Television

 

 

Television has grown in the past ten years.  More programs are being shown that bring new ideas, ways of thinking, and learning experiences to our lives.  For young children the use of television should be for educational experiences only.  There are some good educational programs for children on ETV-PBS. Some example programs are "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood," "Electric Company," "Sesame Street," "Blues Clues," "Barney," and "Between the Lions."

The following are guidelines for using the television in child care settings.

 

§        Check with the parents to find out what type of programs the children enjoy watching at home.  Also, ask what programs they do not want their child to watch. On average children watch 31 hours a week, but those hours of watching television should be used wisely.

 

§        Television can be used to calm the children down.

 

§        Television can be used for active participation.

 

§        The children should sit or lay in a comfortable spot.  If more than one child is present, make sure that all children can see the television easily.

 

§        Place the children far enough apart so bickering will not occur.

 

§        Involve the children in the program.

 

§        Add additional information to what happens in the program to expand the children’s minds.

 

§        After watching a program, have follow up activities planned to reinforce the learning experience of the program.

Examples:

§    Point out objects shown in the program that children see in everyday life.

§     What life lesson did you learn in the program?

§      What letters were shown and/or used?

§      Plan an activity to go along with the program (draw, color, make things).

§      Act out the program or act out what might happen next.

§       Retell the story.

§      Ask the children what words were used.

 

§        Provide alternative activities for those who do not want to watch television.

 

§        Keep in mind that the children’s learning programs are shown mainly in the morning.

 

§        Television time should be consistent every day as well as how much time is allowed to watch it.

 

§        Children should watch 30 minutes to 1 hour of television while in your care. The only occasion children should watch 2 hours of television is when they are watching a movie.

 

§        When watching network shows, watch only one so the content will no get confused.

 

 

Alternatives to TV time.

§        Free time: Let the children choose what they want to do for an amount of time.

§        Talk:  Talk about whatever the children want to talk about.

§        Read:  Read a book chosen by the children.

§        Learn:  Plan an activity that will teach the same thing a television program would.

§        Create:  Create something that a child saw on television the day before (allow each child to have a turn).

§        Games:  Let the children chose a game to play or let a child choose (and take turns every day).

 

What did you learn?

1.       How much TV do you think a 2-5 year old watches in a week? a.     About 20 hours a week b.     About 31 hours a week c.     About 10 hours a week d.     About 60 hours a week

2.    If you allow children to watch TV for two hours one day and then 30 minutes in the afternoon the next day, will you be using the TV the right way? a.      Good b.      Bad

3.    After the program is over, what should you do? a.      Do not do anything at all. b.      Talk about the program. c.      Do an activity that relates to the program. d.      Talk about and do an activity that relates to the program.

 

Answers:

 

1.      B.  About 31 hours a week.

2.    B. It is best to watch TV for the same amount of time at the same time each day. It is also good to watch 30 minute programs at different times of the day to spread the times out. Children can get bored watching TV if used for long periods of time.

3.    D.  Reinforce in every way possible. So, talk and do an art activity so the children can hear and experience a hands-on activity about the program.

 

 

 

Sources

 

Harms, T.; Clifford, R., Family Day Care Rating Scale. Teacher’s College

Press, 1989. Pp17.

 

Children’s television (part 2).  Hearing before the subcommittee on

telecommunications and finance of the committee on energy and commerce.  House of representatives. One hundred third congress, second session (June 10, 1994). U.S. Government Printing Office, Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington DC.

 

Graham, J. (2001). How television viewing affects children. Family

Issues Facts, 4100, 1-4.

 

Murray, J. P., Lonnborg, B. (1995). Children and television: Using TV

sensibly. Cooperative Extension Service, Kansas State University.  Manhattan, Kansas.

 

Oesterreich, L. (2001). Getting along:  Taming the TV. Internet

Resources:  http://www.nncc.org/Parent/ga.tv.html

 

 Quick, S., Rupured, M., Smith, P. R. (1989). Television: Friend or foe?

University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, 12.