Confession time! I've been dying to ask this...

[brehon]

DONE! :lol:

 

I was mostly worried that he'd try to copy Calvin's crazy (and unsafe) shenanigans, but so far all he's done is make a duplicator out of a diaper box and have me refer to him as #3 and dress up as Stupendous Man for Halloween. Digby on the other hand will not be allowed to read C&H until he's 15 at least! That kid is already crazy enough. I have a feeling he'll pull some stunts even without the help :lol:

 

Several years ago Calvin and Hobbes had to be banned for the 4 foot and under crowd at my house. A certain someone of my near and somewhat dear acquaintance (;) :D) decided if Calvin could do it, he could do it because, ya know, Calvin was only six and he was all of 7! C & H was reinstated after about a year or so.

 

Calvin embodies the archetype. His struggles epitomize man's greatest questions of good/evil, love/hate, id/ego. Calvin is the antithesis of twaddle. :)

 

 

:lol: And he's just so darn cute doing it, too!

[Pretty in Pink]

Heh. I loved Twilight -- the books and the movies! I already have plans to see the latest installment the day it opens.

 

My kids read lots of good stuff. They also read Captain Underpants and Goosebumps. We watch Spongebob and Ren & Stimpy. My husband is a gamer. We own two gaming systems and we all like to play. I offered to go in halves with my eldest ds on the next Zelda game because I want to play it just as much as he does.

 

(Psssttt! I don't teach Latin.)

 

Hanging my head in shame,

 

Elizabeth

[butterflymommy]

We do. Right now my kids are sitting in the room with me watching Stargate Atlantis on Hulu :D

 

Errr.... Stargate Atlantis isn't educational? This passes as science class in our house sometimes. Just today we watched an episode about time dilation fields (http://stargate.wikia.com/wiki/Time_dilation_field) :lol:.

[Desert Rat]

I'm a huge fan of the middle path. I don't eat only junk food. I don't eat only raw, organic, blah, blah, blah. Middle. It's the same with the educational stuff. We have map puzzles and Star Wars puzzles. We love garbage books (yes, we read Captain Underpants) and my kids love Jules Verne.

Same with TV. My dh was laid off for 16 months. I lost complete and utter control over their tv during that time. My dh let them watch Nitro Circus and Bully Beatdown. Which, BTW, are pretty entertaining. (We always change the channel if it becomes inappropriate and also we have a rule that both of can't leave the room at the same time during the show.)

And I almost exclusively read garbage supernatural novels of the Twilight nature, some are even worse. And I have a degree in English Lit. :) Diversity is the spice of life!

[mcconnellboys]

My son plays some sort of video games all.the.time. Complete twaddle. He's been gabbling about it all evening as we've been trying to converse (my husband and I) over dinner. There's way, waaaaaaay too much twaddle in my house....

[JenC3]

I cannot repeat STAR WARS enough! OMG Star Wars books, Star Wars visual dictionaries & encyclopedias, Star Wars Legos, Star Wars movies, Star Wars action figures, Star Wars ships......

 

This is my life. I ony have one son, I can't imagine if I had more.

[eternalknot]

Confession time: I record Teen Mom LOL. I can't turn away from that train wreck of a show.

 

(and I'd be lying if I said it's the only trashy, worthless show I watch!)

ETA: Wait! Star Wars is trash?!

Add that to my confessional, then. Here I thought I was all classical homeschooler because Star Wars was modern mythology LOL.

[Ginevra]

Ok, I've read so many threads that makes it seem like the only stuff in people's homes are "educational". Like the thread about what to do when you are sick (kid's read, watch, do, breath "educational" things) or all of the threads that ask where to buy "educational" stuff.

 

So are there people out there that let their kids just read, watch, do at least some "twaddle"? Is this just a classical homeschooler thing (I'm not a classical homeschooler)? I don't mean "twaddle" all the time or anything. Or are people not inclined to talk about the twaddle in their home because it seems to be the unpopular thing on this board? Or do you really just not allow any twaddle at all or what?!?!

 

Confess the truth about the twaddle in your home...if you dare!!;)

 

My confession: I read twaddle books as a kid and watched twaddle shows. My girls have twaddle books and watch twaddle shows. I don't have a problem with some twaddle!

 

ETA: I got the "twaddle" word from this board, I don't use it IRL.

 

Of course! We have brain candy around here; we even have actual candy around here. It doesn't have to be all classical, all serious, all the time. My kids watch Spongebob and a couple other idiotic shows. My son loves Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Neopets and PSP. Nothing wrong with it, IMO.

[TracyR]

Twadle here! My girls enjoy watching I Carly, and all those brain numbing shows on tv. We have a Wii though they don't play with it much. They enjoy drawing and reading and like one other poster most times our tv is on for background noise ( not that we don't have enough natural noise here.lol)

Personally I could live without my tv. But my husband would die and wither away.

