At what age did you let your LO start watching TV?

SigmundsGirl

When we notice Evan watching tv we turn him around or turn it off. Yesterday when I was feeding him he did all he could to watch tv while I was burping him, so after a few minutes I turned it off.

This combined with the TV polls yesterday got me thinking, At what age do you let kids watch (kid appropriate) tv and for how long? We don't plan on letting him watch TV anytime soon, but I don't know when we should.

I read an article that said kids under the age of 2 should watch no TV at all, and kids 2-4 should watch no more than 30 minutes to an hour per day.

Is that the norm or is that a suggestion most people ignore?

I know when we were old enough we played a lot outside, but I think we also watched a good amount to TV. Heck, my mom said that since my brother never slept as an infant she used to put him in his car seat and let him watch Sesame Street so she could sleep for an hour on the sofa.

kat.in.the.hat

we started cultivating the Elmo love around a year old.  I've never regretted it as having something 100% reliable to put her in a good mood has been invaluable.

She started just watching Elmo's world and now she'll watch the whole episode.  On non-MDO days, we usually watch Sid in the morning and maybe SS in the afternoon.  On MDO days, no TV because we're busy.

On average, I'd say she watches 30 minutes a day.

Cajun_gal

Umm...    He watches Mickey Mouse Playhouse every morning.  Granted he also crawls around and plays but any time Toodles comes out, he's enthralled.  He also watches Baby Einstein sometimes, mainly when I need him to be still so I can cut his nails.

ayersfam20

She probably started watching some Disney channel around 12-15 months or so. I'm thinking we started trying movies around 18 months?   She doesn't have long attention span though, so she never really say through an entire show.  He 2nd b-day party was Nemo themed, so it had to be before she was 2.

 

LisaK2b

At 1, we had her watch Barney and Baby Einstein DVDs.  I have no issues with TV and actually find them educational. 

I find a lot of the shows that she watches to be educational (i.e. Little Einsteiin teaches music theory, Mickey Mouse clubhouse ask a lot of questions to get them thinking and teaches them to count, Barney has a bunch of songs for them to learn, etc...) 

We have the TV on all weekend, but she's not sitting there just watching, she's usually playing with something and listens to what they're saying more than watching. 

Suzi-G-

I believe in everything in moderation.  I don't believe TV will turn your child into a drooling idiot, nor will it make them Einstein.  Cooper watches Sesame Street and other shows occasionally.   He normally plays at the same time and only seems to tune in at certain parts.  But he really likes the Signing Times DVDs he watches w/ my dad, and my mom swears he's signing "milk" now but I'm not sure I believe her. 

 

melrrr

Tracey really doesn't know that children's television exists. Mainly because I don't want her to watch it yet, but I have realized that I am VERY lucky that she will entertain herself, and she rarely gets cranky, so there has never been a situation where I needed the tv to occupy her.  I hear a lot of people have to put it on to have a few minutes to cook dinner, but Tracey has seen me in the kitchen for extended periods of time since she started coming to work with me at 6 weeks! 

Of course she will play with the iphone any chance she gets, and those apps are probably no better than the TV! 

SigmundsGirl

I was reading that the problem with TV is the quick transitions that we don't even notice. When we catch Evan watching TV he is very quiet and just stares, then he looks away a minute later. So far he isn't a baby that can entertain himself for more than 5-10 minutes, but we are workign on it slowly like everything else.

Since DH and I have no other kid experience, we weren't sure what was "normal"/ acceptable.

CallMeKel

Everything in moderation.

I "let" K watch TV (Noggin) sometimes as a baby, but she was never enthralled with it. She kind of liked Elmo's World at maybe 12 months old, but she wouldn't stay engrossed in it for more than about 10 minutes at a time.

It wasn't until probably 12-18 months that she started really loving dancing around to Jack's Big Music Show. Then she moved on to Backyardigans, then Yo Gabba Gabba and now Wow, Wow Wubzy. But she watches at most 1 hr. of TV a day, and some days none at all. She's rather play in her room, sing songs, read books, etc.

We didn't even introduce her to Disney movies until about 2.5-3 yrs. and even now, she will rarely sit through a full length movie (1.5 hrs).

I'm not anti-TV, but I'm a proponent of limited TV.

BritanyV

The TV is on at our house all the time when we are up.  It's normally on Nick or Disney. 

He really didn't start paying attention to the tv until he was about 17-18 months old.  

 Now he watches tv when he eats because he can see the tv from his high chair.   The rest of the day, he normally plays with his toys and sometimes pays attention to the tv. 

SigmundsGirl

We usually leave the TV on Discovery channel. Evan was trying desperately to watch Deadliest Catch.

