WWYD? New Licensing Rule Re Screen Time

[LK5kids]

An hour a day seems like a lot. That seems generous. I do have some screen time available and it's 7:30-8:00. Still the kids have table toys as an option.

I've never been able to handle full-on play before 8:00!

My kids who are under two don't pay attention to TV and don't watch it. I just know how I'd be able to say they are not allowed...they just don't care!

I have a small TV and kids are so used to big, giant screens in their homes. That's when I see under two's attracted to TV. But here they could care less.

If I've had a poor night's sleep or a cold that has me sluggish I just cut back on activities and take it easy and they basically play. Have an easy lunch and I rest when kids are napping (as in relaxing, not doing anything housekeeping related, book keeping, etc.)

[mommyneedsadayoff]

What is kind of ironic is that once they get to school, they will get a lot of screen time. Not necessarily tv, but computers/tablets. Many schools are budgeting for every kid to have their own tablet to take home. My sister is on the school board in her city and every kid gets a chromebook to take home. My kids are learning on a computer or tablet every day and now, being fairly proficient in how to handle them is almost a requirement for school age anymore. It is odd to see a kid come to school who has no idea how to work one. But NOT at daycare!!:: We are simply not capable of knowing how to use a learning tool in moderation!

[flying_babyb]

this rule makes me laugh. I see where they are trying to prevent "tv" centers, that leave it on 24/7. This isnt really fair to the good providers. Our center will pop on a tv show or movie sometimes when the kids are having a bad day. We have a 4 year old who dosnt nap an plays educational games on the tablet every day during nap. Most days in my room my tablet is on, plugged in, attached to a speaker and playing all sorts of you tube kids music. Makes it easy to let the kids decide what we want to hear

[storybookending]

I grew up (just summers) in a daycare that had the TV on all day long. It was really just background noise and we did spend a majority of our time outside.. this was back when you could send kids outside unsupervised and know that we would be fine.

I did personally as a kid watch a lot of TV at home and this is still the case in my adult life. When I put the kids down at noon I’ll flip Netflix on while I sit and eat my lunch. Back when my 1s and 2s were babies and not yet on that nap schedule they would be awake while I watched TV sometimes.

I turn kid shows on in the afternoon for 45-60 minutes depending on the time the first wakes up from nap until the start of snack. I’ll show a movie occasionally as well. Honestly no one ever sits through an entire episode of anything. They’ll sit for the first few minutes they wake up and then make their way to the playroom. We also play pandora off the TV and have dance parties a lot now that it’s so cold outside. A couple of my current kids watch a ton of TV in the morning before coming and then go home at night and watch even more. I think it’s pretty common with this generation of parents.

[Tigerlilly]

I won't touch youtube anyways. Have you seen some of the creepy stuff on there? But I was wanting to incorporate music/dance time. Wonder if that is considered screen time since the music comes from the TV.

[Hunni Bee]

These arent state regs, but our center regs...we aren't allowed any screen time for kids 3 and under, and 3 hours or less per week for older kids. My kids watch a 10 minute episode of something every afternoon, and maybe a 3 minute long video that's related to our topic for thr week...

I guess I just don't understand the problem? Do the kids ask for the tv or something?

[Blackcat31]

I don't see an issue with this either.
I'm a screen free program so its not an issue here
All the reasons you listed as why you need the TV have alternate answers besides TV so I don't see this as that big of a deal.

Personally, I love TV but I do not believe it belongs in early childhood at all. Everything the TV "can" be used for also has alternate options.

As for school becoming tech-y as someone else mentioned... I agree but these kids get plenty of screen time on their "not at daycare" time so it's not like we are depriving them of learning electronics.

Also, I believe the basics (taking turns, good manners, waiting your turn, raising your hand, being a good friend, etc....) are ALL foundational and important skills to have BEFORE entering public school...if you know pro-social skills, the tech part will be super easy in school.

[hwichlaz]

I won't touch youtube anyways. Have you seen some of the creepy stuff on there? But I was wanting to incorporate music/dance time. Wonder if that is considered screen time since the music comes from the TV.

