What do your kids do without screentime?

[Mokek Kwe]

Okay, I'm embarrassed to be asking this... my almost 11 month old is hooked on tv and has been since about 3 months old or so. Wonder Pets, Ni Hao, Kai-lan, you name it.
I've tried some days to not turn on the tv (um, VERY hard around here).
What do you do? Do you play with your child all day? What about when you're doing things- cleaning house, cooking, on GCM? :shifty

What are some of the negatives about a baby watching tv?

[prov31craftymom]

subbing

[Serendipity]

hmm.. I have a "rule" that we don't watch any tv until after Daddy gets home (530pm). I decided to established this for tons of reasons but mainly because I think we may homeschool and I don't want to battle my kids about TV privledges.

While I cook I give him things to help me with--pots and spoons to bang, homemade "play-doh"

I read to him a lot, even when he is on the floor playing with toys, and I read everything from taking charge of your fertility to GCM to Southern living

I keep him involved with me while I'm cleaning and give him his own rag or broom to mess with. He likes being chased by the vacuum.

Since it's winter We go to story time three times a week, or an indoor play ground, or musuems.

I usually always have music playing and I encourage dance and "feeling the beat"

I have an old full size keyboard that I set on the floor and let him play.

We fold clothes together.

When I run out of ideas or things to do (for us, winter makes its difficult--I'm sure if it was summer my list would look a lot different) I put him in the bath tub and let him make a mess with washable paint, or shaving cream.

Blowing bubbles

I honestly believe because we ar not in the routine of watching television during the day it helps him learn to keep himsef entertained. I can often cook in the kitchen and he will either do his own thing with toys or come into the kitchen and play with whatever I show him.:shrug3

[Mokek Kwe]

thanks for the idea about the keyboard! I have one that hasn't been used in ages! :)

I think I'm using tv to babysit E, and I feel really bad about it. I admit I let her play with toys while she watches so I can surf the net. :blush

[erinee]

I was going to suggest the bathtub with shaving cream idea. That used to keep my kids busy for a good long time. I used to put some shaving cream in muffin tins, add a few drops of a different color food coloring to each, and let them have at it! Easy to clean up when they're done, too, and when their done and you've had your time, you can give them a quick bath while they're in there and already undressed. :)

When I first started working from home, I set Zach up with his own little "desk" right beside mine. I gave him an old keyboard, old magazines, books, crayons, paper, an old calculator with big buttons (he LOVED playing with calculators!), sticky notes, etc. I had a big box that I let him decorate with markers, turned it upside-down, cut leg space out of the bottom, and that was his desk. It went over pretty well for awhile. Yours is a little young for that, but in a few months she'd enjoy it maybe.

I just remembered something else that used to keep them busy for a long time -- flypaper! I'd give them a long piece of clear contact paper, and they could tear up bits of construction paper or old magazines, bits of yarn, aluminum foil, or anything else I had and stick it all over, then put another piece on top for a fabulous creation with hardly any mess. They loved that!

It's been awhile since I've used these, since my kids are in school all day, but they're coming back to me little by little. ;)

[Mokek Kwe]

will it hurt her if she accidentally-on purpose eats a little shaving cream? just wondering in advance, since she likes to put EVERYTHING in her mouth. I'm sure the taste will offend her enough that she wouldn't do more than a "taste", or I could just keep a paci in her mouth. I think I'll try that.

And back to something Jen said-maybe if I read GCM to E, it will also help keep me aware of how often I'm on here. :shifty

[erinee]

I can't remember for sure about the toxicity of shaving cream, but I know mine were very young and still putting things in their mouths when I was doing it. I'm sure I checked on it at the time and decided it was safe. I read the idea in Family Fun magazine, so I'm pretty sure it should be safe.

[Living My Dream]

I think I'm using tv to babysit Eleanor, and I feel really bad about it. I admit I let her play with toys while she watches so I can surf the net. :blush

BTDT. For a while I turned it off at the plug socket and that made a big difference, "the tv wont turn on." said by either me or ds1. Then they werent bothered.

