Does your baby watch tv?

kimbo319 · June 2011

I've come to realize that my baby doesn't really have an interest in tv and we haven't had him watch any of the kids shows or anything, Sesame Street etc. I'm not against him watching tv, I just haven't sat him in front of it with the intent of watching a kids show. He will occasionally look at the tv if something catches his eye but that lasts a minute or so and then it's back to playing with his toys. The only shows that keep his attention are The Simpsons and the cooking channel. I'm guessing both are because of the bright colors.

Do you think babies at this age need to watch some tv to get some educational value out of it? Or should I just keep doing what I'm doing and not worry about it.

katlor9 · June 2011

He doesn't sit down and watch a specific show, but he always turns and looks at whatever is on. If I am trying to get ready in the morning I will turn on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for him while he is in his jumper/sitting on the floor playing.

AverysMom1118 · June 2011

No, I don't think babies NEED to watch tv. I don't think your child will lack anything by not watching tv. I don't see anything wrong with it though. As long as it's not an excessive amount. Avery doesn't watch any tv shows but I do have several Baby Einstein DVD's that is loves. They are only 20 minutes long and she usually watches it about twice a day. Once in the morning when she first wakes up while I drink my coffee and then at some random point in the day when I'm getting dishes/laundry done or cooking.

tweatie2 · June 2011

I would prefer it if DD didn't watch tv, but her and DH watch the basketball games together.

Sweeti7307 · June 2011

Unpossible:
kimbo319:

I've come to realize that my baby doesn't really have an interest in tv and we haven't had him watch any of the kids shows or anything, Sesame Street etc. I'm not against him watching tv, I just haven't sat him in front of it with the intent of watching a kids show. He will occasionally look at the tv if something catches his eye but that lasts a minute or so and then it's back to playing with his toys. The only shows that keep his attention are The Simpsons and the cooking channel. I'm guessing both are because of the bright colors.

Do you think babies at this age need to watch some tv to get some educational value out of it? Or should I just keep doing what I'm doing and not worry about it.

There is no educational value in watching TV.

I don't think this is always the case. My nephew has learned a lot from his leap frog DVDs. The cartoon format just makes it interesting for him.

Mama_SAS · June 2011

No, you don?t need to have your LO watch TV. TV is never a necessity. It?s a great distraction when you need to get something done, though.

DD sometimes watches what her brother is watching if it catches her eye, but she?s more likely to watch her brother and laugh at him when he laughs at the TV.

Around age 2-3 the Leap Frog Letter Factory DVD is amazing for teaching letters and the sounds they make though. That is an educational DVD that I highly recommend. DS learned them in less than a week after working on them for months with me while playing.

ames71 · June 2011

No, your baby doesn't need to watch TV. I do let Max watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse sometimes. He loves that Hot Dog song. And he may or may not have seen a couple of episodes of the Real Housewives of New York with me. I'm positive he didn't learn anything from that last one. Wink

shes_got_gumption · June 2011

I have it on in the background, for something to glace over at when he gets bored. He rarely sits and watches though unless it's something he finds super captivating.

I have him watch "My Baby Can Read" every so often, but it's not more than 15 minutes long.

J+MS · June 2011

Izzy likes tv if I have it on...but usually it doesn't come on until S gets home in the evening

MrsFv20 · June 2011

nope. I don't think it is good for her. I don't care if other kids watch it though, I know it can be a good distraction.

KatieMiami1220 · June 2011

Mine has no interest in the tv. He will sometimes glance at it while playing if the Bubble Guppies are singing something, but other than that he ignores it.

I sometimes keep it on for company while I'm home, but as I said he ignores it so I feel free to turn on whatever I want.

I don't feel he is "missing out" at all.

cndmexbaby · June 2011

I think it is hilarious you are worried about your baby NOT watching TV.

BecExpecting · June 2011

My pediatrician is associated with the University of Chicago, and she is working on a study to find out how the light rays emitted from TVs affect babies' brains. She has a hypothesis (yet unproven, as far as I know) that too much exposure to this kind of light can disrupt or slow brain development in babies.

So she advises all her patients' parents to keep TV to a minimum, zero if possible.

I don't know about all that, but if we have the TV on for more than an hour, Dana gets all irritable and crazy, so maybe there's something to it.

KelzinBoston · June 2011

I try not to let DS2 watch tv...but it's on occassionally for his big brother. I usually try to play with him instead of letting him stare at it.

I don't think tv is terrible, but I don't think there's any benefit when babies are this young, in fact I've read a lot about how it isn't really good for them. We didn't let DS1 watch tv at all until he was over 1 and we limited it to certain shows. Now that he's almost 3 he does watch a bit more and I do think he's learned from shows like Sesame Street.

