Clicky Poll: TV watching

libbyann

All 3 kids are napping at once (!!!), so I had to come ask a question I've been super curious about. How do you moms deal with TV watching? My mom thinks we're being too strict with allowing Will to watch TV. He loves to stare at the screen, but I really don't let him watch it - ever. DH will sometimes, but I just don't feel like it's appropriate for a 4 mo. old to watch TV.

So, how do you feel about TV watching? Am I being an up-tight Mommy? I think I covered all the bases with answer choices, but feel free to elaborate. And a second question since I can only include one in the poll - how much TV watching do you allow your child per day?

[Poll]

Fa1ryG0dm0ther

I voted 18-24 months, because that's when we started letting him watch A show on Sprout.  However, we did use Baby Einstein videos on occasion before then.  My MIL let him watch TV against my wishes WAY before I did.  Now, she lets him watch shows at her house that I don't think are appropriate for a 4.5 year old, and it infuriates me.  So, I'm sure that everyone in my family thinks that I'm the TV nazi.

ETA: Right now, I let him watch more than normal.  I'm on bed rest, and my hubby travels a lot.  Normally, 1-2 shows in the morning if we have time at all and on occasion he will get to watch a movie at night.  It's so blooming hot outside right now, and I can't take him to the pool, so he's been able to watch more than I'd like.  Fortunately, in less than 3 weeks, we can start to get back to a routine that lacks TV!

bobcatsteph

I would say I am slightly more on the laid back side when it comes to parenting (so far). We almost always have the tv on in our house. DD will usually turn every which way to look at it but we try to avoid having her sit and stare at it for any period of time. When she's in the Jumperoo or Bumbo we face her away from it. When she's on the floor we face her away from it. It's on when she's eating and sometimes she looks at it then (if she can see over the bottle).

The exception to this is that we have some Baby Einstein videos. We let her watch a video maybe once a week. She loves them and loves "talking" to the puppets and babies that are on them. We don't use it as a babysitter or anything..we sit there with her and talk to her about it.

katattack

We are TV background noise people.  The advantage to this is our TV is mounted above the fireplace, which is a long way up for a tiny tot walking around.  She sometimes takes a look, but I haven't yet put in Baby Einstein DVDs or anything.  She's too busy walking around right now to care.

Overall, I'm not too worried about it since she's at school all day anyway.

m_and_m

Generally speaking, DD does not watch TV. That doesn't mean it's never on and she never sees it, we just don't put stuff on for her. I don't watch TV by myself, but DH and I will watch in the evening/on weekends and DD is in the room but she's not paying attention (unless there are animals- she LOVED Beverly Hills Chihuahua and Hotel for Dogs).

I don't have plans to ever put something on just for her, but I know it will happen at some point but I'm not too worried about it. I already have a bunch of Little Prince and Peter Rabbit DVD's for when that time comes. 

lilrunner

I voted 18-24 months.  Around 6 months my mother would try to get her to watch Teletubbies...and she would watch that for a few minutes.  However, she wasn't interested in anything else. 

I never encouraged it...but then last month (21 months) my SIL watched her for two days and let her watch it a LOT.  Sure enough she now asks for "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse," "Dora," and "Elmo" daily.  I'll let her watch for 1-2 hours total.  Probably bad....but that's what I do.  Some days it's less, just depending on her mood.

fjaril

We let him watch sesame street in bits (it's an hour long) and he can see 10-15 mins at a time most of the time. Sometimes )pre the learning tower) I'd put it on and he'd play and look up at singing while I made dinner, but that's just been the last month maybe.. so 16 months!

he really doesn't 'sit and watch' it either though. 

I don't always have the tv on in the daytime, but even if it is on he only glances. 

AustinBride06

I don't plan to let our kids watch TV (unless it's something we're already watching and it's appropriate for them) until after 2.  The APA doesn't recommend TV until after that age because of studies that say that electronic imagery and audio actually make development slower instead of the other way around.  I'm really not a fan of Baby Einstein and the like.

Article: https://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1650352,00.html

However, who knows what'll happen when I'm actually a mom.  Never say never and all that.

MrsAJL

DS is a Sesame Street fiend. Other programs he couldn't care less about. But once Sesame Street is on, he's captivated.  I'm fine with it. I don't let him watch anything that's not on PBS and specifically for toddlers/preschoolers.

DS counts to five and can spell his name (it's not a long name, so it's not to difficult) but I attribute that to Sesame Street.

Angie&Doc

I am totally not strict with it at all. Not like I am going to let him sit in front of the TV when he is older and just stay there all day. I always have on the Disney channel in the mornings and he loves all of the shows. We watch TV at night and he plays. I don't think it is a huge deal at their age. {again, just my opinion}

TXAggieBride06

I personally hate TV.  Really don't watch it myself and cannot stand when people just keep their TV on all day...when I'm not actually focused on a show, it gives me a headache!  We only watch TV after DD is in bed.  It isn't even that we do that entirely on purpose...we just generally don't have it on when she's awake because we're playing with her or doing something around the house and like I said I hate having it on just to have it on. 

Once she turns 2, we'll probably start letting her watch Sesame Street or something like that.  I am pretty sure that with a new baby in the house, I will need something to give myself somewhat of a break every once in awhile!  And I really am not opposed to her watching TV later on...in fact I think restricting it entirely is a BAD idea!  (My mom did that with us as kids and then all we wanted to do when at my dad's house or friends' houses is watch TV!)  But I will definitely restrict how much TV she watches.

I guess my main thought is TV isn't "necessary" for babies and they aren't going to be smarter from watching Baby Einstein videos.  I think other forms of stimulation/interaction under the age of 2 are a lot healthier and are more important.

bobcatsteph

AustinBride06:

I don't plan to let our kids watch TV (unless it's something we're already watching and it's appropriate for them) until after 2.  The APA doesn't recommend TV until after that age because of studies that say that electronic imagery and audio actually make development slower instead of the other way around.  I'm really not a fan of Baby Einstein and the like.

Article: https://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1650352,00.html

However, who knows what'll happen when I'm actually a mom.  Never say never and all that.

This is why DD doesn't watch for several hours a day (like the article mentions)...and yes, everything changes when you are a parent. I was the same way. I said DD would never watch tv but she was at a cousin's house and Baby Einstein came on and she just lit up and got so excited. It's so fun to watch her watch.

gabrielle20

I put noggin on the computer for DD when we play and she dances away with all the songs. She doesn't ever look at the screen...so its purely audio. I like turning in on and off b/c its so cute when she completely stops when the music stops. I'm such a tease  

Nessia

We're TV people, I have to have the TV on if I'm home and doing stuff around the house. I can't stand the quiet. So it makes sense that I would be relaxed with the kids. DS will watch it but never more than a few minutes at a time because he isn't that interested and would rather be playing. He'll stop and watch it if there is a song on and he wants to dance along with it. DD was the same way and didn't really "watch" a whole cartoon episode until she was older than two. She watches more TV now but not for hours.

luluAXA

My baby watches as much tv as I do which is little to none.  I leave him on the bed while I'm getting ready in the morning and the news is on.  In the evening we reach home between 5:30 and 6pm and he's sleep by 8pm. There's no tv at the daycare.  My husband likes to put him in front of the tv or face the exersaucer/bumbo towards the tv.  He's not very interested thought but he was when tennis was on.  He stared at that tv like he understood the game.

libbyann

Thanks for confirming that I'm not crazy for wanting to wait until he's older than 4 mos to start the TV addiction!

(and sorry for posting and running. I will never brag that all 3 are asleep at the same time again - it causes chaos  )