I explained to ds1 today when he was moaning that the tv wasnt on, was about why we have all these toys in the toy boxes and (he wasnt keen last time I took some of mine and DS2's clothes to the charity shop the other week) so I explained that if they arent going to be used then we could take them for someone else to use, and he said that he would maybe give some but not all. :melting and he has chosen to play with some of his long forgotten toys....

(just to add, most on here know me well, but I just wanted to clarify it wasnt a, "play with your toys or we'll get rid......" but most of you know me well enough) :)

Just to add

[ValiantJoy07]

:popcorn

We are in the process of weaning waaay back from TV... The past several months I've used it A LOT. But right now I've mainly been using it during wake up times (because Dd1 is an absolute beast when she's waking up :shifty:heart) and when I am nursing dd2 in the late afternoon before Dh gets home and I can't get dd1 involved in any thing that isn't destructive while I'm feeding baby. I'd like to keep it to under an hour a day.

[Rea T]

When I first started working from home, I set Zach up with his own little "desk" right beside mine. I gave him an old keyboard, old magazines, books, crayons, paper, an old calculator with big buttons (he LOVED playing with calculators!), sticky notes, etc. I had a big box that I let him decorate with markers, turned it upside-down, cut leg space out of the bottom, and that was his desk. It went over pretty well for awhile. Yours is a little young for that, but in a few months she'd enjoy it maybe.

I love it! I'm at my desk so much of the time that I feel I'm not spending enough time with Indy, and so he does watch too much tv because I need to work. Going to try that.

Right now he loves pipecleaners. I have a mess of them all over my office floor and he just randomly plays with them. I think they'd be ok for little ones unless they gag themselves with it.

[Tuesdayschild]

Responding to your other question about whether tv is bad for babies, you may find these articles (http://www.pbs.org/parents/childrenandmedia/article-faq.html) interesting.

At the moment my two oldest attend a Waldorf school and the school is *very* anti-tv. We don't really tow the line on that one :shifty (they watched Wall-E today :bag )
Two things they esp. object to is the impoverishment of imagination, which it is a young person's job to use to the MAX and the passivity of it - apparently even your eyes hardly move. It seems it is not great for language development either, but idk, I'm no expert.

What we do is have no tv, only dvds, that way I have total control over the content. They only watch what is suitable for the youngest viewer :shrug3 It also helps that I can tailor it to my needs: 10 mins before dinner? One Bob the Builder; I'm collapsing like a flan in a cupboard or have a gizzilion things to do or both (usually that)? One appropriate movie. It means there's a natural end at the right time, kwim?

---------- Post added at 08:10 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:05 PM ----------

Here's an article (http://www.whywaldorfworks.org/02_W_Education/documents/TamingtheMediaMonster.pdf) on the Steiner perspective, with info on why it is esp. bad for little ones. Just fyi, it's a web pdf.
HTH

[Elora]

my kids won't watch tv (i'm not all that opposed, but they don't have any interest) they do whatever we're doing. either "helping," mimicking, or being worn. and we do spend a lot of time playing with them.

my dd is 12 months so similar age...some examples

yardwork/washing car - being worn
cooking/doing dishes - playing at my feet with pot/pans or items from "the kids drawer"
laundry - pulling things dryer/baskets and sometimes mixing things up :shifty

ds is 3 so he helps a little more when i'm cooking he can pour/mix ingredients/etc. he rinses some dishes when i do dishes and he likes to play in water (not really washing things). granted it takes some patience and sometimes requires some cleanup ;) but it's important to me to have them involved. some days i would LOVE if they would just watch tv though! :giggle

some examples of playing WITH dd

-jumping on bed
-dancing
-reading
-we build ramps for monster trucks and see what kind of things we can rev them up enough to run over (dd actually loves the hot wheels monster trucks)
-build tents and crawl in and out/play peekaboo
-my dh spends hours (or what seems like hours) jumping out from around a corner at her and she cracks up and does it over and over again
-dh walks her around the house and has her touch different things :giggle she likes the textures and he tells her about what they are lol

i don't think it's bad for kids to play on their own :shrug3 my ds just wouldn't do it. he was VERY clingy until recently. my dd will play on her own (mostly with the cardboard box that her highchair came in) for 10 minutes or so at a time...and i encourage it :)

