Media time

[HindsFeet]

I'm thinking about the way we handle media time, and whether there is a way we could do it better. I'm not interested in totally doing away with it. :no But I do wish I could find a good way to make it less than it is.

Our arrangement right now: each child (except Wren) gets one 30 minute ticket a day that can be used for computer, video games, or TV watching during the week. On Saturday they get two tickets. Sunday is media free. If each person only used their ticket, that would be fine. But in reality the rest of them sit around watching the others play, or watching the show as well, so it's more like two hours of media time a day. :-/

Our tv and computer are in the central part of our home - we don't have a media room or anything like that. So trying to make a rule where others have to stay away from the screens while someone is using them essentially would mean that I have to banish them upstairs or outdoors, and I don't really want to do that.

For a while we tried being media free during the week and saving media time for weekends. There were a lot of things I loved about that arrangement. But what I hated was that if we decided we wanted to do something on the weekend, or if we needed to run errands, etc. the kids all whined and complained because they were being "deprived" of their time for the week. :banghead

How do you all handle media time?

[cbmk4]

We have general rules, but don't set a timer or anything, at least on the tv. The girls like to play a Nancy Drew solve the mystery computer game with dh; it's something special they do with him, so that doesn't have a time limit.

They each get 20 minutes on the computer which is governed by an internal timer. They get logged off automatically when their time is up. Generally, I let them watch about an hour of tv per day. Sometimes it's more; many days they don't watch any at all. Weather and sickness are the variables at play there.

My ds has computer time limits, 1 hour per day. We don't set tv time limits for him, because we don't need to. He's usually busy with school and sports, so we don't mind if he watches more on the weekends. It helps that he doesn't usually watch tv until after his little sisters go to bed, so they don't watch "on his time."


If your kids are closer in age, maybe you can have them agree upon 1 show or take turns with who gets to pick the show, so that they are all watching at the same time.

[Calee]

It seems that it would be fair with TV, that if you choose to sit and watch the show, you are choosing to give up your ticket. I understand that they may not all want to watch the same things, but looking at their ages, I would think they could understand that if they make the choice to watch a show (even if it isn't THEIR top choice), that counts. If you want to watch your own show later, you need to go find something else to do while little brother is watching Mickey Mouse....

That makes it about their own choices-they could go play in their room, read, go outside, etc. Not a banishment ;) Just a choice to do something else if they want their own TV time later.