[Rivka]

For the kids:

Animaniacs episodes

Extruded Series Book Product (A to Z Mysteries, Droon, MTH...)

Disney movies

Polly Pocket dolls and their interminable collection of tiny rubber dresses

 

...That's about it. I can't really think of many toys that qualify as "non-educational." The two-year-old's Matchbox cars? The stuffed animals? The Playdoh accessories? The toy kitchen? All absolutely educational. Calvin and Hobbes collections? Those comics have a huge vocabulary and also teach kids to draw inferences.

 

For me:

The Amazing Race

Georgette Heyer novels

Facebook games

 

For my husband:

Websites that collect funny pictures and videos

Military science fiction

[dangermom]

Just FTR, series chapter books--even Junie B. Jones!--are not twaddle in my universe. They are grammar stage reading, perfect for a new reader who is practicing new skills, because they're repetitive and predictable. Kid doesn't need to worry about surprises and can concentrate on developing reading skills.

 

So there. Rainbow Fairies is not twaddle. Even if it's really annoying to adults. :D

[Ipsey]

Webkinz rocks, although Pizza Palace is my nemesis. :toetap05: And I really, really want that pink Whimsical Dragon this Christmas.

 

Dare I admit that my favorite coffee cup is a Dora coffee mug? :tongue_smilie:

 

I love our "twaddle."

 

Junie B. Jones, graphic novels, Twilight (yes. yes. For me!), Goosebumps.

 

Rarely classical music. . . unless you're talking classic rock.

 

And a propos to nothing, this smiley (uh, I can't find it, so I'm quoting Night Elf)--the smiley that's tapping its toe, I just figured out it's not a yellow Muslim smiley dressed in an abaya. It's a purple smiley. Honestly. I'm around lots of Saudis right now, it's affected how I see smileys. :lol: (This smiley is not drunk, just laughing :))

[Night Elf]

Pizza Palace is MY game!!! I can now get to level 15 regularly now. I'm so proud of that. :D

 

I can also cook a full dinner in between levels. :lol:

 

You are my new hero!!! And dinner too? Woo!

 

--says the gal who can't make it past level 10 :)

[Jennifer3141]

You are my new hero!!! And dinner too? Woo!

 

--says the gal who can't make it past level 10 :)

 

With level 15, you get EVERYTHING yellow and it's impossible. And my entire family knows not to talk to me if that cheesy Italian music is playing. :lol::lol:

 

I'm so laughing that there's a "Teen Mom" lover here. I razz the heck out of a good friend of mine who is always asking me if I've heard about the latest episode so I caught one the last time we were at a hotel. That girl was so dumb is HURT to watch the show and my very mild, very conservative friend went on and one and on with the backstory. I finally had to stop her. It was making me too mad. :lol:

 

I would rather be tied up and forced to watch 15 hours of "One Life to Live" than one half hour of that show. But the people who love it are loyal!!!! :D

[Dolphin]

As a family we LOVE Disney, Star Wars, and Harry Potter

the kids also love

power rangers

dinosaur king

and pokemon (our newest cat is Ash)

 

Mom

I play Cityville on face book

I read trashy romance novels, especially Scottish ones!

[LibraryLover]

I have never seen Teen Mom, but now I have to do a Google search about it.

 

I hate this board. :tongue_smilie:

[hsbaby]

Twadle here! My girls enjoy watching I Carly, and all those brain numbing shows on tv. We have a Wii though they don't play with it much. They enjoy drawing and reading and like one other poster most times our tv is on for background noise ( not that we don't have enough natural noise here.lol)

Personally I could live without my tv. But my husband would die and wither away.

 

I admit to not only watching iCarly with the kids, but sometimes at night by myself. Spencer makes me laugh.

[DarlaS]

Reading twaddle in bed. At noon. On a school day:

 

[happypamama]

For the kids:

Animaniacs episodes

 

Not twaddle! My kids learned their states and capitals, and the order of the US Presidents from the Animaniacs. So they are educational, or at least educational twaddle. :)

[JessicaLady]

Hmmm, seeing as how our class session lasts at the most 2 hrs, we mostly do non-school stuff (playing outside, watching the entire Mighty Machines selection on Netflix, building all the different styles of cranes out of legos, etc).

My husband is amazed that DS is achieving so much in such a small amount of time but I have to remind him that it's quality, 1:1 education. :D

[linguistmama]

Not twaddle! My kids learned their states and capitals, and the order of the US Presidents from the Animaniacs. So they are educational, or at least educational twaddle. :)

 

:iagree: I need to dig out my Animaniacs' cds for my girls. I think that 'All the words in the English language' was my favorite though it's not as educational as the capitals and presidents.

[nd293]

I hate the word "twaddle", especially when I like what someone else calls "twaddle" :-)

 

When the kids watch TV, they decide what to watch. Dd11 chooses her own reading material, but I assign books when I think she is getting too single-minded in her devotion to one style of book. They have "fun" toys, but not stuff I think is a waste of time, or at least not lots of things I think are a complete waste of time. Two bakugans - OK. Twenty - not in my house.

