TV and Toddlers

     How many people would choose a babysitter who did not watch the children?  Seriously?  What if the babysitter encouraged passivity and discouraged creativity; or worse, encouraged aggressive behaviors.  Not the babysitter of your choice?  Most parents would not let that babysitter near their children, right?  Yet every day children are given that exact babysitter by the same parents who claim they would not allow them in their home. 

                Believe it or not, that babysitter is called television.  Many parents do not intend to use television as a babysitter, but it happens.  Other parents have good intentions with the use of television.  There are many videos being published directed specifically towards infants and toddlers with the claim to help children learn.

                In reality, children are deprived of true learning opportunities when they are placed in front of a television.  Toddlers and infants especially are growing at astounding rates with brain and nerve development that is intricate and complex.  Their best chances of learning are during unstructured play periods when they find out what happens when they drop something, how it tastes in their mouth, or feels when they move it from hand to hand.  Placing them in front of a television set to learn their ABC’s decreases the opportunities for sensory experiences.  With unstructured play, children have a greater chance of developing creativity.  And, as a toddler, that is more what they need than the ABC’s.

                The Academy of American Pediatrics actually recommends that children under the age of 2 remain free of television and media exposure as much as possible.  They suggest that family activities are better solutions.

                Some of the problems from watching television may include ADD.  Attention disorders have been on the rise notably since the 1950’s when television was generally introduced.  In the 80’s when home VCR’s and other media became popular, the same disorders rose yet.  Obesity is another rapidly rising problem linked to watching too much television.

                According to the Academy of America Pediatrics, children watching TV around bedtime can create poor sleep schedules which can affect behavior, mood, and learning.  So what happened to playing outside and what is wrong with getting a little dirt on their clothes?  Nothing actually.  Those are the experiences that will help children with creativity, problem solving, attention to detail, and many other underlying skills that have more impact on learning the ABC’s than Baby Einstein.