TV

[Krystal5]

This is probably a strange question... But when you do you guys watch TV?

Maiya (2 1/2) watches almost no TV, but sometimes I wish she could watch more. I know, it's weird! But she loves it, and I think it would be a good tool to help her learn some things. She picks up a LOT from the little TV she watches, and I just think I'm missing out on another fun way to teach her stuff.

I don't like to start the day with TV, and I don't like to end it with TV, but we're either not home in between, or we're home and busy!

What do you all do? Am I being too restrictive for not starting or ending the day with it? Or am I just crazy for even wanting to increase her TV time? If you think increasing her TV, even just educational TV, is a bad idea, please remind me why so that I can get this crazy notion out of my head!

ETA: I guess this applies to any screen time. TV, movies, video games, computer games...

[3andMe]

Don't do it! Just don't. If she wants to watch it, there will be plenty of time later.

I tend to do it when I need to do a bunch of cleaning really fast and want to keep them occupied. If you ever do chores at home and don't want her involvement, that's when I would recommend it. I do it when I have to clean the kitty litter and mop the floor and clean the bathroom, so a bunch of stuff is wet or has something they can't touch.

[lazy8]

My girls are slow risers, so on weekends I let them have an hour of tv time. Usually we watch something together in bed before we get up to start the day. But I also don't use that time as 'educational' because it's too early in the morning!

[DucksLikeRain]

I'm with Lydia. It'll come inevitably if you've got a TV in the house. I wouldn't go out of your way to encourage it!

At your DD age my girls really honed in on the TV, but only non-animated stuff. They wouldn't sit for anything animated until the last two years or so...except Nightmare Before Christmas

I did fall into the habit of too much TV for them for a long while. Basically late 2009-late 2011 while I was wrapped up in bedrest, high risk pregnancies, grieving, etc. but this year I have worked hard on honing it back under control. As of now they get to watch TV in the morning if its a weekday off school but no other TV during the week no matter what-even if one of them is home sick from school. On the weekend they can pick an hour of starfall/coolmath4kids.com on the computer, an hour of TV, or an hour playing games on an iPod. And that's pretty much it.

When do I watch TV? When they're in bed. Some days I'm up early enough to turn on a show while I told laundry or pack lunches but more often I grab a wind down moment between them being in bed and DH getting home from work, then it's off.

[anonsouthernbell]

If it were strictly up to me M1 wouldn't watch hardly any tv, but dh doesn't agree so ds watches very limited amounts (a few times a week). I'm personally against it b/c I much rather that he play imaginatively, play outside, explore and learn rather than sit transfixed in front of the tv. I also don't agree w a lot of things that are considered innocent on tv & id rather he didnt view commercials.

[AshlynsMommy26]

While I don't like for DD to watch alot of T.V., I do allow her to watch some when she first gets up because she is just like me, CRANKY! But she does like to wake up watching Dora, Max and Ruby, Team Umizoomi, Bubble Gubbies, or Mickey Mouse. She is so active and hands on during the day, I don't feel that time in the morniing affects her. She has watched T.V. before bed but not often. I can tell you, she knows how to count to 12 in Spanish and say some sayings in Spanish which I can only assume is from Dora. As for when I watch T.V, normally only if she is asleep already which lately has been me just falling asleep with her lol.

[emma1978]

We dont have tv (at least not for now) and i dont think my kids miss out too much. We do let them watch little clips on iphone though

[Dreya]

My kids watch a lot of TV, especially when it's crappy outside. They usually start their day with it and then at the end of the day we'll all snuggle on the couch and watch a half hour show before their bedtime routine. I turn off all the lights, get them in their jammies and we all sit under a blanket, it helps them wind down.

[Krystal5]

Don't do it! Just don't. If she wants to watch it, there will be plenty of time later.

I tend to do it when I need to do a bunch of cleaning really fast and want to keep them occupied. If you ever do chores at home and don't want her involvement, that's when I would recommend it. I do it when I have to clean the kitty litter and mop the floor and clean the bathroom, so a bunch of stuff is wet or has something they can't touch.

