No/limited television?

[fhjmom]

In the past at different times, we have implemented no-tv-time. When DS and older step-DD were in 'regular school', they had so many activities and such eating away at their time, we did not allow any tv on school days. I share that to say that I don't think my kids would think it is 'so radical' to go without tv during the school week as we have done it in the past.

 

So my idea is to allow a set of certain DVD/videos to stand in for TV time. If they have free time in the afternoon or evening and want to watch something, instead of mind-numbing drivel on cable kids' channels, they could pick something from the basket. I was going to put in things like videos from the library relating to science/history/literature topics we are studying, "Signing Times" since we are learning ASL, their Latin videos, or any other educational/more appropriate stuff. I wouldn't make it all so very 'schoolish', but anything fun I put in would have more redeeming value than say, Sponge Bob Squarepants (Why, oh, why do my kids like that show???) The alternative is no tv at all during the school week, which is what I was leaning towards before I got this idea.

 

The biggest hurdle will be to get DH on board.

[PollyOR]

DH is my big hurdle too. He wonders why I hang out in our bedroom in the evening rather than the living room with the rest of the family. We have a small house and usually I'm trying to escape the blare of the TV. The kids watch it with him.

 

Our 14yo went to a sleep specialist recently. One of the things she is required to do is not watch TV or be on the computer in the evening. The light signals her brain that it is time to be awake. So, it's not just the mind numbing quality that is a problem. It can also affect your sleep schedule.

[Guest Cindie2dds]

We stopped TV altogether a couple of months ago. It was really hard at first and sometimes they still ask for movies (I give in very occasionally). I am very happy we did it. It's amazing to see their imagination take flight when they have to entertain themselves. :D

[MaMa2005]

I instituted no TV when summer started. DS had no problem with it (he watched very little before and only PBS shows). Well, DH is on summer break from teaching and has the TV on all the time :w00t: . He is forever asking DS if he wants to watch a movie. In DH's mind, a movie is not TV :tongue_smilie:.

 

I think once we start back to school at the beginning of August (less than a month away :eek:) that not watching TV will become a non-issue. We are so busy during the school year that there isn't time to watch TV.

 

Just as a side note: I grew up without watching TV and to this day have a hard time sitting down and watching mindless drivel. I was an early reader, am still a very avid reader and will pick up a book any time before watching TV. DH grew up with the TV on constantly and must have it on almost all the time now. I think it is almost like white noise for him. That can absolutely drive me batty!

[Starr]

We haven't had TV reception for 10 years. It is occasionally missed but we aren't big sports fans. We keep dvds around but they aren't watched daily either. But don't confuse this with us having a clean house or anything. :D

[Joanne]

I'm a believer in moderation (if those involved are not prone to addiction, and I do believe that there exists a "screen addiction".)

 

There are fluff, drivel, inane things I do. Percentage wise, it's small in comparison to the intentional family time, school planning, my own schooling time, work, homemaking, housework.

 

Personally, if my kids choose to spend some of their "off" time watching Spongebob, it's ok with me. They seem to be developing normally in spite of their earlier Spongebob phase. ;)

[athena1277]

I like the idea of only allowing certain things to watch during the week. I may have to try that. I'm getting tired of Nick Jr.

[Heather in Neverland]

we have been cable-free for exactly one year (this week!) and to be honest, it wasn't hard at all! I am not anti-television, I am just for PURPOSEFUL television-watching. We will watch a movie or a certain series on DVD. We watch it as a family and when it is over the TV goes off. So instead of wasting time mindlessly thumbing through channels when there REALLY isn't anything we want to watch or just having it running in the background, we choose, we watch, we move on to something else. It is working great and we are all happy with it!

[LibraryLover]

My kids are pretty busy with summer activites, beach, and other fun, so TV is limited to evening, just naturally. I don't have a problem with a little drivel. You might catch me watching The Office or something. I think it's fine to chill after a long hot day.

