A great deal of research has been done on the effects of television on children’s lives. The first step in making the decision is to get the facts. Because nearly all of us have one or more TV sets in our home, and since most of us watch some TV nearly every day, we may not want to hear what research tells us, but these are things parents need to know.

• Experts suspect that babies younger than two years old view TV as a confusing array of colors, images, and noises. They don’t understand much of the content. Since the average TV scene lasts five to eight seconds, your baby or toddler doesn’t have enough time to digest what’s happening.

• Cartoons and many children’s shows are filled with images of violence. If you find this hard to believe, surf the TV on Saturday morning. The realism portrayed in today’s cartoons has moved light years beyond the Bugs Bunny type of violence. Many children’s shows almost are animated versions of adult action films. Research shows that exposure to this type of programming increases the risk of aggressive behavior and desensitizes children to violence.
• Babies and toddlers have a very literal view of the world. They can’t yet tell the difference between real and pretend, and they interpret what they see on TV as true life. Research has demonstrated that many young children believe that TV characters actually live inside the TV set. This can confuse young children’s understanding of the world and get in the way of their learning what’s right or wrong. It can paint a picture of a frightening, unstable, and bewildering world ¾ and your little one does not yet have the faculties to put what he sees into proper perspective.

• Television watching can be addictive. The more that children watch, the more they want to watch. Even toddlers can become drawn to the set. Once addicted, turning off the TV can become a daily battle. Children who watch TV excessively often become passive and lose their natural creativity; they eventually have a hard time keeping themselves busy, and they lose valuable time that should be dedicated to “play” ¾ the foundation of a healthy childhood and the primary way that very young children learn.
• Parents sometimes unwittingly begin to use TV more and more as a way to keep their children happy and quiet. It takes a strong will and dedication to avoid the easy route provided by this free and easy ¾ yet sometimes dangerous ¾ babysitter.
• Children experience unparalleled physical, mental, and emotional growth in the early years of life. Time spent watching television is time taken away from more healthful activities that nurture growth and development.
• Children who watch a lot of television during their early years are at risk for childhood obesity, poor social development, and aggressive behavior. They often have trouble adjusting to preschool or kindergarten. According to a study by Yale Family Television Research, teachers characterized children who watched excessive television as less cooperative, less imaginative, less enthusiastic about learning, and less happy than those who watched little or no TV.
• Due to all the above reasons, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents not allow children under two to watch any television.

You may have noticed that all of these points demonstrate the negative aspects of letting babies and toddlers watch TV, and you’re wondering if there are any positives. There are a few, but I’ll be honest: I had to be very creative to come up with this list, since published research doesn’t demonstrate many good points for putting a young child in front of a television. But we need to be realistic and acknowledge that most of us aren’t going to put our TVs in the closet until all of our children start school. Here are some of the good points of television for children:

• Quality children’s programming can teach your child basic academic skills, such as the ABCs, counting, addition, science fundamentals, basic language skills, manners, and even early reading skills.
• Your child can view things she might not otherwise see in daily life: exotic animals, distant lands, musical instruments, historical places, and diverse lifestyles. Your child can learn about the world beyond her home and neighborhood.
• Your child can learn basic social skills from watching wholesome programming: how to play with other children, how to use good manners.
• Using extraordinarily careful selection and restraint, a little bit of television can provide a parent with much-needed down time, or time to catch up on tasks that need adult-only attention.

TV watching tips for parents of babies and young children

The following tips may help you minimize the negative and maximize the positive effects of television watching for your little one:

• Hold off introducing television,even videosto your baby as long as possible. If you wait until your child’s second birthday, you can consider yourself incredibly successful in starting your little one off well and with the kind of real-life interaction that is so important for his development. If you decide to allow TV before your child turns two, choose programming carefully, limit viewing time and skip days when possible. (Daily viewing easily becomes habit.) The less watching time, the better! Set a goal, such as no more than 30 minutes or an hour per day, or one favorite show, so that you’ll not be tempted to turn the TV on too frequently.

• Watch programs yourself before you allow your baby or toddler to watch them. Just because a network markets a show to young children doesn’t mean it will reflect your own family’s morals and values. You will be amazed to discover that many programs aimed at children contain violence or topics that are inappropriate for your child. Don’t assume that your baby can pick out the moral message from a program that features violence or conflict on the way to an important lesson.
• Pay attention to commercials,surprisingly, an excellent children’s show will sometimes feature commercials that depict the exact things you don’t want your little one to see!

• Choose programs that are developmentally appropriate for your child. For you, this means shows that are slow, boring, and probably somewhat goofy. But choose programs from your child’s perspective, not your own.
• Invest in a collection of appropriate and educational videos for your child so that you won’t be confined to network programming schedules when you are ready to let your little one watch something.
• Watch along with your child when you can so that you can monitor your child’s reactions to what he’s seeing. Invite questions and discuss what you are watching so that you can understand your little one’s take. Point things out and talk about what is being taught to get the most of out of educational TV. You may even follow up with some lessons afterwards.
• Avoid keeping the TV on when no one is actively watching. Many people do this and are used to the background noise the set generates, but your child will almost surely be exposed to programming that is inappropriate for her.
• Make a conscious decision about how you will use television in your family; don’t watch it by accident or default.

This article is a copyrighted excerpt from Gentle Baby Care by Elizabeth Pantley. (McGraw-Hill, 2003) and reposted with permission. www.pantley.com/elizabeth

Should Babies and Toddlers watch TV? (by Elizabeth Pantley) is a post from: Natural Nursery Blog

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We love ethical clothing and even the fancy dress at the Natural Nursery is fairly traded!