[Allison]

My guys are a little older but they like to play outside. A lot. Draw, paint, play with playdoh, help me cook, play with trains

[tofufoofoo]

my kids won't watch tv (i'm not all that opposed, but they don't have any interest) they do whatever we're doing. either "helping," mimicking, or being worn. and we do spend a lot of time playing with them.

my dd is 12 months so similar age...some examples

yardwork/washing car - being worn
cooking/doing dishes - playing at my feet with pot/pans or items from "the kids drawer"
laundry - pulling things dryer/baskets and sometimes mixing things up :shifty

ds is 3 so he helps a little more when i'm cooking he can pour/mix ingredients/etc. he rinses some dishes when i do dishes and he likes to play in water (not really washing things). granted it takes some patience and sometimes requires some cleanup ;) but it's important to me to have them involved. some days i would LOVE if they would just watch tv though! :giggle

some examples of playing WITH dd

-jumping on bed
-dancing
-reading
-we build ramps for monster trucks and see what kind of things we can rev them up enough to run over (dd actually loves the hot wheels monster trucks)
-build tents and crawl in and out/play peekaboo
-my dh spends hours (or what seems like hours) jumping out from around a corner at her and she cracks up and does it over and over again
-dh walks her around the house and has her touch different things :giggle she likes the textures and he tells her about what they are lol

i don't think it's bad for kids to play on their own :shrug3 my ds just wouldn't do it. he was VERY clingy until recently. my dd will play on her own (mostly with the cardboard box that her highchair came in) for 10 minutes or so at a time...and i encourage it :)

Thanks for the ideas you use with your DD. I find it so hard to find ways to entertain her and I end up wearing her way too often just to keep her from "getting into everything" :blush :shifty

DD won't sit and watch TV, but we JUST recently tried watching a movie with her. I watch maybe one show (Duggars-- guilty pleasure) or the news if there is snow in the forecast and she is miserable the entire time. I tried Elmo and she didn't really love that either. I heard no TV before two recommended by the APA so I am sticking with that I guess :shrug3

[rebecuna]

Thanks for this thread... since late pg and now new baby we've been using a LOT of TV. I'm wanting it to be different but just so TIRED all the time!

One question (hope I'm not hijacking!)-- when DS comes home from preschool he always wants to watch TV. Always. I'm curious about this "downtime" he seems to want after school every day. I remember that feeling from when I was little, and I guess I don't want to fight him too much if he needs to just relax. But how else can I help him to feel rested and ready to play again? He's not really interested in reading books or anything during that time (but maybe I could encourage it somehow?) and he is generally not into art stuff (he does like paint-with-water and cutting things up). I need to make lunch and usually feed the baby during that time so I can't play with him.

[catholicmama]

:popcorn

[bananacake]

We put the TV away for Lent, though he has watched some you tube with Daddy. It's been interesting.

[Stacy]

Great thread! I'll admit, I've used the tv. But at 4 months w/ my oldest we got rid of it all together because she was WATCHING it and I couldn't distract her. Then it crept back, so that during my second pregnancy, we would watch a few hours of MY tv together (Ellen, etc), but nothing for her. Third pregnancy (after the second one ended in stillbirth), we moved up to movies for DD1. Anyway, all that to say, when we had the need we watched several hours of tv. And by need I mean I was sick, too tired, frustrated to deal, whatever. After our third was born, I cut DD1 back to two hours a day. And she begged for it. I got to hate the begging so much, I started cutting back. 1 1/2 hours, 1 hour, 1 show... now, if she watches so much as a half an hour, it's like a trigger or something. Awful, awful fits this child has, and my 10 mo def does not need to be watching 2 hours of tv each day. So it's off. :shrug: I may watch my own tv when they're asleep, which doesn't happen very often, but even turning on MY tv sets DD1 off (or can), so I try and avoid it. I really hate the tv!!