[Annabel Lee]

Well, my boys are on a major Calvin & Hobbes kick right now. Previously it was Garfield comics, and Tundra comics once in a while. This is not for school, just for fun. My youngest bridged his way into chapter books via the Magic Tree House series. Both boys still enjoy 39 Clues and Redwall.

 

The kids play Wii; they ask for it daily but I try to curb it only because I know that when they ask DH they will get unlimited access. I have to try to balance it out. They aren't limited in their Nintendo DS time, but they don't seem to get those out anymore unless we're going somewhere they have to wait for a loooong time. It's me who limits their time with that, too, making them bring books along for use after their DS time is up. If I didn't, they'd happily play it the entire time. And they'd live.

 

While my dd likes Greek/Roman history, particulary anything related to their myths or Helen of Troy, she also reads a little bit of everything. She's not crazy into vampires, but has read Twilight and other YA "twaddle". She used to read Junie B. Jones. That was before I read TWTM. But I read them too, because they were funny.

 

Our whole family read the Percy Jackson/Lightening Thief books together a year or so ago. We even got one on audio book so we could listen in the car. It was neat for the kids to see their dad reading a book for enjoyment. We watch Terra Nova together now, too. Junk food for the brain, but relaxing and fun.

 

Prior to this board, I would have thought "twaddle" a naughty misnomer.

Edited November 5, 2011 by Annabel Lee

[Ellie]

I suspect that there might be twaddle in my house. :D

 

OTOH, I think that almost everything is educational, even twaddle.

 

However, I also think that there is also twaddle given to children instead of sound instruction and enrichment-filled environments. Public schools are the "best" examples of twaddle-filled environments.

 

Here is the definition of twaddle from Simply Charlotte Mason.

[Cassy]

Reading twaddle in bed. At noon. On a school day:

 

 

:lol: A very similar picture can also happen here.

 

That makes me feel so much better :D.

[Lizzie in Ma]

We do. Right now my kids are sitting in the room with me watching Stargate Atlantis on Hulu :D

 

Stargate Atlantis is NOT twaddle, lol

[twoforjoy]

I let my kids read and watch whatever they choose, as long as it isn't entirely inappropriate for their age or anything.

 

I've never used the word "twaddle" in my life and never will. We just call it "fun," I guess. :)

 

:iagree: :001_smile:

[Quiver0f10]

We are watching that too! I consider Stargate a mini cultural history lesson ;) especially SG-1!

 

 

Oh, I know ! SG1 is our favorite! My kids have learned so much Egyptian history from Daniel Jackson :D

 

Errr.... Stargate Atlantis isn't educational? This passes as science class in our house sometimes. Just today we watched an episode about time dilation fields (http://stargate.wikia.com/wiki/Time_dilation_field) :lol:.

 

It's science here too :001_smile:

 

Stargate Atlantis is NOT twaddle, lol

 

Agreed :)

[LittleIzumi]

Most of the girls' stuff is educational or pretend-based, but they do watch He-Man with dh (I actually like that show), some Disney/Backyardigans, some Dr. Who :D, etc. I try to keep everything off until school is done, and then only allow one (unless I'm having an awful day :lol:), but yes, there is some twaddle. They also like Strawberry Shortcake but that's only allowed once every couple of months because it drives me bonkers, and they have some twaddle books (books from movies, for instance). The Sponge prefers non-fiction, really, but we have some fun fluff. The Drama is the one who would live in TV land if I let her. TV makes her very, very emotional and grumpy afterwards. We only have Netflix and some DVDs/library and it will stay that way.

[MicheleinMN]

We call it *mind-candy* or junk. And yes, we have lots of it in book form, movies, video games, etc. :001_huh::lol::tongue_smilie:

[Disney Dreaming]

My 8 year old watches mostly what she wants and mostly for how long she wants to (to an extent). She self monitors pretty well. Her favorites right now are Jessie (I'm on the fence about this one) and Good Luck Charlie. There are some days when I have had enough or I think she has watched too much TV and I tell her it's time to turn it off and do something else.

 

HOWEVER...about 75% of the time she's 'watching' tv, she's coloring, drawing, writing books or stories, etc so that makes it better in my mind. My husband fussed one time about the amount of tv she was watching. I asked him to start paying attention to what she is doing when the tv is on. He shut up real quick when he realized she was actually writing a book and the tv was just on as background noise. :lol:

 

:iagree:This is my dd(8). Most of the time the tv is so low that I don't see how she hears it! It is for background noise for sure(she doesn't like a quiet house!) Once school is done for the day she can do whatever she wants(Wii, tv, read twaddle, etc..)

[Mommee & Baba]

We aren't the "classic homeschooling family"...we are relaxed. My dc read and watch tv and play games that aren't related to ANYTHING we are studying.

 

If it's appropriate for their age and our moral beliefs, then I don't mind it.