I am a mom of an 11 month old baby and we don’t allow her to watch TV regardless of the show. Although I also enjoy watching disney channel before she was born :happy:. Maybe one day if the right time comes we will allow her but regulated and guided.
I would also like to know your views.
Ashley is 15 months and will watch an animal documentary for about 15 minutes before wandering off to play. He isnt just sitting gazing at it, but climbing on the couch being a monkey, rolling about being a snake etc. I think its great that he gets to see these animals that he otherwise would miss out on… :yes:
My son is 2 yrs old.we allow him to see t.v. but with the guidance.And stuff like rhymes and baby einstein some youtube’s baby video’s
I think a kid shouldn’t watch TV for more than half an hour a day, as recommended by educators and child psychologists. Excessive TV watching decreases a child’s attention span (after all, how can reading, or writing, be compared to something as animated and undemanding as TV-watching) and is also debiliting towards a child’s optical nerve (desensitizes a child’s perception to colors and soundsd due to overexposure). A child with excessive TV-watching is also more predisposed to having nightmares due to his inability to regurgitate the contents like adults do. I personally believe that a child should be refrained from any TV-watching (reading books can be extremely fun and rewarding) until he comes to the stage of self-discipline.
Hi Philoctetes, What do you mean by ‘the stage of self dicipline’? I am not familiar with this term…
Gabriel is almost 9 months old, and I do not allow him to watch tv. I try to keep it off for the most part, but his dad watches it more than I do. If he’s in the room when it’s on, we don’t allow him to face the tv or he will be more inclined to watch it. I also tell his dad not to have bad stuff like anger or cussing on when Gabriel is around. Hearing that stuff can be just as bad as seeing it.
Gabe does watch YBCR on the tv, but that’s about it. When he’s older, I’m sure I will allow him to watch a little supervised tv, but I hope he will enjoy books and toys more!
I get so “confused” by this subject. Matteson, who is nearly 9 months, dosen’t really watch TV, but we do watch YBCR and Baby Signing Time as well as Muzzy language DVD’s. So I feel like she’s constantly watching TV, but it’s not broadcast TV, it’s all educational stuff. Her dad does tend to let her watch regular TV like the Disney channel, but not all that often. So if you asked me does she watch TV, yes, is the broadcast junk that is "rotting brains: :ohmy:, no, it’s educational stuff, that I feel comfortable with.
Let me shed some light on the subject from the parents’ guide of YBCR.
In general, babies should not be viewing tv or baby videos; however, there are times when certain programs are appropriate. If one looks at the the variety of baby videos, it’s east to see that most are passive, entertainment based DVDs designed to occupy the baby in a fun way while the parents are busy. …This being said, children’s DVDs can be helpful if all of the following conditions exist:
Time, Newsweek, and many other magazines have had in-depth reports on infant brain development. Most conclude the same thing–there is a window of opportunity for stimulating infants’ and toddlers’ brains while those brains are developing very rapidly. Remember, babies and toddlers have tens of thousands of new connections (synapses) forming in their brains each second. According to theories of brain development, young children who see language at the same time they hear the language, see and hear about the meaning of each word, and do physical actions relating to the words should have many new synapses connecting the visual cortex with the auditory cortex, somatosensory cortex, and other language areas of the brain. These connections are far more likely to have lasting value than those made while watching other baby videos. For instance, in some very popular baby videos, babies watch colorful bubbles floating around while listening to unrelated sounds.
During a half-hour video, babies have tens of millions of new connections forming in their brains–and most of them are not useful in the long-term when they are watching almost any tv show or video that has only a small amount of educational component. Over time, all these connections form the actual physical structure of your child’s brain, so it’s extremely important which videos you allow your child to watch.
Additionally, there are longitudinal studies showing positive effects of early stimulation, including higher IQs.Two recent U.S. presidents have encouraged parents to begin teaching their infants from birth, including reading to their infants. At the very least, the evidence suggests that stimulating your infant will lead to more useful synaptic connections in the brain, which could provide a foundation for future learning.
sigh from typing all that! :ohmy:
You shouldn’t worry. Your baby is watching the right stuff. They are helping her learn important things, so it will not hurt her to watch them.
Well phew, nhockaday! Thanks for al that info and well done for the marathon typing session!!!
lol
lol thanks for that! One day I wanna have that YBCR for my little one. I just need to encourage the father that the video gonna benefit my baby to learn early.
You can buy it cheaper on ebay and amazon books… it’s worth getting. I have 3 older kids who watch Tv though I try to limit it and monitor content… no endless mindless cartoons or MTV. With my baby I try to have her only watch educational dvds… it’s hard to avoid her seeing other TV with other family members around, but she mostly isn’t interested in what they’re watching anyway. I wish they wouldnt watch so much, but as long as they do homework and read books and help tidy up I’m not going to be a Nazi about it and not let them do something they find enjoyable and relaxing… and after a day at school they do want to relax and just bludge and veg out for a while. I cant make life just an acheive acheive acheive situation… work work learn learn…no play. Unfortunately towards higher grades they will have to knuckle down, cut out TV and just study study study. They need to learn the self-discipline to do this.
Thanks, nhockaday, for sharing that with us. Karma for you! 
And to answer the subject question, yes, I do let my baby watch TV, but only for his educational DVDs. He also has Baby Einstein ones but he falls asleep while watching it! :laugh:
What is ycbr?
Oh Yes! That is how I came across brillkids. I was watching the infomercial and decided to check the web for links on teaching babies to read.
Thanks!
I really wish my kids didnt watch anything but documentaries etc… I dont have cable for that reason… I’ll be getting it on soon but only if the kids agree to stay off cartoon channels… I hope I can lock those so they cant access them.
The problem with YBCR is that after the fifth video they could have gone on to make more… but didnt.
You know this is such a sensetive topic with me… I am really caught in the middle on this… I definitely do not want my kids to feel like TV is one of their pasttimes or activities but at the same time I don’t want to miss out on YCBR and the like…
I mean flashcards at least teach them that reading means holding something in your hands (eventually a book) and that that is a great and fun pasttime 
But then again do they miss out on the educational TV videos until they are 2 years old?
sigh
Its difficult when they get to school as they want to be able to talk to their friends about certain shows, and if I didnt let them watch any TV I’d feel cruel and too strict. It’s not inherently bad… it’s like going to the movies but in your own home… going to the movies is only bad if you see something too old or inappropriate, or live at the cinema all day every day!
Hi All,
A baby watching TV in proper Guidance can be useful…But for long hours is not adviceable…
Also particular distance should be kept…Better fix the time n let the baby watch her Fav Cartoon show once in a Day say for 30-45min at a time is ok…
I start her Nursery Rhymes CD which I have made on my own of 1hr I let her see that once in a day…
Most of the time I spent with her,we read book and play toys n other interactive games with her…
That helps in keeping my baby active even when she is not keeping well…