 

We don't have cable, only get about 7 channels; we don't have Nick or anything like that, although my children do get Mythbusters and other DVDs from the library or Netflix (We heart Netflix) . I like a nice movie some evenings myself. (Although lately we've been hanging out at the fire pit...I have had to encourage stick burnings without marshmallows always having to be on the end of them. ;) So I bought Sparklers. lol ) I don't see their viewing, even daily viewing in summer, as a problem here. If I saw children never wanting to go to the beach, camp, bike, walk for ice cream, hang out on the porch playing scrabble etc., I might have a problem. As it stands, I don't see any 'abuses' and, as I said, a certain amount of 'drivel' is absolutely fine with me. :bigear:

Edited July 5, 2010 by LibraryLover

[Wayfaring Stranger]

We have been married for 14 yrs and have never had a TV. I used to watch it all the time as a kid. I would spend 3 hrs flipping through broadcast stations with nothing on before I would turn it off. I knew it was a waste of time so we decided we did not need the time drain. I am a sports fan and can keep up with my sports in other media. We do have a DVD player hooked up to a TV that does not get reception. We also can now watch a lot of things on the web. With the advances in technology I see little reason to even have a traditional TV. We allow our kids to watch TV at hotels and at friends' houses but also encourage them to play outside with their friends. I do not think giving up the TV now is a big deal but giving up the computer would be. Once it is in the house it is harder to get rid of. Rarely, if ever, have we really missed having one.

 

My advice would be to decide when you get married not to have a TV. :001_huh:

[Guest Cindie2dds]

We chose to get rid of cable over four years ago and never missed it. When I said TV, I meant DVDs and Netflix. My oldest loves to watch movies, so we really need to limit it. I think if I left it up to her, she would sit in front of the drivel for the entire afternoon, no matter the weather. Like Joanne said, I think there are some people prone to "screen addiction" and I can see that in her. For now it's off. Now, the grandparents, that's another story.....:glare:

[LibraryLover]

It's true my kids rarely turn on a 'TV', but a screen is a screen. :D The pixels are better on the computers than our ancient TV.

 

Nobody needs a TV to watch even current shows. It's all on the internet.

 

As far as limiting. I've always felt more comfortable encouraging my kids to engage in activites that interest them. If I were to see someone sitting for hours and hours a day for weeks on end, whether playing DSL or watching Netflix, I would try to mix it up. I would offer to/ encourage the child, depending on age, to take out the paints, read aloud, go for a walk or bike ride, plan and make a meal, go to the pool or beach, turn on the sprinkler outside , invite friends over to play, go to the library, paint the barn ;), take the dogs for a walk, do the free crafts at the library (often drivel...lol) etc. I think when kids have interesting things to do, screen time takes on less importance.

 

My first thought would not be to make a rule or punish, but would be to shake up our activites to break the cycle, and maybe help the child find another interest. Just as an example, if I have a child who loves to watch movies, maybe they would like to make a movie, or some shorts. Most little cameras have a video feature, fi. Or maybe someone has an old video camera they no longer use. I would hand that over to them and see what happens. (This is just an example...since I currently have a young one making hilarious vids with my old Nikon Cool Pix lol).

Edited July 5, 2010 by LibraryLover

[AngieW in Texas]

For a long time we had no tv at all during the week (unless I had a show for them to watch that went along with history or science, but that was maybe 1x/month). The kids each got to choose 1 hour of tv on Saturday and Sunday morning and they took turns being the one to choose the Saturday evening movie (from movies that we had or from the library or from Blockbuster). I would watch a one-hour show (or sometimes two) in the evenings after they had gone to bed.

 

The kids are all older now, so things are a little different. We watch a one-hour show together almost every evening (right now we are watching Leverage, Burn Notice, and Lie to Me). I am still watching a one-hour show after they go to bed (usually Angel, which I just started watching). They still get to choose one hour of programming on Saturday and Sunday mornings, but the oldest hasn't participated in that for about two years (doesn't have any desire to watch tv). They still take turns choosing the Saturday evening movie (oldest generally goes to the theater when she wants to see a movie).

 

The kids end up with 10-12 hours/week of tv time (whether they're watching tv shows or movies) and so do I.

[Ellie]

I'm a believer in moderation (if those involved are not prone to addiction, and I do believe that there exists a "screen addiction".)