But, tbh, I also love the tv. I wish I could flip it on whenever and not worry about the consequences. :)

Oops, sorry! I didn't say what we DO. :lol

My daughter is bored. A lot. But I don't think tv is the answer. I don't think me playing w/ her constantly is, either, however, and I really don't like to play. :blush: But I will. We read, too. She has tons and tons of arts and crafts and toys. She'll go out and play alone in the yard when the weather is nice (I watch from deck/house ;) ). She reads to herself, plays creatively/pretend, builds tents for herself and her dolls, plays w/ her little sister somewhat, plays puzzles and or bored games w/ me. In the summer we walk and walk and walk, at home, at the parks, where ever we are. We're almost always out at a park playing when it's nice. We do chores together and have forever, like someone else said, since she was teeny tiny. I buried her in laundry tons. :D We cook sometimes, but I have little patience for it, I want to get that stuff over and done with. She'll help me clean, has her own rags and sprayer of "soap". We snuggle and take naps when possible. We dance, too!

[Thankfulforgrace]

We do very little tv here. Personally, I don't think it's healthy and good for dd's development and I *try* to limit my computer time to set an example. I feel like dd is missing out on so much she should be doing and learning when she is watching tv. I've also actually seen as dd grew that the days we did tv her ability to play by herself and her imagination in play went down. That's enough to convince me.

What we do/did:
-read tons
-go on lots of adventures, grocery store, playdates, zoo etc
-have her help me with the chores (she's began by pushing around and pulling up on the laundry basket and sometimes stuffing clothes in the washer, etc)
-cook together (I'd sit her next to say the bowl while I was stiring when she was really little-actually I did a lot of mixing and such on the floor next to her!)
-play
-put on music and dance

---------- Post added at 03:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:00 PM ----------

Thanks for this thread... since late pg and now new baby we've been using a LOT of TV. I'm wanting it to be different but just so TIRED all the time!

One question (hope I'm not hijacking!)-- when DS comes home from preschool he always wants to watch TV. Always. I'm curious about this "downtime" he seems to want after school every day. I remember that feeling from when I was little, and I guess I don't want to fight him too much if he needs to just relax. But how else can I help him to feel rested and ready to play again? He's not really interested in reading books or anything during that time (but maybe I could encourage it somehow?) and he is generally not into art stuff (he does like paint-with-water and cutting things up). I need to make lunch and usually feed the baby during that time so I can't play with him.

Maybe he could do a book on tape or look at books during that time? Or a quiet activity like playing with blocks. I would wonder too if his friends talk about tv at school so it makes him want to watch too? :shrug3 I don't know. I might go with the paint with water or cutting since he seems into that unless they did that a lot at school that day...

[Elora]

I just wanted to encourage you, if you're wearing her and she is happy, that is GREAT! She is seeing and learning SO MUCH if you wear her. Kids stuck on the floor, even if they're playing, don't have the same advantage of seeing what you're doing. If she's happy being worn, I wouldn't worry that you're wearing her "too much" :hug

[tigerlily]

at 11 months my dd loved to load/unload a box of *stuff*. Maybe a box of tupperware lids or lightweight blocks or anything else you can think of. You could also do a box of beans, w/ pouring, funnels, etc, that would have to be supervised.

Also at 11 months my dd got into a box of kleenex and thought that it was the best thing ever. Maybe save it for when you are desperate for a few minutes.

I took a lot of walks with dd when she was little, and would often go to a store everyday (even just to look) just to change the day up and have something to do.:shrug3

[rebecuna]

And she begged for it. I got to hate the begging so much, I started cutting back. 1 1/2 hours, 1 hour, 1 show... now, if she watches so much as a half an hour, it's like a trigger or something. Awful, awful fits this child has
This happens a lot for us, too-- and I'm letting him watch TV to give me some down time, but then he's often so crabby later I bet it undoes whatever rest I got. :think So how did you cut back? Did you tell her what you were doing? How did she handle it-- did she fight you a lot? He has a lot of movies... maybe we could start by just putting a bunch of them away. Is he old enough to be part of the process or should they just disappear?

[Tuesdayschild]

I think you cut back by switching off tv as such, and focusing on watching movies only. Most kids' ones are no more than 90mins, so that's already a small cut - i.e. you get to watch this movie,a nd then it goes off.

Next say that some movies are going to rest for a while, and keep out only dvds that are compilations of shorter shows, like Bob the Builder of whatever. Now he can pick 2 episodes... then only one.

