If you do not let your toddler watch TV, I have a question for you... Do you plan on allowing them to watch TV as they get older? Will you put a limit on how much TV they watch?
I'm interested because I heard a mother on the radio this morning who was talking about how she doesn't own a TV and she doesn't allow her 6 year old son to watch TV. If he goes to a friend's house and they are watching TV, he supposed to call her, so that she can come and get him, so that he doesn't watch TV. I think this is pretty extreme and so I wondered how you ladies felt about the TV situation.
Re: If you're strict about TV watching, come in..
I don't let Emerson watch TV b/c it's not recommended for children under 2! However if she watches TV at DC while she is preparing lunch or meals whatever..I'm fine with that. I just don't want TV to considered an activity or it be over an hour a day and that is maximum!!!!!!!
Yes I will allow my kids to watch TV as they get older but it will be limited. If they go over to a friends house & watch TV all day long...who cares! It's not going to ruin her or make her a horrible child!
Everything in moderation!!!!!!
That's a bit extreme. I have older kids (7 and 6) and I don't let them watch any tv during the week. On weekends they can watch a little bit-maybe 1 or 2 shows but it's not on at all during the week.
I think over the top banning of tv like that will cause that kid to want to watch it even more. Everything in moderation.
I do let DS watch it every so often, although he really doesn't sit still long enough to watch much.
back at ya, lol!
I usually don't let him watch it at all. H lets him watch it in the morning and my mom lets him watch The Wiggles in the afternoon. I don't want the tv to be a babysitter, so I limit it.
I used to turn on the Sprout channel all of the time, then I realized he was being a couch potato. He can entertain himself better with toys and books. I have nothing against those who allow their LO to watch tv.
Including exclamation points? lol.
We do not have a tv and limit DS's exposure to a few youtube clips per week. But, I don't plan to limit what he will watch at a friend's house. That seems a little extreme to me. My hope is that he develops many of other interests and that he won't want to watch tv for hours on end.
Wow -- she sounds like one of those uber-strict mom's that is setting herself up for failure later. My aunt was like that and her kids are the one's that, when they finally left home for college, found themselves binge drinking and got knocked-up/knocked-up girls. ... IMO it's never good to just ban something like that... you need to teach moderation/how to deal with situations.
ON THE TOPIC OF TV:
We don't really watch much TV in the house anyway (DH and I would rather read a book or do something else like play a game instead) but we do allow it sometimes. Usually in the evenings, after dinner, we will sit down together and put on a show recorded earlier (we don't have cable so it's usually a PBS show: Dinosaur Train, Sid the Science Kid, Thoma & Friends, Sesame Street), a kids video, or something of the like. We play and have it on the background. DS will stop and watch for a few minutes at a time and seems to enjoy the songs and characters -- the visual and auditory stimulation.
On occasion when DS is having a really crabby day (not feeling well), we will occasionally watch more, but it's always together. I never just park him in front of the TV so I can do other things. If I'm cleaning in the kitchen, he's right there with me, playing in a cabinet I cleared out for him to keep toys in. If I'm cleaning his room, he's playing in a corner with toys. If I need to clean our room or other less toddler friendly areas, I wait til nap time or when DH is home to tag team baby care and cleaning.
In the future, we plan to allow a moderate amount of TV in the house but we will be sure that we know what he is watching and not let it get excessive. If he's behaved, has all homework, chores, etc. completed, then we can watch TV as a family.
I agree with Misty, everything in moderation. Ebee never stands still long enough to watch TV anyway.
I think not letting your children watch TV at 6 or 7 is unrealistic. I grew up with kids that were only allowed to watch PBS. They loved to come to our house to watch other things, like cartoons.
It's ok I think I'm known for my exclamations!!! LMAO!
Yes, he will be allowed to watch teli as he gets older, in limited amounts. DH and I watch a decent amount of TV now, so we'd be total hypocrites if we banned B from watching it. He doesn't get any now because it's not good for him, but once he's two he'll probably be allowed to watch a small amount per day, or every few days depending. Definitely don't plan to plop him down in front of show after show every afternoon or anything.
As he gets older it'll be totally dependent on how he's doing with chores, school, etc. I'm sure we'll still limit the amount per day, but if he's showing interest in other activities and doesn't just glaze over in front of the TV he'll probably be allowed a fairly decent amount.
Mes Petit Choux
I can't go back to yesterday - because I was a different person then. ~ Alice
We don't watch much and we're not tv-in-the-background people, so DD doesn't watch much. But we do some You Tube Sesame Street and Yo Gabba Gabba clips and she loves them. I hope she'll never be into tv in a major way, but I wouldn't care if she watched at a friend's house when she is older.
One of my very close friends grew up without a tv. She said she'd watch occasionally at a friend's house, but it was never some tempting forbidden fruit for her. She just wasn't too into it. We were roommate for a while and I had a tv but really got out of the habit of watching it a lot when I lived with her. I think she may have a tv now but just watches the news and occasional DVD.