Tot's TV: What Are Your Kids Watching It?

I grew up watching a lot of TV as did my husband. Within recent years we have dramatically cut back on the amounts of TV we watch as we came to the realization that there is little on that is of a positive nature. When our son started to become aware of the entertaining box in the living room, we had decisions to make regarding what he watched as well as how much he watched.

There are many schools of thought regarding the use of television with young children. One side states that TV viewing from 9 months is fine and yet others say no television at all. Somewhere in the middle is where we fall as a family as well as myself as an educator.

There are definitely pro's and con's to children watching television. On the negative side, the longer children are in front of media (TV, computers, video games etc...), the less time they are participating in physical activities (Yes, there are more negatives, but that is not the focus of this article). On the plus side, there are some good educational shows available. At work we use various clips from PBS shows in our preschool classrooms, for example showing a letter clip from Sesame Street that correlates with the letter of the week in the classroom. Additionally, we use these clips in parent trainings to assist them in talking with their child during the show to further expand the learning.

The rest of this article will focus on recommendations for TV viewing practices as well as a quick description of some of the types of children's shows available. This information is primarily targeted for younger preschoolers and toddlers as I see most things from my two-year old's perspective most of the time.

How Much is Enough?

The general consensus in the education field right now for all media (TV, video games, computer etc...) use is: none for children under 2 years, one hour (or less) for children 2-4 years and up to 2 hours for children over 5.