And TBH, I don't think one 10 minute show a day is going to rot his brain. But once you're down to that little tv, he probably won't need it so much anyway.

Movies could be a rainy day weekend treat or something.

ITA with the idea of spoken books. They get better at listening to them the more they do it (and the less tv they watch :shifty). The BBC Winnie the Pooh is fab, because it is a dramatization, so there are lots of different voices to listen to. I'm sure I've seen a threa din the past asking about spoken book suggestions :think

OK, found one, which had this website: http://storynory.com/

HTH

[tofufoofoo]

I just wanted to encourage you, if you're wearing her and she is happy, that is GREAT! She is seeing and learning SO MUCH if you wear her. Kids stuck on the floor, even if they're playing, don't have the same advantage of seeing what you're doing. If she's happy being worn, I wouldn't worry that you're wearing her "too much" :hug

Off-topic so I'll keep it short: DD doesn't sleep (like, at all :giggle) and family will glare at my sling and ask "Are you SURE she is getting enough exercise???" (she totally is) and I know what they're implying :snooty so I have a bit of a complex. My family would have her in some sort of "exersaucer" (they actually think that is exercise :scratch:doh) in front of the TV all day and I bet she'd sleep even worse that way!

[rebecuna]

I think you cut back by switching off tv as such, and focusing on watching movies only. Most kids' ones are no more than 90mins, so that's already a small cut - i.e. you get to watch this movie,a nd then it goes off.

Next say that some movies are going to rest for a while, and keep out only dvds that are compilations of shorter shows, like Bob the Builder of whatever. Now he can pick 2 episodes... then only one.

And TBH, I don't think one 10 minute show a day is going to rot his brain. But once you're down to that little tv, he probably won't need it so much anyway.

Movies could be a rainy day weekend treat or something.

HTH

Thanks for the specifics!! Helpful. We're about half-way there... he hasn't watched real TV for over a month. And I'm okay with him watching while I'm making dinner, less so with the other main time-- first thing in the morning so we can sleep longer (maybe spoken books would be good here... ahh! my iPod in the family bed and storynory podcast?? i'm trying it!!)

[Aerynne]

will it hurt her if she accidentally-on purpose eats a little shaving cream? just wondering in advance, since she likes to put EVERYTHING in her mouth. I'm sure the taste will offend her enough that she wouldn't do more than a "taste", or I could just keep a paci in her mouth. I think I'll try that.

And back to something Jen said-maybe if I read GCM to Eleanor, it will also help keep me aware of how often I'm on here. :shifty

I wouldn't worry about the eating, but it kills if you get it in the eyes (which I don't see how an 11-month-old won't). We use whipped cream instead (and then they eat it but it's fine as long as your bathtub is reasonably clean).

We don't have a tv and my kids haven't grown up watching it. My kids are very good at entertaining themselves (I think because of no tv). We have their toys on low shelves and they can get out what they want. It is admittedly harder when they're younger, but if they don't grow to use the tv as an entertainment crutch, they get great at entertaining themselves. My kids like to build "boats" out of blankets, buses out of chairs, play with blocks and legos, "read" books, jump on the couch, dig in the dirt, play the piano, do art projects, etc. Even from 6 or 7 months they could entertain themselves if I gave them a basket of random stuff (potato masher, loofah, wooden spoon, measuring cups, toys, etc) and I have always tried to keep their toys where they could reach them and see what they were. It's hard when they're babies. At 11 months it seems there was a lot of pulling up and trying to walk, stacking blocks, I don't remember what else. But within the next 6 months, there's going to be a huge cognitive leap and she'll be capable of so much more. It's worth it to put in the effort when they're small so they can entertain themselves when they get older.

[illinoismommy]

Thanks for the ideas you use with your DD. I find it so hard to find ways to entertain her and I end up wearing her way too often just to keep her from "getting into everything" :blush :shifty


That's her job though, to get into everything :giggle

For the OP, you should get the book How To Raise An Amazing Child The Montessori way. Good book.