I haven't ran in to the issue with chores, she's pretty good at either helping or staying away. One of my favorite TV times is when I take a shower! But even that is rare for TV, usually she's just in there with me, playing...

It's funny, though, because one of the shows I want her to watch more is the letter sound hoe down one you told me about! She's only watched it a few times, and picked up quite a few of the sounds...

My girls are slow risers, so on weekends I let them have an hour of tv time. Usually we watch something together in bed before we get up to start the day. But I also don't use that time as 'educational' because it's too early in the morning!

Ah, see, *I* the slow riser in this house! A part of me would love to do that, but she has this horrible habit of waking up before she's had enough sleep, and I'm terrified that if she thought she could watch TV, she would just wake up at 4 AM and not want to go back to sleep!

I'm with Lydia. It'll come inevitably if you've got a TV in the house. I wouldn't go out of your way to encourage it!

At your DD age my girls really honed in on the TV, but only non-animated stuff. They wouldn't sit for anything animated until the last two years or so...except Nightmare Before Christmas

I did fall into the habit of too much TV for them for a long while. Basically late 2009-late 2011 while I was wrapped up in bedrest, high risk pregnancies, grieving, etc. but this year I have worked hard on honing it back under control. As of now they get to watch TV in the morning if its a weekday off school but no other TV during the week no matter what-even if one of them is home sick from school. On the weekend they can pick an hour of starfall/coolmath4kids.com on the computer, an hour of TV, or an hour playing games on an iPod. And that's pretty much it.

When do I watch TV? When they're in bed. Some days I'm up early enough to turn on a show while I told laundry or pack lunches but more often I grab a wind down moment between them being in bed and DH getting home from work, then it's off.

With all you were going through, don't even think twice about the TV! Sounds like you're doing well recovering, in all ways.

Maiya is completely glued to any TV that is on, I hate it! For example, we were at the zoo today, and stopped in the cafe for snacks. They have TV on in there that just cycles through the same 10 second clips of some zoo animals, and she spent ALL of snack time watching it and telling me "That's a zebra! Look at those zebras running. Those are otters, look at those otters swimming!" Sheesh... But at the same time, she's only good for about an hour, and then can't sit still. She's still glued to it, just has to get up and move around.

If it were strictly up to me M1 wouldn't watch hardly any tv, but dh doesn't agree so ds watches very limited amounts (a few times a week). I'm personally against it b/c I much rather that he play imaginatively, play outside, explore and learn rather than sit transfixed in front of the tv. I also don't agree w a lot of things that are considered innocent on tv & id rather he didnt view commercials.

See, I think I agree with you. There are MUCH better ways to spend time! I think that's why I just don't make time for TV right now. I was just thinking that maybe I should... Let her learn a few things I don't think to teach her... Like nursery rhymes! I don't sing many nursery rhymes to her... We sing songs we find in books, and we make up our own songs, and we sing songs we hear on the radio, and right now Christmas songs, but I think the ONLY nursery rhymes she knows are from this one DVD we have with them... Maybe I need a CD with nursery rhymes!

Yeah, I don't let Maiya watch commercials. She's never seen one, in fact! Well, unless you count, for example, ads in magazines. She calls them "commercials"! We only use Netflix and DVDs when we do watch it.

While I don't like for DD to watch alot of T.V., I do allow her to watch some when she first gets up because she is just like me, CRANKY! But she does like to wake up watching Dora, Max and Ruby, Team Umizoomi, Bubble Gubbies, or Mickey Mouse. She is so active and hands on during the day, I don't feel that time in the morniing affects her. She has watched T.V. before bed but not often. I can tell you, she knows how to count to 12 in Spanish and say some sayings in Spanish which I can only assume is from Dora. As for when I watch T.V, normally only if she is asleep already which lately has been me just falling asleep with her lol.

Yeah, I also know Maiya has learned things from TV, stuff I didn't even know! So that also makes it tempting...

Maiya's just the opposite. If I let her watch TV when she's cranky, it only makes her MORE cranky. Part of why I don't start or end the day with it!

We dont have tv (at least not for now) and i dont think my kids miss out too much. We do let them watch little clips on iphone though

Sometimes I wish we could get rid of our TV! We don't hardly use it... And it takes up so much space!

My kids watch a lot of TV, especially when it's crappy outside. They usually start their day with it and then at the end of the day we'll all snuggle on the couch and watch a half hour show before their bedtime routine. I turn off all the lights, get them in their jammies and we all sit under a blanket, it helps them wind down.

I tried TV before bed for a little while, for the same reason- to help her wind down. But I think it made her worse, because she gets so upset when I turn it off... "Just ONE MORE, please Momma!" Guess that's what happens when TV is so rare...


Thanks everyone for your input!!

[TripMomma]

Our TV usage always goes way up in the winter months...just to icky to be outside as much as we are in the summer. They do get used to it, but it hasn't been too hard to break...you just have to give them equally interesting things to do LOL.

[hotpinkmomma0811]

My kids watch a lot of TV, especially when it's crappy outside. They usually start their day with it and then at the end of the day we'll all snuggle on the couch and watch a half hour show before their bedtime routine. I turn off all the lights, get them in their jammies and we all sit under a blanket, it helps them wind down.

Same and especially with the bipolar weather Indiana has there has been many hot days in the summer above 100 degrees and we've had of few days in the low 40s for highs a few weeks ago.

[iMom]

We don't have cable, etc... so it's not just turning on the TV and bam there it is for all to watch. It's a process of turning on the computer, TV warms up... all that. Then selecting a show. It's usually discussed if she asks to watch something. We only turn it on when she expressing interest in watching a program, same goes for the ipad. It's available for her to use, but not a standard thing that is just there ready to go. Thought is put into selecting programs, etc.. This helps a lot, because there is always a discussion about the program, how much time she is going to watch it, all that. We have not incorporated TV as part of her day. It's sort of like a toy, if she feels like playing with it, we oblige but then cut her off if she gets obsessed with it.

[beanpop]

Maddy's first real word was "watch?" Yeah, I'm that mom. Sigh.

She watches TV but she doesn't just sit and watch it all the time. It's on in the background so most of the time she's not even paying attention to it. But she has barely touched her toys in days (I think they're just boring for her) so she's been playing a bunch of puzzle games on my kindle fire recently. Aaaaand I don't remember the original question but I can guarantee you Maddy watches more TV than Maiya.

[beanpop]

OH when do I watch TV? LOL never. I never watch what I want to watch. DBF and I will watch a show that we both like at night, or a movie together.

Speaking of...time for another episode of Arrow.

[mohop]

Please don't worry about it or think twice about whether she "should" watch more TV. It seems like you and your DD are just fine with the way things are now and that you are unnecessarily questioning your decisions. The potential harms of her watching more TV outweigh any potential benefits: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-19870199

[JJorn]

Check out the book "The Plug in Drug" by Marie Winn, I believe. We studied that book and other studies in college and it forever changed my view on TV. When we live by ourselves (not at my mom's like we are right now) their TV watching is between 0 and 45 minutes a day with a goal of 0. We don't have cable and we only watch a short movie. My mom has cable and it seems like someone always has a TV on somewhere. I do my best to still limit their TV watching drastically. Memorizing isn't learning and there is not a single study anywhere that shows that TV is good for you. Your brain waves actually mimic the brains waves of a sleeping person. It's something about the regular flickering of the screen that does that.

Edit: The Plug in Drug. A new one: The Plug-In Drug: Television, Computers, and Family Life

[misfit]

We don't have cable, but we do have Netflix. The kids typically start their day with it (which will change most likely when they are in grade school), but they get up when hubby is getting ready for work and Eve and I are still sleeping. So he gets them breakfast and turns Netflix on. With an itty bitty, there are days I sit on the couch and watch CSI Miami on Netflix all afternoon because I can't do anything else. She is attached the boob or wanting to be held those afternoons. It ends up off and on throughout the day- whether I need them to be quiet for naptime or whatever. I don't really restrict it, but once dinner is on the table there is no TV and no computer for the rest of the night.

