TV in Preschool

[dreamer]

Do you let the children watch TV?
If you do, how do parents feel about it?
Is it written into the schedule?

I will be watching children aged 2-5 and am considering allowing them to watch a half hour of educational TV.

[Cat Herder]

The State guideline is 20 minutes, once per week, here.

I exceed that from time to time during big thunderstorms for a distraction (we go into the main house). The monitor laughed and said that was a fantastic use for it. :: None of my clients care either way, they trust my judgement.

[Blackcat31]

Do you let the children watch TV?
If you do, how do parents feel about it?
Is it written into the schedule?

I will be watching children aged 2-5 and am considering allowing them to watch a half hour of educational TV.

My two cents...

Contrary to what many believe, it's NOT what is on the TV that is considered bad. Its the TV itself.

Educational or not, TV is NOT recommended for any child under age 2.
The guidelines here are no more than 30 minutes PER WEEK for children 2+.

I don't have any TV.
Nor do I have battery operated toys or anything that lights up and/or makes sounds.
Here, everything is powered by imagination only.

During times of transition where the provider needs the children to be occupied (such as drop off/pick up or lunch prep) there are many other options that work just as well as TV so I have yet to find a situation where I "needed" the option of having them watch TV.

[Unregistered]

When i had my first interview/inspection with my licenser, she told me I should get a tv for transition times or when I was making lunch. I kept telling her I didnt need one. But for some reason she kept thinking it would be hard for me to prep lunch or anything without a distraction. I just make lunch while they play...i couldnt understand her logic . No TV here, they get plenty of that at home.

[dreamer]

Where I'll be living, the limits are daily and not weekly! Also there will be no children under 2. It seems there are a lot of anti-TV members here!

[EntropyControlSpecialist]

Do you let the children watch TV? No, they get one Christmas movie (Frosty the Snowman) at Christmas time. SOME Thanksgivings we watch a 20-30 minute Thanksgiving one, but not all.

If you do, how do parents feel about it? My families love that we do not watch TV here.

Is it written into the schedule? No. If we DID do this it would take the place of something else I feel is very valuable for my 2-5-year-olds. It would take the place of our puzzle time (what they do for the 20 minutes I plate their lunches and get their milk), our center time, our recess, etc. There's nothing that I'd feel comfortable replacing.

[EntropyControlSpecialist]

Where I'll be living, the limits are daily and not weekly! Also there will be no children under 2. It seems there are a lot of anti-TV members here!

It's likely because a lot of us directly SEE the effects of too much TV watching, which most of the children are already experiencing at home without assistance at preschool or child care. It's actually quite sad.

[Unregistered]

Jack and jill

Can't log in on my phone...

I don't do any tv, but I do have a tv in my daycare area. I find it actually creates more problems the few times I have ever turned it on during daycare.

When the kids or I need a break, I find books on tape are great. The kids calm down to listen and you can see their little minds working to picture the story! For those too young to really follow the story line, I think the narrators voice is just soothing!

Like some else said it, all my kids watch sooo much tv outside of daycare (my kids watch tv every evening!!) it's not that I am anti tv, I just think the 8-9 hours I have them is a great break from the boob tube!!

[Blackcat31]

It seems there are a lot of anti-TV members here!

I am not anti-TV at all! Lord knows I watch enough of it myself. I am just not supportive of TV use in child care.

It's one of the first things you learn when you earn a degree in Early Childhood Education.

It goes directly against most of what we are taught in regards to developmentally appropriate.

[Annalee]

I do not have cable in the daycare room but do have a vhs/dvd player.....I do put things in to be watched occasionally. Licensing allows so many minutes a day. We also watch some activity/movement videos and exercise/dance with them sometime.

[debbiedoeszip]

Do you let the children watch TV?
If you do, how do parents feel about it?
Is it written into the schedule?

I will be watching children aged 2-5 and am considering allowing them to watch a half hour of educational TV.

We have no screen time during the daycare day, but we stream radio stations and youtube audiobooks on my laptop. No tv here at all.

[dreamer]

It's likely because a lot of us directly SEE the effects of too much TV watching, which most of the children are already experiencing at home without assistance at preschool or child care. It's actually quite sad.

Can you tell me what effects you see?

[debbiedoeszip]

Where I'll be living, the limits are daily and not weekly! Also there will be no children under 2. It seems there are a lot of anti-TV members here!

I love watching tv, but we don't have time for it at daycare. Too many other things to do, and I find that most kids tv shows are mind-numbingly boring (for me). My DS was a tv kid and I white-knuckled it through his childhood. I've done my time. Not inflicting them on myself now. And parents love that my daycare is screen-free.

[Blackcat31]

Can you tell me what effects you see?

The effects I've seen for those kids under Kindy age that watch a lot of TV are that they seem to be more likely to suffer from sleep issues, have attention issues and are more likely to exhibit aggressive behaviors.

Also, those who watched alot of TV had greater problems dealing with others leading to issues with making friends and other social roadblocks.

TV kids tend to be or become overweight and unhealthy. They also have unrealistic expectations and expect instant gratification.

They also severely lack in the imagination department and don't seem to know "how" to play WITH toys and WITH others.

TV is a one sided "playmate"...there is no feedback, no conversing back and forth and there are no opportunities to build real life skills. ALL of which are important for the adult they will eventually become.

[daycare]

We don't watch tv in my daycare. However I have allowed for it one time to watch a video book.

During my FCCERS observation through QRIS I admitted to that one time and I was docked all my points for that section. They said no TV for children under 3. I tried to fight it and didn't win.