 

There are fluff, drivel, inane things I do. Percentage wise, it's small in comparison to the intentional family time, school planning, my own schooling time, work, homemaking, housework.

 

Personally, if my kids choose to spend some of their "off" time watching Spongebob, it's ok with me. They seem to be developing normally in spite of their earlier Spongebob phase. ;)

:iagree:

(FTR, I am quite pleased that my dc were all grown up before Spongebob made his appearance. Ditto Barney. Ugh.)

[Teachin'Mine]

I highly recommend pulling the plug on cable. Your idea of a basket with DVDs they can watch is great! You may also find that you'll want to buy some good family DVDs to have on hand when you want a family movie night, or just for something light to watch. The library is an awesome source for DVDs too. :)

[MariannNOVA]

We got rid of cable 5 months ago -- everyone thought I was kidding. It has been a very positive change.

 

Netflix and DVDs are selected by me and only if they are related to something we are doing as a hobby or a book we are reading or a historical time period. It has worked out just fine. And yes, ds imparticular could be characterized as having a 'screen addiction.'

 

Last night, we were in a hotel, and the kids were thrilled that there was a Star Wars marathon -- they stayed awake for about 40 minutes and then that was it.

 

As for SpongeBob -- I think that DH and I are the only ones who miss him (I am Squidward IRL :D) - that is all.

[MotherGoose]

I have a 4 yo dd and a 15 month old dd. I didn't/won't allow either of them to watch at all until they were about 3. (Not to say relatives didn't let her, but that was rare). Mine are so young that there is little they could really comprehend, anyway, and it's scary how hypnotic it is. My 4 yo would watch all the time if I would let her, I think. Especially when they are young, there is nothing they can learn from TV they can't learn better in real life. One thing that really did it for me is the times I was tempted to put on the TV to get some peace, didn't, and then my dau went off to do something wonderfully creative. She'll go off and play and talk to herself and her toys for hours. Now that she's given up her nap, I will allow a something of quality for less than an hour a few times a week. No SpongeBob, etc. I took her to see Toy Story 3, which has great anti-materialistic messages (although of course they want you to buy the merchandise). I plan to limit TV significantly forever. You might be interested in "The Case for Make Believe" by Susan Linn, "Into the Minds of Babes" by Lisa Guernsey, and "The Plug-In Drug." Also tvturnoff.org

To combat the "I'm bored" do what my mom always did: Tell the whining child you have a distasteful chore to complete if she's so bored she needs to tell you about it. I learned to amuse myself...but I watched too much tv too I think.

[angela in ohio]

My dc don't watch TV, and just a few movies or videos here and there. I personally don't think that there is anything of value on TV for them (except Jeopardy, which we catch once in a while.) We watch Teaching Company DVDs or G/PG movies or videos on science, math, or history from the library.

 

When we go to grandma's (once every few months, as she usually comes here,) they see a few cable shows. They like Chopped and MythBusters, and she TiVos it for them to watch when we're there. That's a fun treat, but even the commercials on those channels are gross (we fast forward through them since they are recorded.)

 

I am so glad we don't have the TV on. They don't want all the things on the commericals, they don't know all the fads, and they spend the time reading or playing outside instead. :001_smile:

[angela in ohio]

Last night, we were in a hotel, and the kids were thrilled that there was a Star Wars marathon -- they stayed awake for about 40 minutes and then that was it.

 

We were also in a hotel last night, and dh and I watched two of them in the lobby on the giant TV while the kiddos slept in the room. :D

[toawh]

I grew up TV free, but we did occasionally watch movies or documentaries. Sometimes I don't understand what people are talking about when they bring up certain topics that "everyone" knows, but sometimes they don't understand what I'm talking about when I bring up topics too. So it's all good.

[ChristusG]

We do very limited TV.

 

The kids choose one show each per day. The shows are usually about 20 minutes long. So they end up with about 40 minutes of TV. They usually choose to watch TV their shows in the morning, while they drink their milk. Occasionally the shows are pushed to the afternoon so that we can have a bit of down time later in the day.