DH and I really don't have the tv on grown up shows during the day unless there is a hockey game.

Mama_SAS · June 2011

Unpossible:
I'm not saying don't let your child watch TV or don't let them play with educational DVDs, but don't assume that either are good or beneficial for them just because the packaging says so.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070808082039.htm
https://www.asiaone.com/Health/News/Story/A1Story20100312-204223.html
https://www.child-psych.org/2010/03/do-baby-einstein-dvds-work-exposing-infants-to-educational-dvds-may-affect-their-language-development.html
https://www.theurbanchildinstitute.org/blogs/jenna-stonecipher/2010/03/recent-research-suggests-that-educational-dvd%2526rsquo%3Bs-have-no-educational-

I agree that there are no real educational DVDs for babies. Two of us mentioned Leap Frog which are more for preschoolers, not babies. So it was in disagreement to your statement that there is no educational TV [period], but not in disagreement with these links that say there is no educational value in TV for babies. I think that was probably your original point since it was a post about babies watching TV, not about preschoolers.

loveforlife2009 · June 2011

My baby doesn't watch tv but I turn cartoons on everytime I have to cut her nails. She doesn't budge, works like a charm.

kerribear1717 · June 2011

The baby DVDs I have for DS he will watch for a max of about 5 minutes. Usually more like 1-2. However my little redneck baby loves to watch NASCAR. He will pay attention to that sometimes for like 10-15 minutes.

Libby1978 · June 2011

Oliver does not watch tv. He may be in the same room with the tv on, but he is usually on the floor exploring and does not notice the tv. We don't put on kid's shows because I would rather wait as long as possible before letting him really watch tv. I don't think a little tv here and there hurts, but I wouldn't depend on tv for its educational value. A baby learns more from interaction with a live person.

nikipau144 · June 2011

I keep it on in the background, but C barely stops to watch. I like the songs and such that pop up every now and then. Also, C is in love with Chica from the Sprout channel, but that is the only time she will stop what she's doing and watch. That is usually a 5 min time span.

HML5382 · June 2011

cndmexbaby:
I think it is hilarious you are worried about your baby NOT watching TV.

I was thinking the same thing!

We have the TV on all the time even when no one is watching it, it's a bad habit of ours. DD looks at it now and then, but I have never seen her really "watch" anything on there. We don't put on kids stuff specifically for her to watch either.

Rach21 · June 2011

I swore I wouldn't expose DS to TV while he was under the age of 1. MIL showed him Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I turned it on once while I was getting ready for work and Gideon was in a clingy mood.

**cue the angels singing Hallelujah chorus**

I was able to blow dry my hair, get my make-up on, eat my breakfast in the 24 minutes it was on. He doesn't "watch" it constantly like when I watch TV, but he will play with his toys and look up when they call for Toodles, grin really big, and then go back to playing with his toys. He also loves the Hot Dog dance.

Some TV shows DO help reinforce the basic stuff parents should be teaching their toddlers (like counting, ABCs, colors and shapes) but TV is not supposed to be the main source of education interaction.

SarahWaggy · June 2011

He will watch for a minute, get distracted, watch, get distracted. So I could have a half hour show on, and he will probably watch only about 10 minutes of it.

detokiet · June 2011

He'll glance at the TV when he's busy and something catches his eye. He will sit and quietly watch Monsters Vs Aliens or How to Train your Dragon for like 10 minutes at a time. He's fascinated by those movies.

Bailey81 · June 2011

Nope. The television stays off while he's awake. He listens to an inordinate amount of NPR, though.

kristin2t · June 2011

Bailey81:
Nope. The television stays off while he's awake. He listens to an inordinate amount of NPR, though.

Exactly. He loves Nina Totenberg.

kimbo319 · June 2011

I'm not really concerned he ISN'T watching tv yet, I'm just making sure I'm not missing something that he should be doing to learn. I don't really have any friends with kids this age so I don't know what is the appropriate age to watch things like Sesame Street and stuff. Is he behind? I personally don't enjoy kids shows so I'm putting it off as long as I have to and since he has no interest in the tv it all works out.

spunkyprincessmande · June 2011

Micah LOVES to watch TV. We don't watch TV at our house, but when we're at someone else's house and it's on he is glued to it! Seriously, every since he was a newborn, TV has really kept his attention. I will say, however, that we own a couple Baby Einstein videos and sometimes when it's bedtime and he's all wound up we'll put one on for 10 minutes. Works every time. It calms him down and he just sits with us so quietly so it's a lot easier to put him to bed, then.

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