I use YouTube a lot. BUT, I make a playlist and play from that. If I was worried about it counting as screen time I’d throw a pillow case over the TV

[jenboo]

I use YouTube a lot. BUT, I make a playlist and play from that. If I was worried about it counting as screen time I’d throw a pillow case over the TV

When i used the tv to play youtube music, i always covered it with a blanket

[Hunni Bee]

I won't touch youtube anyways. Have you seen some of the creepy stuff on there? But I was wanting to incorporate music/dance time. Wonder if that is considered screen time since the music comes from the TV.

I use Pandora. I have a subscription to Pandora Plus for my own use, so no ads. I just have some stations for the kids - my favorite is the Kira Wiley one. Its only $5 a month and money well spent in my opinion.

[Mom2Two]

I won't touch youtube anyways. Have you seen some of the creepy stuff on there? But I was wanting to incorporate music/dance time. Wonder if that is considered screen time since the music comes from the TV.

I have Youtube in restricted mode. It really helps with the creepy stuff, but sometimes it blocks things that I don't see as a problem.

These arent state regs, but our center regs...we aren't allowed any screen time for kids 3 and under, and 3 hours or less per week for older kids. My kids watch a 10 minute episode of something every afternoon, and maybe a 3 minute long video that's related to our topic for thr week...

I guess I just don't understand the problem? Do the kids ask for the tv or something?

I choose to use common core aligned software in my pre-K program. I also use the TV/Youtube with educational playlists, primarily for my daughter's homeschooling, but my playlists begin with pre-k appropriate material.

I don't see an issue with this either.
I'm a screen free program so its not an issue here
All the reasons you listed as why you need the TV have alternate answers besides TV so I don't see this as that big of a deal.

There isn't an alternative to my using playlists in my daughter's homeschooling. The point of homeschooling is that parents decide what works best for their child's needs/learning style etc. And the time of day I run them is simply what works best for her and the group. It's a personal, day to day judgement.

I am not sure what a great alternative would be for using screen time to help with separation anxiety/emotional kids. It has really helped me get over some humps with kids like that. I guess that I could probably come up with some other ideas, or you all could, but...why? Weighing it out, why is a little Dora or Elmo such a bad thing for some of these kids who are having struggles. I wean them off it as soon as I can, just as I would wean them off a bottle or anything else.

Personally, I love TV but I do not believe it belongs in early childhood at all. Everything the TV "can" be used for also has alternate options.

I don't really love the TV. I probably average about one hour a year of television programming (we love movies though). We have Roku, but haven't had cable/satelite/streaming service for about ten years, and before that it was just a very basic service--mainly the networks. My issues with the rule aren't due to insensitivity to screen time exposure.

As for school becoming tech-y as someone else mentioned... I agree but these kids get plenty of screen time on their "not at daycare" time so it's not like we are depriving them of learning electronics.

Also, I believe the basics (taking turns, good manners, waiting your turn, raising your hand, being a good friend, etc....) are ALL foundational and important skills to have BEFORE entering public school...if you know pro-social skills, the tech part will be super easy in school.

I'm not using technology in order to teach technology. I use the software in pre-k because it's common core aligned and it works well. It's all software that I am familiar with from DD's homeschool curriculum and own anyway. Using it for 4 yo pre-k is a personal choice but also a solid choice. However, I am also happy that my pre-k crowd learn to use my adaptive computer mouse.

HOWEVER, the good news is that after I replied to the email from the state (pretty much copied and pasted my original post from here), I got a reply saying that they are going to add the words "primary activity" to the new rule. So if I have an activity that is geared to older child, while providing other activities for younger children, I am off the hook if they choose to watch over the older kids' shoulders. Or if I am holding an infant, the holding is considered the "primary activity" even if they are in line of sight of movie time. Or if there are toys provided for a toddler (and there always are) then the toys are the primary activity even if they move where they can see a play list.

I am not going to count hours. I only use it "as needed" so I'm going to choose to not stress about it. It seems impossible to slice and dice all the particulars of each situation.

My 3 yo SPED girl with emotional problems? Well, I guess that's a "special occasion" when she's triggered but I am not able to give her one-on-one. Sometimes Dora really does come to the rescue.

[Blackcat31]

There isn't an alternative to my using playlists in my daughter's homeschooling.

