identity and reason for wanting into the castle. Guards must have occasionally teased people with this routine, perhaps to alleviate the boredom of keeping watch throughout the night.
Learn all about the Anatomy of the knock-knock joke.
Today, knock-knock jokes can provide more than just a chuckle. Developmental psychologists now study young children telling knock-knock jokes to assess their language development skills!
Great Joke Books for Kids
There are a number of great joke books for kids available. Many have simple, fun jokes that are great to have on hand in a group setting or when getting to know new friends. Knock-knock jokes are also a fun joke style to play around with.
Videos with Jokes
There are some great Youtube videos with kids jokes as well.
How to Joke Around with Kids
Here's a great article about jokes where Real Simple asked seven very funny people for ways to get children of all ages giggling. You might just find some fun ideas along with some old classics.
The Healing Power of Laughter
Go ahead and laugh. It’s strong medicine, as researchers are learning. Just the physical act of laughing has healthy benefits. Muscles are activated, heart rate is increased, respiration is amplified, —all similar to the desirable effects of athletic exercise.
For the first time, researchers have scanned the brains of children watching funny videos to examine which of their brain regions are active as their sense of humor develops.
The researchers hope the work will provide a base for understanding how positive emotions, such as a sense of humor, could affect a child’s well-being.
“Humor is a very important component of emotional health, maintaining relationships, developing cognitive function and perhaps even medical health,” said Allan Reiss, MD, who directs the Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research at Stanford. Reiss is the senior author of a study describing the new findings, published Feb. 1 in the Journal of Neuroscience.
Early results also suggest that humorous videos help kids handle uncomfortable or painful procedures. Bill Marx, the son of the legendary Harpo Marx and a volunteer for the Rx Laughter study, told jokes, made faces and danced around the hospital rooms of the children. One 13 year-old patient said: “Having something to laugh at took my mind off the pain…when you’re laughing, you can’t help but feel better.”
Simple Jokes for Kids
Speaking of children and humor, here are a few simple riddles:
- “Why did the little kid take a ladder to school?" - "He wanted to go to high school.”
- “Why was 6 afraid of 7?" - "Because 7 8 (ate) 9.”
- “Knock. Knock.” Who’s there?” - “Boo.” “Boo who?” - “Why are you crying?”
These jokes may not make you laugh, but they may cause a 4-5 year-old to giggle, and be absolutely hilarious to a 6-7 year-old. Humor is a personal experience for everyone and, for children, it depends on their developmental level, which includes their age and level of thinking.
A typical 4 year-old cannot understand double meanings, but can imitate the pattern of knock-knock jokes. That alone can make him or her laugh. It‘s like a “pre-riddle” stage of development".
Research shows that humor in children is associated with higher intelligence, creativity, sociability, empathy, self-esteem and problem-solving. These children tend to be well-liked by their peers and adults. So go ahead and tell a joke! You never know what types of positive effects it will bring.
Laughing may actually help your heart health too. When it comes to heart disease, there could be some truth in that age-old expression “laughter is the best medicine.”
And lastly, as an important component of positive emotion, a strong sense of humor may help children to be more resilient. So tell a joke and laugh it up!