When I first read the title I was going to type about how my kids chase each other and tackle each other in a pile and pretend to be super heroes a lot... but in this case I might just say Make Siblings! :heart

[Katigre]

We have a TV set but it's not hooked up to anything except a DVD player. DS sometimes 'watches' CD's on it (it brings up the track numbers) but that's about it. He doens't really have an interest or attention span for Tv (which is interesting to me b/c he has a really long attention span for other things).

DH and I watch a few shows on the computer but the kids don't. I will be honest that I *do* think that it is harmful for babies to watch TV - it messes with how their brains process things and those shows are designed for 3-5 year old children, not babies, who process things completely differently (i'm actually reading a book about it now called Buy Buy Baby (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0618463518/ref=ord_cart_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance) - very interesting :yes).

The kids play independently when i'm doing things - right now DS is building a train track out of blocks and singing to himself, and DD (12 months) is playing with the velcro on her brother's shoes by the front door.

I don't specifically entertain them during the day. They're pretty good at figuring things out to do on their own and both kids have been like that since they were able to move around as infants.

I would really encourage you to go cold-turkey with the TV - even just the advertisements are SO HARMFUL to young minds. That is our biggest reason for not having TV, not wanting our kids exposed to the ads before they are cognitively able to discern what they are (and that doesn't happen until age 8). Early TV viewing and becoming attached to show characters also is a gateway into consumer culture which is quite harmful to children emotionally and developmentally. Up until this generation, babies didn't watch TV and it was not specifically marketed toward them.

[Tuesdayschild]

ITA with katigre and Erin - the less tv they have, the better they are at entertaining themselves. DS3 has been able to play on his own since he could crawl. I also echo Janet's point about siblings - ds1 and ds2 are almost always off on adventures together :yes

The book "Heaven on Earth" by Sharifa Oppenheimer is full of interesting information about early child development and ideas for things they can do, and you can do with them, from specific projects and recipes to how to create indoor and outdoor playspaces.

[Barefoot Bookworm]

We allow very little TV time here, it used to be none but with 3 kids 2 and under, it's necessary for my sanity sometimes. :bag Our kids are limited to Sprout or PBS Kids. Sometimes we'll do a Veggie Tales or Franklin DVD instead.

Instead, we'll play outside, blow bubbles, build with Legos, stack blocks, do art projects (we bought a roll of butcher paper and will roll it out to cover the coffee table and set them loose with crayons, markers, colored pencils, paint, chalk, or whatever we feel like using that day), a few times we've done coloring pages, we read a LOT of books, we sing songs, turn on music and dance, read the Bible, do some small lessons that I found online or used to do with the toddlers when I taught, play with the toys, make animal noises and move like animals, play musical instruments, throw balls, jump on huge stuffed animal piles.

Something that helps us a lot is going out to playdates as well. I try to schedule at least two a week, one is an every week thing at church (then we do church on Sundays as well) and another is something random with a local mom's group.

[Stacy]

This happens a lot for us, too-- and I'm letting him watch TV to give me some down time, but then he's often so crabby later I bet it undoes whatever rest I got. :think So how did you cut back? Did you tell her what you were doing? How did she handle it-- did she fight you a lot? He has a lot of movies... maybe we could start by just putting a bunch of them away. Is he old enough to be part of the process or should they just disappear?

I just cut back gradually, stopped saying yes so much, and started saying no. She was and has been very accepting. The firmer I am, the better about it she is! And yes, she was and is involved. She's very aware that I think tv sets her off, that too much of it doesn't do anything for her, and that ads (since someone mentioned them) are just trying to sell her/us something we don't need. My daughter grew out of her movies and doesn't ask for them, but I think putting some away would be great. Let him pick, or say, hey, you haven't watched such and such in a long time, what do you think about taking it to good will for somebody else? :shrug3

I think you cut back by switching off tv as such, and focusing on watching movies only. Most kids' ones are no more than 90mins, so that's already a small cut - i.e. you get to watch this movie,a nd then it goes off.

Next say that some movies are going to rest for a while, and keep out only dvds that are compilations of shorter shows, like Bob the Builder of whatever. Now he can pick 2 episodes... then only one.

And TBH, I don't think one 10 minute show a day is going to rot his brain. But once you're down to that little tv, he probably won't need it so much anyway.