The point of homeschooling is that parents decide what works best for their child's needs/learning style etc. And the time of day I run them is simply what works best for her and the group. It's a personal, day to day judgement.

I don't mean this rudely but I am pretty sure the state doesn't see your DD's homeschooling as MORE important than child care regs. kwim?

More than likely the state's response to that would be something along the lines of "We aren't concerned about your DDs homeschooling, we are ONLY concerned about DC children during daycare hours".

It's a choice YOU are making. The state isn't forcing you to homeschool at the same time you offer child care services.

Does that make sense? I am just trying to point out the other side of your argument.
I honestly don't have a this or that stance. Just playing devil's advocate...

I am not sure what a great alternative would be for using screen time to help with separation anxiety/emotional kids.

Routine and consistency.

Separation anxiety is based off of fear.
Fear of the unknown.

The ONLY way to cure that is to build a secure attachment with the child. A child that has bonded with the provider and knows the provider is consistent with love, assistance and nurturing behaviors will come to trust the provider very quickly.

Using the TV to reduce stress/anxiety for a child is just a crutch... It creates the illusion of something the child is familiar with but since Dora really isn't comforting or reassuring to the child in any long term sense, it's just that...a short term fix for a long term issue.

I choose instead to begin building that attachment from day one. I feel that is more genuine than using cartoon characters to bridge that gap.

It has really helped me get over some humps with kids like that. I guess that I could probably come up with some other ideas, or you all could, but...why? Weighing it out, why is a little Dora or Elmo such a bad thing for some of these kids who are having struggles. I wean them off it as soon as I can, just as I would wean them off a bottle or anything else.

That ^^^ to me is no different than someone saying:

"I lost 100 lbs by starving myself."

or

"I lost 100 lbs by changing my eating habits and exercising."

Yes, the results are the same but the process isn't.
That (for me anyways) is the difference.

FWIW~ I am not at all saying you don't have reason to vent/complain about this... I think FAMILY child care rules and regs are getting ridiculous on many levels.... I am just trying to point out the other side of things.

It's human nature to do what works and not see/understand that there ARE other methods of successfully achieving the same results.

[Mom2Two]

I don't mean this rudely but I am pretty sure the state doesn't see your DD's homeschooling as MORE important than child care regs. kwim?

More than likely the state's response to that would be something along the lines of "We aren't concerned about your DDs homeschooling, we are ONLY concerned about DC children during daycare hours".

It's a choice YOU are making. The state isn't forcing you to homeschool at the same time you offer child care services.

Does that make sense? I am just trying to point out the other side of your argument.
I honestly don't have a this or that stance. Just playing devil's advocate...

You are a great devil.

Routine and consistency.

Separation anxiety is based off of fear.
Fear of the unknown.

This one 3.5 yo girl is different. My 18 mth old dcb who has major separation (freaked when I changed his crib--hates change) is doing okay. I used a little bit of Elmo with him. It took him five weeks to adjust.

The ONLY way to cure that is to build a secure attachment with the child. A child that has bonded with the provider and knows the provider is consistent with love, assistance and nurturing behaviors will come to trust the provider very quickly.

Using the TV to reduce stress/anxiety for a child is just a crutch... It creates the illusion of something the child is familiar with but since Dora really isn't comforting or reassuring to the child in any long term sense, it's just that...a short term fix for a long term issue.

Yep. It reduces MY stress and anxiety when things get rough. It's a short term coping for very stressful situations. And I keep kids that others would term. I don't over use screen time. I just use it...and don't like the micromanaging or rigidity...and I have some issues with their logic, as I've already explained.

I choose instead to begin building that attachment from day one. I feel that is more genuine than using cartoon characters to bridge that gap.


That ^^^ to me is no different than someone saying:

"I lost 100 lbs by starving myself."

or

"I lost 100 lbs by changing my eating habits and exercising."

Yes, the results are the same but the process isn't.
That (for me anyways) is the difference.

FWIW~ I am not at all saying you don't have reason to vent/complain about this... I think FAMILY child care rules and regs are getting ridiculous on many levels.... I am just trying to point out the other side of things.

It's human nature to do what works and not see/understand that there ARE other methods of successfully achieving the same results.

I have to add five characters...