I would never let my child watch that much TV!
Ever think that? Ever say it? Ever judge another parent for allowing their children to assume the zombie-like state in front of a TV? Yea…it’s a sentiment I voiced myself once or twice (okay, maybe more)…before we had children. After all, we live in California. Children should be outside playing – catching a lizard, maybe? Gathering rolly-polly’s? Camping in their play tents? Having a tea party? Drawing on the sidewalk? Whatever it is, shouldn’t kids be outside as much as possible? Why would you ever let kids sit inside the house on a glorious, sunny day, whiling away the time in front of the TV? *hand raised* Uh. Well. Hmmmm…there are several reasons, one of which is to prevent your children from destroying the house while your attention is elsewhere.
Oh, how my naivete has tempered my sense of what’s right or wrong, good or bad when raising kids. There’s philosophy and then there’s…ahem reality. Our kids can get very busy when we’re not watching very closely. Disaster areas pop up rather quickly in our home. But put them in front of the TV and hours (I won’t say how many…bad enough that I use the plural form of the word) later, the house is still somewhat livable. Just this last weekend, my husband and I had to finish painting walls, laying hardwood floor and ensuring the shower in our bathroom was fixed (all in the name of a lower mortgage rate). This meant Storyteller and Songwriter were on their own.
Yes, we could have banished them to the great outdoors as we completed our tasks. But my husband was using a rather loud circular saw in the backyard and the sound was deafening and not very good for 5-year-olds to be around. Banish them to the front yard? Sorry. Though they’ve been taught not to run in the street or go anywhere with strangers, I still worry about the innate impulsiveness 5-year-olds can display when you least expect it. Play in their room? Naaaaaahhhh, they weren’t in trouble, per se, so that didn’t seem a nice thing to do. So….on the TV went. By the way, I’m happy to report that my girls do have a limit on how long they’ll sit in front of the TV. I’m not so proud to admit, though, that I let them sit in front of the TV long enough for them to get sick of sitting in front of it.
I always thought I’d religiously monitor how much TV they watched. And I did…when they were two. They are now five. Back then, I thought one or two shows ought to be enough in any given day. That is, one hour to myself for whatever reason ought to be enough. *derisive snicker* Well, no. It’s not. Not anymore. Not when I’m running my own business while doing their laundry, cleaning the house (more like clearing paths throughout each room) and making meals. Nope, it’s not nearly enough time. And when you’re trying to get something done, there is no patience left in storage to deal with the “Mommmmmmyyyyyyyyyyyyy, she’s sitting on my blanket,” or “Mommmyyyyyyyyyyyy, she touched my elbow,” or “Mommmmmyyyyyyyy, she called me a poop-head,” or any other manner of name-calling, whining and crying. So, in front of the TV they go. At least their attention is diverted from each other. Never mind the fact that they’d already watched a couple of episodes of Blues Clues before I made them turn off the TV and go play…and only minutes later, encouraged them to go back and watch more.
When it comes to how much the children watch – “experts” have widely ranging opinions. So, I go with what makes sense to me (and mitigates my ever-present mommy guilt). That is, the issue is not really how much TV a kid watches that is purportedly bad, rather it’s what they’re missing out on while sitting in front of that TV.
So, when I hear, "Mommy, can we watch TV?" I ask myself, have they played outside? Check. Have they had reading time? Check. Have they played pretend? Check. Have they done some coloring/drawing? Check. OK, permission to assume the zombie-like position in front of the TV (watching Word Girl or some such show) is granted. That's generally during the week. On a Saturday morning, my thought process is much, much shorter. "Mommy, can we watch TV?" I ask myself, am I ready to get up at 6:30 in the morning? Nope. OK, permission to vegetate in front of the TV is granted.
I have to admit that I console myself with the fact that PBS exists…and that they make grrrrrrreat kids shows - educational, engaging and fun. I’ve come to believe that TV can encourage kids to read, to increase comprehension, to learn to spell and pronounce words correctly. I’ve become aware of the thought processes and research put behind the creation of shows like Super Why, Word Girl and Sid, the Science Kid. I just have to hold onto one piece of parental philosophy I had before I had kids – parents must monitor what their children watch. Other than that, I’m backpeddling on pretty much anything I believed that had to do with TV during my ignorant, pre-kid life. And I’m sure there will be more.
Original Mad About Multiples blog post.
When MommyTwinGirls is letting her twins watch TV, you may also find her at Silicon Valley Moms Blog recounting the ups and downs of mommyhood, It's Never Easy But It's Always Fun splitting her time between her twin girls and at Solheim Photography posting favorites from her latest photo shoots.
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