Movies could be a rainy day weekend treat or something.

This, exactly!

***

I'll be honest. Not having the tv on here sucks somedays. I really got to enjoy that two hour break while DD was blitzed out on tv. :blush I didn't feel right about it, tho.

[Tuesdayschild]

I found this website while looking for something else, and thought some people might find it useful. Scroll down and there's a big list of unplugging resources, and info about TV & children.

http://unplugyourkids.com/

There are also lots of ideas for things you can do instead of tv, including monthly themed projects :tu

[abh5e8]

What we do is have no tv, only dvds, that way I have total control over the content. They only watch what is suitable for the youngest viewer :shrug3 It also helps that I can tailor it to my needs: 10 mins before dinner? One Bob the Builder; I'm collapsing like a flan in a cupboard or have a gizzilion things to do or both (usually that)? One appropriate movie. It means there's a natural end at the right time, kwim?

i would say NOTHING on tv or dvd is appropriate for the youngest viewers...and by that i mean at least age 3. but i'm pretty anti=tv overall. i don't watch it either. we have it so dh can watch sports center when he gets home at 1 or 2am.

for down time...how about music? we listen to music just about all.day.long. my kids play pretty well by them selves (well, with each other, actually). they help me clean, we run errands, read books, go outside as much as possible. the mini trampoine helps. oh and they LOVE coloring and any kind of art. puzzles are another big hit.

for some screentime, i would agree that dvds of something with short episodes would be much better than TV that has commercials or long movies. dd does sometimes watch signing times dvds while ds is sleeping (and so dh can take a quick nap :bag )

[Tuesdayschild]

You misunderstood what I meant ;) I meant the youngest person there - in our case the 4.5yo! Not 'youngest viewers' in general. Toddlers should be nowhere near tv imho...

[Mokek Kwe]

You misunderstood what I meant ;) I meant the youngest person there - in our case the 4.5yo! Not 'youngest viewers' in general. Toddlers should be nowhere near tv imho...
:duck I guess that means babies, too, :giggle

[Wishing Well]

Thanks for asking these questions - I found this really helpful! My DS likes Sesame Street and I let him watch once a day or so (depending on how crazy I'm going) but I never feel good about it. :blush It gets so tough in the winter, and the ideas some of you gave (like bath with shaving cream) are awesome!

[Stacy]

Limiting or going tv-free is definately a hard hard thing for lots of parents, esp if it's never been considered before! Here I sit surrounded by my girls, both mostly content in my lap or w/i a foot of me. :) TV's off, and yeah, I'm on the computer, but we're playing and engaged with each other and loving on me. :love: It doesn't get much better! The tv just takes away from that and doesn't add much (if anything) to our day.

[Rea T]

Thinking some more about this to think about what we did when they were very young, because at that age they watched no tv (actually had no interest in it even).

I know they aren't always popular around here, but they both LOVED their exersaucer. That was a great way for me to keep them entertained while I cooked/cleaned, etc if they wanted to. I could move it from room to room and they were utterly fascinated by the stuff on it. Sometimes they were in it, sometimes they'd just crawl under it or pull up and walk around it.

I also had a corner with a blanket and all their little board books and toys that they would very happily sit in and play for quite awhile. Things that stack, things that fit into eachother, containers to open...all of those can hold an 11 month old's interest forEVER!

Other than that? Babyproof, babyproof, babyproof. If you create an environment where they are free to explore without you worrying about them getting into something they shouldn't they will happily explore. I kept one cupboard in my kitchen with no latch and filled it with all my plastic ware. Sure it was a pain to put away every night, but it kept Gates happy while I was cooking.

[Tuesdayschild]

Partly inspired by this thread and partly because I was sick of the whining I put a cold turkey blanket ban on tv about a week ago. Three days of hell in terms of whining about watching and "I'm boooorrrrrrrrred" comments, and they've come out the other end as normal human beings again :giggle

They can play for much longer periods of time on the same game, so clearly their concentration has improved, and no more "I'm bored" comments, their imagination has been reactivated :tu Really, life is actually MUCH easier now :yes

Now... if only I could stop the bickering...

