We
have all used TV and other digital media to keep the kids (and
ourselves) occupied so we can get something accomplished- or just
have some peace and quiet. In fact, at times it seems easier to
relegate the kids to the television or computer than to deal with the
whining involved by restricting screen time.
There
is a whole generation of kids who rely upon some sort of electronic
device (tv, computer, Game Boy, Nintendo, IPODs, cell phones) to keep
them busy. When these are inaccessible or the privilege has been
revoked, the children become lost in boredom.
I
found as my sons were growing up that the more time they spent watching TV or on the
computer, the more argumentative and rude and downright mean they
became. With
extremely
limited screen time, they relied more upon each other for
entertainment, which required imagination, cooperation and manners.
How
intentional are your viewing habits?
Most
of us take TV and the computer for granted, giving little thought to
the roles they play in our lives. How does it get treated in your
house? Does it have it's own room? Does it get much rest? Is there
more than one?
Who
controls the remote? How do people in your family decide what to
watch? Do you turn on the TV and see what’s on? check a weekly
listing and plan the week? or watch only certain favorite shows?
Does
the whole family watch together? What happens when a program is over?
Does someone get up and turn the TV off ? Do you wait and see what’s
coming, or check the TV listing?
Does
your family talk during TV shows? Do you discuss programs you’ve
seen with your family and friends when they are over?
On
some level we are aware that a TV show or video helps to shape our
attitudes toward life and the world. But how often do we give serious
thought to the messages that bombard us (and the children!) through
the media?
The
next time you are watching your particular shows, think and talk with
your kids about how the various characters are portrayed. Who are the
main characters? Are they men or women? Young or old? What is their
ethnicity? How do they present themselves and their relationships to
others? What is their view of the world? How do these people
influence the way you see yourself and the world?
We
tend to forget the power that commercials have in molding us. What
products are being advertised? Are the people being portrayed in the
commercials men or women? young or old? What are they doing? What
messages are implied?
Try
taking some time to think about these messages, how they influence
who you are or wish to become, and whether they coincide with the
values you wish to impart to your children.
How
does the TV get treated in your house? Does it have it’s own room?
Do you like it better than your brother? Does it get much rest? Here
are some questions to get you thinking about your family’s TV
habits.
How do people in your family decide what to watch?
- Turn on the TV and see what’s on.
- Check a weekly listing and plan the week.
- Watch only certain favorite shows.
How does TV get watched?
- The whole family watches together.
- The kids watch separately from the parents.
- It’s different at different times.
What happens when a TV program is over?
- Someone gets up and turns the tV off.
- People usually sit to wait and see what’s coming.
- Someone checks the TV listing.
Does your family talk during TV shows?
- Always
- Usually
- Sometimes
- Never
What about programs you’ve seen?
- You talk about them with your family.
- You talk about them with your friends.
- You usually don’t talk about them with anyone.
Who
controls the TV tuner in your house?
Are
there rules for how much TV you watch? Or what you watch? Here is how
different families deal with the issue.
- No rules at all. Kids can watch whenever and what ever they like.
- Kids get a total number of hours a day they can watch. No more is allowed.
- No TV is allowed at certain times, like mealtime, before school, after ten o’clock at night.
- TV is only allowed on weekends.
- Kids can watch only public broadcasting programs.
- Kids have to look at the TV listing and check programs with their parents before tuning in.
- TV is only for times when you can’t be outside or have no chores to do. It’s OK in bad weather, evenings when homework is done, times like that.
- There is no TV in the house.
Are
you clear about your family’s rules. If not, it might be a good
idea to bring it up and see if the whole family could agree on how
the TV is handled.. Check with your friends. See what kinds of TV
rules they live with.
Increasing Awareness
It can be quite an eye opener to keep a tally regarding role models, stereo-types and incidents of violence while you watch your regular shows, and down right shocking to take a closer look at what the kids are watching!
A Week of TV Violence
Murders | |
| Gunfights | |
| Fistfights | |
| Violence used to solve a problem | |
| Talking used to solve a problem |
Observation
Form for TV Show
Name
of Show _________________________________
Date
______ Time ______Channel ______
Male
Old _______________________
Young
_____________________
Female
Old _______________________
Young
_____________________
Number
of Minor Characters
Male
Old _______________________
Young _____________________
Female
Old _______________________
Young
_____________________
Kind
of work done
Male_____________________________
Female
_________________________________Observation Form Commercial
Name
of Show
________________________________
Date
______ Time ______Channel _____
Product
_________________________
Number
of people
Male
_________________________
Female
_______________________
Voices
of people not shown
Male
_________________________
Female
_______________________
What
were people doing
Male
_________________________
_____________________________
Female
_______________________
_________________________________
from
I Am Not a Short Adult!: Getting Good at Being a Kid,
by Marilyn Burns
TV Turn-off Week
National
TV Turnoff Week was launched by Adbusters magazine and other
organizations in 1994, in an effort to create awareness of the impact
of our reliance on television. In 2008 Adbusters changed the name of
TV Turnoff Week to Digital Detox Week to reflect the growing
predominance of computers and other digital devices.
TV
is passive, sedentary and non-experiential. The purpose
of TV-Turnoff/Digital Detox Week is to focus instead on creating,
discovering, building, participating and doing.
Is
it possible to survive for an entire week without the tube? Of course!
Decide
as a family the types of things you would like to do in the coming
week and create the sense that this is going to be a special time- a
vacation of sorts, rather than a deprivation.- Read!
- Get out the art supplies, the sidewalk chalk, the play dough (there are plenty of recipes online.)
- Teach your child to knit or sew, do needlework, or simple carpentry.
- Plan, shop for ingredients, and make your child's favorite dinner together.
- Make mud pies!
- Fill a roasting pan with rice (or dried beans if there are no babies around) , and add measuring cups and other utensils for pouring and mixing.
- Put on some lively tunes and dance!
- Teach the kids some card games (Go Fish, Crazy Eights, Old Maid, Solitaire...)
Play
Hide and Seek, Red Rover, Jacks, Chinese Jump Rope, marbles, kick
ball...- Browse the garden catalogs, and plan your garden. Plant seeds together.
- Go to the Museum of Science or Children's Museum: these are awesome places with many hands-on activities for children.
Visit
Stonybrook Park, Conesus Inlet, a friend who lives in the country or
on a farm.- Make a list of items found in nature and have a scavenger hunt.
- Put together puzzles.
- Instead of watching a documentary about birds, go out (with binoculars if you have them) and see how many real birds you can identify in your neighborhood.
- Get out old photos and reminisce about when the kids were "little".
Visit
a pet store. - Play dress up and have a tea party.
- Make a fort or pitch a tent.
- Have a backyard carnival.
- Decorate bikes.
- Hold a neighborhood Olympics.
The
possibilities are endless!
It is shocking to realize how much we depend on TV, DVD, and computer to keep us occupied. A week without these devices may be what is needed to break the habit of relying on them for entertainment, opening a whole world of possibility and experience- things we have forgotten about, or have yet to discover.
-
RDW (2001, revised 2013)
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