 

I do not require them to be educational....but I also don't allow the non-sense shows such as Spongebob, Barney, etc. They usually choose something like Diego (where they have learned quite a bit about animals), Kipper, Tigger & Pooh, or Chuggington.

 

Occasionally, on the weekend I'll let the kids pick a movie from Netflix and they will watch their movie in the playroom while DH and I watch a movie in the living room. But that's only occasionally.

 

As far as educational television, I use that as a part of schooling. Each Monday the kids watch a Signing Times DVD because they are learning ASL. And occasionally during science time we will watch either Blue Planet or Planet Earth.

[Julie in AZ]

We're cable free and love that our dc never see inappropriate commercials. We use Netflix streaming.

 

Our dc can watch one show (about 1/2 hour-hour) a day but they don't choose to watch everyday.

[lllll]

..

[tofuscramble]

We have streaming netflix. We recently cancelled cable but my kids rarely watched TV even when we had it. They are imaginary play type kids and spend all their time playing and exploring. Its nice now that they are a little bigger, but when they were all smaller, I used to be almost begging them to watch TV just so that I could get a little peace for a few minutes.

[Mergath]

We haven't had cable in years. We have an antenna, and get maybe eight or nine channels. Dd is allowed to watch an hour in the morning now that she's two (before that she rarely watched any) and she'll watch the educational stuff on CBC. We also watch world news in the evening, and unless there's something really, really good on, that's about it. Occasionally me and dh will rent a movie to watch after dd goes to bed.

 

We don't miss cable at all. If I had my way, we wouldn't even have the antenna, but dh insisted that we not be completely cut off, lol.

[FO4UR]

Our dc go days without even thinking about TV. It's a treat to watch Nick Jr. (on the 'puter of course, b/c we don't even own a regular TV anymore), and we generally let them watch when we REALLY need the kids to be entertained with little supervision for a bit...1-3x per week generally.

 

I don't think watching, in itself, is harmful in moderation. I fully admit that when my dc were 3yo, 1yo, and newborn that they watched WAY TOO MUCH daily. We watched more while we were snowed in this winter as well...I guess we go through seasons here.

[Mom0012]

We've never had cable, but between Netflix instant play and dvds we pick up from the library, my kids have plenty to watch. I don't allow them to watch television during the day at home except on pretty rare occasions. They are allowed to have screen time from 6 - 8 each evening. Screen time includes Webkinz, using the ds, netflix.

 

I really don't like how I have this set up and I've been trying to figure out how to adjust it. The problem is that if we ever want to do anything in the evening, such as go out on the bike trail, play a game, go to an event or really anything, it will upset my kids that they are missing their screen time. Sometimes I think I've made a mistake to limit it the way I have because it has become such a precious commodity to them.

 

The other thing that concerns me is that my son will often be playing his ds while watching somethign on Netflix. To me, that means that one activity isn't enough to hold his attention so now he needs both. I personally find the computer very addictive (especially this message board) and am constantly trying to limit my time. I have a hard time putting the computer down to watch a television program anymore (which is actually much more relaxing to me).

 

The other issue is that we usually go to visit my parents once a week and my dad will have the kids in front of the tv or computer from the time we get there until we leave. He even has a separate computer for each kid. My father is very addicted to the computer and spends 10-12 hours on it a day unless my mother forces him out of the house.

 

So, I'm listening with open ears to how others are handling this. I don't mind them watching a program/playing a game, but I am sick of it being such a big deal. My son has surprised me with how much he is caught up in his ds games, but that's what all his friends like to do and I don't want him to be totally out of the loop either. I am thinking of limiting screen time to 30 minutes during the week (for myself as well) once school starts and then letting them have a couple of hours a day on the weekends.

 

Lisa

[Heather in Neverland]

When your dh doesn't want to get rid of the TV (and you have babies) ...

 

years ago, dh and I decided that whoever was watching the TV got to hold/watch the baby, since they were already sitting anyway. (He didn't think he was watching much.) A short time later he decided we really didn't need the TV after all. ;)

 

That. was. AWESOME. What a great idea! :lol: