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Watching
TV and some guidelines on what is acceptable for 2-4 years
old toddlers.
(Adapted from parentcentre.com )
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As
my little 33 month old daughter continues to grow, I realize
and observe that her little developing mind is absorbing what
the environment is offering her every moment of the day. Since
watching television is one of her activity, it is important
as a parent to help filter what she watches and to guide her
along when she queries about what is going on.
I have borrowed
and also adapted some guidelines from Baby Centre, on how
to limit programmes from our little ones and which ones are
“safe” to watch and which are not.
Here are some
of these guidelines: (click on each link above to read more
about it.)
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1. |
Limit
the amount of TV your child watches. |
5. |
Watch
programmes, not TV |
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2. |
Avoid
setting a firm TV time” allowance” for your child
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Watch
TV with your child whenever possible |
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3. |
Make
TV physically inconvenient |
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Help
your child be a critical viewer |
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4. |
Go
with Calm quiet programmes. |
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Make
yourself a role model. |
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1. |
Limit
the amount of TV your child watches. |
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Watching
more than 2 hours of TV per day is too much. This includes
watching VCDs and DVDs or videos. It is the time spent on
fixing the eyes on the TV monitor that is the concern. To
make it seem to your child that she is watching more and to
keep her little brain from going on autopilot as she watches,
break up viewing into 10 – 15 minutes increments. You
should also keep the TV out of the child’s bedroom and
turned off during mealtimes, reading time and play time. Do
not play toys or read in front of the TV. It is a source of
distraction and does not help the child in keeping focus on
what he or she is doing. |
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2. |
Avoid
setting a firm TV time” allowance” for your child |
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This
seems counterintuitive but surprisingly effective. You may
want to try letting your child ask for permission to watch
TV when she wants to, and keep the absolute maximum to yourself.
In this way, you’ll avoid tacitly sending her the message
that there’s a certain amount of time she “should”
be watching TV. I like this approach personally as it gets
her to communicate what she wants and I also tactfully tell
her it is only one programme or one VCD that she can watch.
Sometimes viewing time is less than 30 minutes, and we’re
off to do something else. Little one is happy because she
gets to do what she wants and mommy is happy too because we
have successfully kept TV off her without much struggle. |
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3. |
Make
Television physically inconvenient |
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In
most homes, TV is the centre piece in the living room as it
provides entertainment and important news to the family. Often
than not, it just blares away when - mom is cooking; when
the kids are playing; when the family is having a meal. Try
putting the TV in a small out-of –the way room in the
house. Alternatively, house it in a cabinet and have the doors
closed when the TV is turned off. |
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4. |
Go
with calm quiet programmes |
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Slower
paced viewing gives your child time to think and absorb. Lots
of random activity like the kind in action/ adventure cartoons,
confuses children. Some research suggest that violence on
TV breed more aggressive behaviour. Scary movies also tend
to “haunt” the children more when unkind images
are deeply entrenched in their minds. Choose ideal programmes
that inspire your child to sing, dance or repeat words. My
personal favourites for my daughter since she was 28 month
old are Sesame Street, Barney and friends, Disney Channel’s
Madeline, Bananas in pyjamas, Bear in the big blue house and
Hi-5. Some other classics and family programmes are Sound
of music, Parent trap, Princesses’ diary which I think
have some value to learn and teach. |
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5. |
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Rather
than just turn on the TV to watch whatever is on, use the
TV guide to select programmes for your children. Plan the
day or viewing and if possible, do an activity after that
to reinforce any learning. I personally taught my daughter
to sing “Do Re Mi” and “My Favourite Things”
after watching Sound of Music. We make pictures of the favourite
things in the song as well as our own and then invent a similar
song along the tune of “My favourite Things” and
substitute the favourite items with our own! |
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6. |
Watch
TV with your child whenever possible |
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Try
not to use the set as a babysitter although for stay home
moms with no domestic help, having the TV turned on for that
30 minutes could do wonders for our preparation for dinner,
it is not advisable. A recent study looked at three groups
: children with unlimited access to television, Children with
moderate access to television without a parent, and children
with moderate access to television with a parent. The last
group scored significantly higher academically than did the
other groups. That aside, just being there says to your child,”
What you do is important to me”. I believe in this strongly
as I have used television as a tool to teach my daughter a
lot of things and her constant ”why” questions
are immediately satisfied. She is also a much happier child
when mommy hugs her and cuddles up with her to watch a programme
with her. |
