Preschool Children and Television: The Rules

Unless you are part of a
very small percentage of the population, you have a television in your home.
More likely than not, you have more than one television in your home or at least
one TV and a laptop or other computer that can function as a television. And
if you have a television and you also have children, you probably also have
some television rules in your home. But are they the right rules? How can you
know?

Let’s take a look at
some common household rules for children regarding television use so that you
can get a better grasp on where you fall on the spectrum of parenting regulations
about television use in your home.

1. No television
   for children of a certain age. Some households have a rule that children can’t
   watch television until they’ve reached a certain age. A 2004 report
   by American
   Family Physician suggested that children under the age of two should not
   be allowed to watch any television at all.
2. Limited hours of television
   for all children. Most households have some rule about the amount of time
   that children are allowed to spend watching television. That same American
   Family Physician report recommends that children should watch less than two
   hours of television per day. That seems reasonable … one full-length
   or two short videos should be plenty for your children to enjoy their TV time,
   get the benefits that can be head from television but also fill their day
   with other, more active and stimulating activities.
3. Television time is family
   time. For some families, TV time is a way to all gather together and have
   a starting point for discussions. If there’s a particular show that
   you enjoy which is appropriate for your children, you might make it a rule
   in your home that the kids can watch TV but that it’s part of what your
   family does together. This is usually better for older kids who may be interested
   in shows that will also engage your interest but can be true for families
   with children of all ages.
4. Monitored content. This
   is almost a given when it comes to making household rules about television
   for your children. You should know what your children are watching, whether
   they are two or twelve. It’s especially important, of course, during
   the preschool and elementary school ages that you are choosing what your children
   watch. There’s no need for them to see most of what is on television.
   And you should have a hands-on approach to monitoring content; don’t
   just assume that all cartoons on the public TV station are good for your kids.
   You need to actually watch the shows and determine what you think is good
   content for your kids; if the content isn’t something you would converse
   with your child about, they shouldn’t watch it.
5. Television should be an
   educational tool. Most parents recognize that there are some benefits to watching
   television. Certain programs can be educational and some parents opt to only
   allow their children to watch TV that serves this purpose. If this is a rule
   that you want to make for your own home, you should ask yourself how you believe
   television can educate your kids and what shows are right for that purpose.
6. Television should be a
   reward. On the other hand, some parents allow television watching as a reward
   at the end of the day or after certain tasks have been completed. Children
   who are motivated by rewards may earn a certain amount of entertainment viewing
   time (probably monitored) for completing certain tasks, such as picking up
   toys or finishing preschool worksheets. The reward system that you work out
   should be one that is right for you.

Keep in mind that there are
no “right” rules for your children when it comes to watching television.
You should figure out what your own opinions are on TV and its use in your home
and work out rules that work for your family. As technology changes, so will
your need to make decisions about which forms are right for your kids and how
so you might as well get used to the idea by making rules around one of the
gadgets that been around for a long time!

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