He is at daycare during the week, and he doesn't see any TV there. I just want to make sure we have an active baby.

MrsMGR

LisaK2b:

At 1, we had her watch Barney and Baby Einstein DVDs.  I have no issues with TV and actually find them educational. 

I find a lot of the shows that she watches to be educational (i.e. Little Einsteiin teaches music theory, Mickey Mouse clubhouse ask a lot of questions to get them thinking and teaches them to count, Barney has a bunch of songs for them to learn, etc...) 

 

Ditto this entirely...except Barney LOL. I don't really get the "no TV" rule. TV is a part of our culture and if the parent is supervising and choosing the shows a kid can watch and how long he/she can watch it, then what's the real harm?

 

I  usually out on some educational cartoons in the morning so that I can get ready for work and then maybe have one episode of Backyardigans or Mickey on at night. He is in school all day long learning without a TV, so it doesn't bother me in the least that he gets to watch it at home with us.

 

Joe has learned alot from watching these educational cartoons and he loves Moose and Z on the Nickelodeon Channel and plays all their educational games. I think that's where he learned all his shapes (including octagons and pentagons) by age 18 months ;-)

 

 

 

TexasPaige

If there is a sporting event on that my husband simply must watch at that moment, the TV will be tuned to it. That will be alllll football season, and he did enjoy the World Cup.

As for kid TV, I only turn it on in case of "emergency." Like a super cranky nap wake-up. Or he woke up too early in the morning, and I need a few minutes to get my act together. The shows usually end up being either Dora or Ni Hao, Kai Lan. Must be the time of day they are on. He probably only gets about 20 minutes twice a week. Also, he plays really well independently. That's helpful. As is my dog. He provides instant entertainment.

Now if he is at my in-laws' house, Fox News is on constantly. Drives me nuts, but it's their house. It's not going to do any permanent damage. 

I reserve the right to change our TV habits when #2 comes! Goodness knows I will do whatever keeps us all sane for the first few months. 

rayskit10

T started watching TV around 18 mos because I was so pregnant and exhausted I had to lay down on the couch and keep him there with me. Otherwise, we would have waited until after 2 years old.

M watches more tv than I would like (which would be none at this age) because his brother is watching it. For this reason as much as any other, we limit how much tv T watches but I will say he probably watches a total of 60-90 minutes on some days.

1 PBS show in the morning before school- as a reward for eating and getting dressed efficiently

1 Nick Jr or PBS show while I am cooking dinner

If he eats dinner and takes his bath without incident, he may finish watching whatever was on when he had to leave the couch for the dinner table. he likes to pause the DVR and we let him pick back up later. I also like that if he fights eating or is naughty at bath time I can easily take the TV away. The other thing to take away would be books and I hate that. He loooves reading and I want to do everything I can to keep that going. 

KellyMichelle

I didn't let DS start watching until a little bit after he turned 2.  He watches about an hour a week max. now.

houstonkdw

MrsMGR:

LisaK2b:

At 1, we had her watch Barney and Baby Einstein DVDs.  I have no issues with TV and actually find them educational. 

I find a lot of the shows that she watches to be educational (i.e. Little Einsteiin teaches music theory, Mickey Mouse clubhouse ask a lot of questions to get them thinking and teaches them to count, Barney has a bunch of songs for them to learn, etc...) 

 

Ditto this entirely...except Barney LOL. I don't really get the "no TV" rule. TV is a part of our culture and if the parent is supervising and choosing the shows a kid can watch and how long he/she can watch it, then what's the real harm?

 

I  usually out on some educational cartoons in the morning so that I can get ready for work and then maybe have one episode of Backyardigans or Mickey on at night. He is in school all day long learning without a TV, so it doesn't bother me in the least that he gets to watch it at home with us.

 

Joe has learned alot from watching these educational cartoons and he loves Moose and Z on the Nickelodeon Channel and plays all their educational games. I think that's where he learned all his shapes (including octagons and pentagons) by age 18 months ;-)

 

 

 

I agree.

My kids do not watch TV in the morning and only for 30 min a week at school so they have plenty of no TV time I think.

They do watch it when we get home upstairs but they are also playing so they are not just sitting their staring at it.

It usually comes on while I prepare dinner and after bath time.  

melrrr

TexasPaige:

If there is a sporting event on that my husband simply must watch at that moment, the TV will be tuned to it. That will be alllll football season, and he did enjoy the World Cup.

Tracey picks up the remote every morning and asks for "bike!" after three weeks of watching the Tour de France.  

lilycat

With the first one we held out a long time. Now that we use TV to entertain our eldest while dealing with all things baby, the little one has been exposed much sooner.