[rosethorn]

I find that my kids act worse the longer the TV is on. We do allow TV but try to keep it commercial free and only shows with music (that I can stomach!) and i prefer educational things. Signing Time is great and my husband and I have learned as much as our children have.

[rebecuna]

Partly inspired by this thread and partly because I was sick of the whining I put a cold turkey blanket ban on tv about a week ago. Three days of hell in terms of whining about watching and "I'm boooorrrrrrrrred" comments, and they've come out the other end as normal human beings again :giggle

They can play for much longer periods of time on the same game, so clearly their concentration has improved, and no more "I'm bored" comments, their imagination has been reactivated :tu Really, life is actually MUCH easier now :yes.
That's really inspiring-- thanks for sharing!

[movinforward]

I would love to go TV free in our house! However, my DH will not go with this idea. He LOVES (a bit addicted) his sports. I hate the monthly cable bill and hate the T.V. I don't watch it. I have tried to talk to him about it, but he says it is his "one enjoyable thing in life." He will not give up his cable. We just got a Wii for Christmas and now all my DS (3 1/2 y/o) wants to do is play it. It drives me crazy and it is a constant battle. Any tips?

[Liberated4Christ]

When my DC were this age, they addored Baby First TV. If they are going to watch it, it might as well be educational IMO.

My 3yr old still likes Baby First, so sometimes I set up some ongoing youtube Baby First programs for her while working in the kitchen.


Oh, and Dh did put a youtube video clip on dd watching baby first when she was a couple months old. Can't beat her delight and smiles. :heart
It is cute watching her watch herself, watching it on youtube...:giggle

[Tuesdayschild]

I would love to go TV free in our house! However, my DH will not go with this idea. He LOVES (a bit addicted) his sports. I hate the monthly cable bill and hate the T.V. I don't watch it. I have tried to talk to him about it, but he says it is his "one enjoyable thing in life." He will not give up his cable. We just got a Wii for Christmas and now all my DS (3 1/2 y/o) wants to do is play it. It drives me crazy and it is a constant battle. Any tips?
Put it away, "the wii is sleeping and cannot be woken." Only get it out when the dc are not around, if you or dh must play with it. Get your dh to compromise and only wtach tv after the kids are in bed. The tv stays off during the day :shrug3

IME a brutal, cold turkey approach works best, although it can be tough for a fw days as you endure the whining...

[rebecuna]

We just got a Wii for Christmas and now all my DS (3 1/2 y/o) wants to do is play it. It drives me crazy and it is a constant battle. Any tips?

We don't have a Wii, but friends that we see often do. It was a huge battle with our DS the same age as yours for awhile... strangely, I just realized I can't remember the last time he asked about it! Maybe he got it out of his system? :shrug3 When it was an issue, I tried to have pretty firm boundaries about it so it wasn't such a fight when it was time to turn it off. The best thing was to talk to him before he got to play about the attitude we expected from him-- if he got crazy or was not listening to us, the Wii went off. When it was time to turn it off, he needed to say, "Yes Mama" and stop with no fussing. I made him agree to that beforehand, and then if he started fussing when it was time to turn it off, I reminded him that we had talked about it. I also talked to him a lot about how I didn't like what video games did to his brain, so that's why we couldn't play them too much. If he had a hard time turning it off, then the consequence was that the next time he didn't get to play at all.

I also only let him play the sports ones-- they have Resort Sports or something like that. He could not play the sword fighting other people one, b/c it made him crazy and all into fighting. He was allowed to play the one where you swing your sword at objects that are thrown at you (and he was REALLY good at it! :hunh) He also liked bicycle racing, jumping out of airplanes, and the soccer goalie one.

I like the suggestion of putting it away-- you could easily just put away the controllers, and only take them out for special "video game approved" time that you decide on in advance. I'm guessing what made the obsession go away for DS was that no one played for awhile at their house, and he wasn't used to playing when we went over there anymore, and now he's mostly forgotten about it. You could just decide how much you're comfortable with them playing, and set a time for it-- Saturday mornings, or Friday evening family game night or something like that. Or if you're comfortable with more frequent-- "only when I'm making dinner" or whenever you need some kid-free time (if he can play alone).