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Child Development

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Our TV memories can actually parallel our actual life. Scary, but true. There are many parents who allow TV and video games to be the “babysitter”, if you will, while they relax, cook dinner, or do other things around the house that need to be done. The simple fact is, most kids spend too much time watching television or playing video games—this is not a new thing, it has been a problem in child development for decades. Thus, in more ways than we think and at so many more times than we realize, our memories are framed by TV itself. It has become a part of us, in a very real way.

The first time I watched television, that I can remember directly, was Sesame Street. But, fortunately, my parents restricted my television exposure to one hour per day. This kind of restriction does not leave your kids completely void of the opportunity to watch television (which almost all of us enjoy)—but this type of restriction does make more time available for your children to be creative, learn, and be active—which are essential aspects of child development.

It is amazing how television affects the brain. We can try to remember other, real life events—and the memories just slip away. However, we remember in detail the events and stories we learned in our “TV lives”. For example, I can not tell you the name of my first or second grade teacher—but I do remember what the first movie I watched was when my parents bought our first VCR.

I have two sisters and a brother, but they were also allowed only one hour of television per day. We spent the rest of the time playing, reading, practicing dance or piano or basketball. Now we all enjoy reading more than watching TV and are also each very artistic.

An incredibly interesting thing I have noticed that concerns child development in relation to television is that when a child has been watching a lot of TV they have less energy, they do not smile as much, and do not have as much to talk about with their parents and friends.

On the opposite side of things, I have watched children come in from playing outside or reading a book, dancing, building things or coloring and observed that these kids have much more energy, much more to talk about and many more creative ideas. In regard to child development, it is proven that a childs mind develops better, and more learning and discovery occurs at younger ages when there is less television involved in childrens lives.

Unfortunately, some parents feel they do not have any option. Despite the fact that in child development, television can be bad for your kids, many households can not survive unless there is a dual income—so when the parents get home from work they simply do not have time to play with their kids that much. They feel that their kids have to watch TV to be entertained enough to leave them alone. This is not true. Find something or some things that your child enjoys doing and he or she will play with toys, read, or play inside for hours. There is a way to compromise how much TV your child watches. And there is no better reason than to provide them with better child development. Their brains will develop more efficiently—and I am sure you will feel better about that.

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