Plonking your baby down in front of the TV is currently an issue of popular debate, but is television always a bad thing?
When used properly, television can become an indispensable part of your child's learning life. Jumping and turning around with Big Ted, playing peek-a-boo or dancing with Hi5, learning your alphabet with Sesame Street. These are all valuable assets in your child's developmental progress.
But when does using television as an educational tool turn into television abuse. What is that point that turns bright kids into lazy kids who only want to procrastinate in front of the TV with a big of chips and a large sugar-filled bottle of coke?
There is no clear cut point when this happens, but here are some tips to keep television as an asset in your child’s life.
- Limit the time your child spends in front of the television to a max of two short shows per day (ie, Hi5 first thing in the morning & maybe Sesame street as part of their wind down at the end of the day)
- Make sure that what you put on is contributing to your child’s development. Smurfs may be fun and cute, but offers very little in the educational department. Opt for Baby Einstein or Play School instead.
- Get involved yourself. Sing the songs along with the TV and do the actions with your child.
- Practice what you preach. Don’t say “no” to your child then go and indulge in four straight hours of trashy TV yourself.
Television can be integrated sucessfully into your childs life and in fact enhance your child's learning and development when used appropriately. Lead by example and have fun helping your child to grow.
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