This colorful fiery red dragon costume has some great features to make any little monster look amazing. The hooded cape has a brilliant tail, spine and green wings, it’s tummy is shiny scales to give this great outfit even more character.
The plush head has white soft pointy teeth and big eyes, the velcro fastening front makes it easy to put on and take off.

This outfit is available in two sizes 18 months – 3 years and 4-8 years.

Valerie ordered this for her little nephew for Christmas so he hasn’t got it yet but she loves it! She said:

The range of dressing up costumes include fairies, ladybirds, chicks, pirates and more. In sizes from 3 months to 11 years depending on the design.

www.naturalnursery.co.uk/fair-trade-fancy-dress.html

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Georgia meets the Railway Goblins

An old lady reveals to a young girl her own memories of a childhood in which she was invited to join the railway goblins in their magical events and adventures in helping to keep the railways safe and running properly.  £1.50 (reduced from £5)

The Ice-Cream Machine: Totally Fizzbombed – Paperback

Twins Wayne and Wendy have two extraordinary friends – an ice-cream van called Macaroni, and a goat called Gina. Then one day they both disappear! Who would steal a bashed-up ice-cream van, and a very naughty goat? Does someone know that Macaroni is actually magical? 99p (was £3.99)

The Circus of Adventure by Enid Blyton

“Why on earth did Bill have to bring the wimpish Gustavus with them on holiday? Neither Jack nor Kiki the parrot like the boy at all.

But when Gustavus is kidnapped, along with Philip, Dinah and Lucy-Ann, Jack must bravely follow them to a faraway country and unravel a plot to kill the king.” £1.24 (was £4.99)

And for an extra 44 pence you could get:

Making Minestrone

This jaunty cookbook with a differnence features a simple rhyming text and a delicious step-by-step recipe. This a perfect way for children to learn more about the garden and what grows there and about cooking.

With its catchy rhyming text, bold, bright artwork and delicious recipe, this delightful book shows children and adults just how much fun home cooking can be. £2.49 (was £9.99)

Freaky Tales – Hardback, Barefoot Books

A collection of freaky tales from around the world.

Read about the brave blackbird who declares war on the king, meet the odd assortment of animals who live together in a horse’s skull, and follow the familiar figure of the gingerbread man as he runs away from his pursuers. £2.49 (was £9.99)

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The benefits of fostering self esteem and confidence in kids are virtually limitless. Confident kids tend to be more creative than shy kids who may have lowered self esteem levels. Children who are raised (unintentionally) to think poorly about themselves are the most at risk for poor performances in school, and later college.

None of this however, means that empty praise is the route to self esteem. In fact, we’ve seen a backlash against too much praise – a generation of kids raised to believe they were great just for picking up a glass, and placing it back on the table.

Inane praise doesn’t help your child. On the contrary, kids grow up with an inflated sense of self worth and worse, they fail to challenge themselves. When your doting parents are telling you everything you do is great, and not a word about how you could improve on your skills, it only prepares for a grand fall when you go out into the real world, and find people aren’t as impressed with you as your folks were.

Effective self esteem building in preschoolers has to focus on enthusiasm and energy for a task or activity, and not just the result. Praise the efforts that your child makes whether in a drawing or at school or a chore he completes around the house, but also remember to add a challenge at the end of it – “That was a great sea you drew, now let’s see how well you can do a house.”

Here are a few quick ways to get your preschooler to feel good about himself.

Enlist His Help

Give him chores to do around the house. For 5 year olds, it could be helping you set the table or washing veggies in the kitchen with you. It gives them a sense of accomplishment that they can be proud of. For younger kids, give them a chance to sort spoons and forks.

Create a Love Map

Make a list of 25 of his favorite things, and then fill them up together. Include everything you can think of – his favorite food, movie, song, cartoon character. You’re developing his sense of identity as an individual with firm likes.

Play the Body Part Game With Him
Sit your child down, and sit opposite him. Point out different parts of his face and body, and tell him what he can do with them.
Point to his eyes and say “You have eyes that see everything.” (Ask him to point out five things he can see in the room.)
“You have two ears that hear many things.” (Use objects to create a sound or imitate noises yourself.
“You have a nose to smell any thing.” (sniff in the air)
“You have a mouth that can taste many things.” (Give him a sweet to put in his mouth and ask him what it tastes like.)

End with an affirmation of his abilities – “You can do so much with yourself.”

Play the Dinner Game

Create a story around your child and his favorite foods. It could go like this:
(Child’s name) woke up early in the morning today. He brushed his teeth, put on his clothes and had (ask him to say what he had for breakfast here) for breakfast.He played with his toys, and then when it was time for lunch he ate (ask him to add whatever he had to eat for lunch).

Again, you’re developing a sense of self importance. He’s the star of the story!

Plus, you’re encouraging his language skills.More games like this, and he’ll find it easier to add things and activities that he’s completed during the day to the story. Encourage him to add as many activities as he wants to the story.

Compare Baby Pictures

Sit down with your child, and look through his baby pictures. Compare his facial features, hands and feet now with how they are in the pictures. Tell him how he’s grown, and list out all the things he can do now with his body that he couldn’t do when he was a baby. Again, you’re building a feeling of importance and pride.

Originally from – http://preschoolmama.com/index.php/2008/01/12/five-2-minute-tips-to-raise-a-confident-child/

Five 2 Minute Tips to Raise a Confident Child is a post from: Natural Nursery Blog

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