How much television....

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-15-2003
How much television....
9
Sat, 07-30-2005 - 10:00pm

I think television is a real negative for my son. He seems less engageable (more echoing, etc.)when he is watching too much. Typically he plays pretty well by himself for a while, but if I let him have too much tv he starts to not play well independently at all. It is almost like the more he gets the more he wants/needs/demands. Recently during potty training, he got an overdose of tv.....to keep him sitting. Now he is trained, and we are trying hard to limit his tv to 30 minutes or less a day.

Does anyone else fight the tv issue? It does give us a break (particularly when he gets up at 6am every day) but in the long run I think it causes us more grief. I know this is not the case for every child, but it seems to be for ds. I just wondered if anyone else finds this to be true. Thanks.

Chrissy

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Registered: 12-24-2004
Sun, 07-31-2005 - 11:21am

Chrissy,

Several years ago, I did a search on norms for TV viewing. According to surveys, 2 yr olds in the US watch an avg of 2 hrs of TV per day. The number of hours goes up after this age, until the child is about 12. By middle school, the number starts to decrease and is replaced by hrs spent doing homework.

I have heard a lot of people, especially those in the speech-language field say that too much TV may contribute to scripting in kids with ASD's. I still haven't been able to find a good estimate of how much is too much, though. There have also been warnings about the amount of TV that children are exposed to, even when they are not watching. For example, there are families who keep the TV running when no one is watching, or who have adults who constantly sit in front of the TV watching. IMHO, this is even worse than exposing your kids to too much child-oriented programming.

At our house, we allow Cassian to have only 2 videos per day. We have signs posted around our house, saying what is allowed in terms of TV. He is also not permitted to rewind and review shows, which he will do if not monitored. Cassian still puts up a fuss when his TV time ends, even though he knows the rule, but we stick to the limit I have set. I would say he gets an avg of 1.5 hrs per day of child-oriented programming. When DH is watching, I usually take Cassian off and do an activity with him, so he gets little exposure to adult TV. I don't watch much TV at all, myself. Cassian's typical TV viewing time is 1 video in the morning (when I shower and dress) and 1 video in the afternoon (when I am starting dinner or need a break for some other kind of housework).

Those are my house rules. They are based on a little bit of research, but mostly I have tweaked them to fit our family values. It is much harder for us to limit books with Cassian.

Suzi

Avatar for bari1
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Sun, 07-31-2005 - 9:09pm

For John a lot depends on what he is watching and with whom.

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Registered: 09-15-2003
Sun, 07-31-2005 - 9:33pm

Thanks for the input you guys.

DS really doesn't see any adult television, and any kids shows he watches are high quality (Barney, etc.). Still though, it is such a passive activity. I just wondered if others are as uptight/careful as I strive to be.

I don't mind the books because even if DS repeats them, I feel the benefits outweigh the repeating. I don't feel there is much benefit in tv for him, although it does allow me to make a phonecall, etc. Cassian sounds similar to my son in a few ways....very interested in books and tv....hyperlexic.
Chrissy

Avatar for springolife
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Registered: 05-09-2003
Mon, 08-01-2005 - 9:25am
My daughter does watch alot of TV, but I don't think it's been a problem. She has built her language skills tremendously, even though she does alot of echoing. She is 2 1/2 and I have a 1 1/2 and an almost three month old, so I don't have much time to spend doing other things with her besides TV. I hate that she watches so much, but it is a big help. I do try to have periods when the TV is off so I can do other things with her, if I'm not tending to the baby or cleaning house.
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Registered: 02-24-2004
Mon, 08-01-2005 - 11:58am

I've found TV to be really helpful for Nathan. Although, Nathan isn't real big on TV, he only has a couple of shows that he watches. When he's done, he'll actually turn the TV off! So I don't really have a problem with him watching too much TV.

He picks up sayings from his favorite cartoons. And he uses them....in the right context too!!! It's really cute, how he can pick just the right thing to say at the right time!

Michelle

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Registered: 10-24-2003
Mon, 08-01-2005 - 12:04pm

I have mixed feelings about TV with DS and have had for a long time.

Pat

Happiness is a conscious choice, not an automatic response. --

Avatar for finian
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Registered: 03-25-2003
Mon, 08-01-2005 - 3:09pm
I've just cut my son back to 3hrs a day (6.5yrs old boy, not dx'd but I feel strongly that he's on the spectrum). His hyperactivity has reduced to the point that I'm almost debating getting him assessed just yet, since when he was assessed 3 yrs ago it was so traumatic.

Love and Light, Joelle

Homeschooling mom to a 11yr old hydrogen molecule.




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iVillage Member
Registered: 10-03-2004
Mon, 08-01-2005 - 3:24pm

We were told early on by several of our therapeutic assistants (doctors, therapists) that it's the human interactions that he needs and to limit the time he is zoned in on a screen (tv, computer games, gameboy). I do find that if our son has more than 2 hours in a day of staring at any screen, he is crabby, more rigid and just overall more difficult. The other thing we are careful about is to not allow the screen time right before bed, as sure enough, he takes longer to go to sleep. So we stop screen time at least an hour before bedtime.

When he's had a full connected day of ASD school, playdates, therapies, etc., we are happy to let him have a little extra zone out screen time, but we also break up the time --- help cook dinner, 30 minutes tv, 45 minutes board game with Daddy, 30 minutes computer, draw pictures and write stories with Mom, bath, snack, bedtime stories, etc.

I also agree with Pat that knowing about Sponge Bob and Fairly Odd Parents and Disney Classics and the latest kid movie such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is useful on the social front, as I have heard our son discussing these cultural phenomenon with friends and acquaintances!

Sara
ilovemalcolm

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Registered: 09-15-2003
Tue, 08-02-2005 - 5:34pm
Thanks for your input everyone. It is reassuring to me to read the wide variety of responses.
Chrissy