Join in National Turn-Off-Your-Television Week
A school-age child may spend more hours watching television this year than going to school. The TV Turn-Off Network web site reports an average of 1023 hours of TV watching versus 900 hours of school time per year for our children.
The trend is for newborns to have televisions in their rooms. In America, it is not unusual for a television to be in every room of a home. In a typical American household the TV is on 7 hours and 40 minutes per day. Let's not forget the big-screen televisions that have larger-than-life projection. Our home computers in many ways are more entertainment than work tools, as we surf the net and play computer games. During a recent visit to a public library's computer section, I observed that seven out of the ten monitors had card games on the screens.
Watching television, which includes video and computer games, impacts our health and our literacy abilities as well as undermines family values. Obesity is becoming a health epidemic in our country, with TV watching a strong factor in being overweight. Forty percent of American families report eating dinner while watching TV. Literacy rates of 12th graders who watch 6 or more hours of TV a day, compared to those who only watch one hour per day, showed a rate of 14% proficiency for the 6-hour-per-day watchers and a rate of 52% for the one-hour viewers. Research studies over the past 40 years also show a correlation between watching media violence and committing real acts of violence, weakening the influence of family ethics.
Turn off our televisions and our home computers for a week? The Gameboys and the PlayStations? What would we do? It is hard to ignore the itch to turn on the TV when a moment of boredom appears. Boredom passes, if we let it, and often leads to creativity. Prepare for boredom by keeping a list of fun activities on the refrigerator. For children under the age of six, having puzzles, art supplies and building blocks available will keep minds and hands occupied. For older children, books, board games and art supplies can be tedium and time busters.
With a week of no television, consider cooking dinners together as a family and reading a book out loud. Two classics, Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain and A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle are two of my favorite read-aloud books. They appeal to a wide age range from about six years to adult. The books also lend themselves to family discussions about ethics, decision making, being different and growing up.
Turn off your TV, and do those things you say you're going to do and never have the time. Bike ride, star gaze, invite neighbors over for dinner or dessert, have a sing-a-long, go to a concert or play, dance and exercise. Once you let your imagination go, I think you'll have some fun.
Plan ahead, and turn off your television during National Turn-Off-Your-TV Week, April 25 to May 1. I hope you'll find what I found—something I didn’t realize was missing.
For more information and ideas for reducing television viewing and having a week with no television, visit www.tvturnoff.org.
Next Week: Can You See the Genie in Your Child?
www.shininglightreading.com/enews.html
©KIDS TALK™
925 N.W. Hoyt #532
Portland, OR 97209
503.274.9788
maren@comcast.net
The trend is for newborns to have televisions in their rooms. In America, it is not unusual for a television to be in every room of a home. In a typical American household the TV is on 7 hours and 40 minutes per day. Let's not forget the big-screen televisions that have larger-than-life projection. Our home computers in many ways are more entertainment than work tools, as we surf the net and play computer games. During a recent visit to a public library's computer section, I observed that seven out of the ten monitors had card games on the screens.
Watching television, which includes video and computer games, impacts our health and our literacy abilities as well as undermines family values. Obesity is becoming a health epidemic in our country, with TV watching a strong factor in being overweight. Forty percent of American families report eating dinner while watching TV. Literacy rates of 12th graders who watch 6 or more hours of TV a day, compared to those who only watch one hour per day, showed a rate of 14% proficiency for the 6-hour-per-day watchers and a rate of 52% for the one-hour viewers. Research studies over the past 40 years also show a correlation between watching media violence and committing real acts of violence, weakening the influence of family ethics.
Turn off our televisions and our home computers for a week? The Gameboys and the PlayStations? What would we do? It is hard to ignore the itch to turn on the TV when a moment of boredom appears. Boredom passes, if we let it, and often leads to creativity. Prepare for boredom by keeping a list of fun activities on the refrigerator. For children under the age of six, having puzzles, art supplies and building blocks available will keep minds and hands occupied. For older children, books, board games and art supplies can be tedium and time busters.
With a week of no television, consider cooking dinners together as a family and reading a book out loud. Two classics, Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain and A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle are two of my favorite read-aloud books. They appeal to a wide age range from about six years to adult. The books also lend themselves to family discussions about ethics, decision making, being different and growing up.
Turn off your TV, and do those things you say you're going to do and never have the time. Bike ride, star gaze, invite neighbors over for dinner or dessert, have a sing-a-long, go to a concert or play, dance and exercise. Once you let your imagination go, I think you'll have some fun.
Plan ahead, and turn off your television during National Turn-Off-Your-TV Week, April 25 to May 1. I hope you'll find what I found—something I didn’t realize was missing.
For more information and ideas for reducing television viewing and having a week with no television, visit www.tvturnoff.org.
Next Week: Can You See the Genie in Your Child?
Kids Talk is a column dealing with early childhood development issues written by Maren Stark Schmidt. Mrs. Schmidt founded a Montessori school and holds a Masters of Education from Loyola College in Maryland.
She has over 20 years experience working with young children and holds teaching credentials from the Association Montessori Internationale. She is also Creative Director for a video-based reading series for children ages three to six, The Shining Light Reading Series. Contact her via e-mail at maren@shininglightreading.com.
Visit www.shininglightreading.com for more information.
Ask your local newspaper to carry Kids Talk. Call, write or e-mail your local newspaper editor and recommend Kids Talk.
www.shininglightreading.com/enews.html
©KIDS TALK™
925 N.W. Hoyt #532
Portland, OR 97209
503.274.9788
maren@comcast.net
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