[SarahBaby1]

Our tv is on most of the time, but mostly for background noise. We love having music videos on or turning it to the kids music channel. Since the tv is in our playroom, my girls are always doing other things while theres something playing on the tv. The holidays are great because of all the fun shows and movies on! I cant help getting sucked into rudolph or charlie brown!

[pumpkinpeejays]

We also have the TV on in the background. Sonja usually doesn't pay attention to it, PBS can get pretty redundant. As a reward, though, we watch an episode of Dora or Diego if Sonja finishes her meal, and we watch a movie at night on the weekends.

[Bridget]

We don't watch tv but for a movie once a week although I am just now contemplating letting Savana and Kai (5 and 7) watch a few videos during the week this winter if and when they ask. It's my opinion that 2 1/2 is way too young for regular tv and really there are no reliable studies that television is beneficial or educational for young children. She may be learning certain things that she wouldn't otherwise know but it won't put her ahead in the long run and she's better off learning through play as young children are meant to. There are a lot of skills to master before the sounds of letters are even relevent or appropriate for a toddler. If you are finding that tv is not in your lives much right now, I would just be grateful for that and hold off as long as possible. That's my opinion!

[Ky'sMom]

We have a huge TV and our living room is small but I keep it off most of the time. I always think the huge TV is wasted on us lol!

Anyway, I NEVER watch it in the mornings. I feel that it slows people down, especially my brood (included in the brood is DH) who cannot do anything when the TV is on.

The only time Elle watches it during the week is if I'm trying to cook and she is driving me batty, I'll let her watch PBS for 30 min. Usually we don't turn it on at all while the kids are up Mon-Fri. Ky and Elle watch TV together on Sat and Sun mornings. Ky gets them breakfast and it is "their time" so to speak as DH and I sleep in and they veg out on TV during that time until I get up around 10am and turn it off or watch some boring show I like to watch - usually cooking shows on PBS or "This Old House" or something.

In your position, I wouldn't try to schedule anything for your DD. I am of the belief "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." And I don't see anything wrong with not watching TV at all. I could easily go without TV but I do like PBS, as do my kids. We also have a streaming Netflix account and watch documentaries and historical movies/mini-series. Right now we are watching Shaka Zulu on Netflix over the course of this week and last week, it is an old mini-series from the 80s that is really interesting and entertaining and Ky is loving it. Elle doesn't watch it since it is kind of violent but on Friday's we watch a family friendly movie and she joins us then.

Erin

[Gwenn]

We don't watch tv but for a movie once a week although I am just now contemplating letting Savana and Kai (5 and 7) watch a few videos during the week this winter if and when they ask. It's my opinion that 2 1/2 is way too young for regular tv and really there are no reliable studies that television is beneficial or educational for young children. She may be learning certain things that she wouldn't otherwise know but it won't put her ahead in the long run and she's better off learning through play as young children are meant to. There are a lot of skills to master before the sounds of letters are even relevent or appropriate for a toddler. If you are finding that tv is not in your lives much right now, I would just be grateful for that and hold off as long as possible. That's my opinion!

This, this, this, this, this.

[tyvek]

I like that book title...the plug in drug. Gosh, that is no lie. I would say if you are happy with M, there is no need to turn the tv on. I typically turn the tv on when I need a moment. But I am finding out more and more that if I just let my kids figure it out, (get past the whine/rough patch/begging for tv) they will fall into a number of quality activities. Just three as ago I stopped reminding them to watch Wild Kratts. Now I leave it up to them to ask. I should add I mainly use the tv to help me work at home.

[wannabmomof3]

We do tv time, mostly on weekends though. During the week, between getting ready for school, dinnertime (no tv), and homework, there's no time for tv. The kids don't play video games either, but we bought them Nintendo DS's for Christmas. This will be limited-long car rides, after homework, good behavior. I'm not "restrictive" of tv time, but we just don't have time for it! We usually do family movie nights on the weekends with a Disney movie. If it's not family movie time and its a cleaning day, I'll put on PBS kids for them to watch. We do NOT do those Nickelodeon Josh and Drake or whatever those kind of shows are. They are absolutely ridiculous IMO.