ExchangeEveryDay Past Issues

This is a good article. However, the final statement about preschoolers needing "real experience with objects", we should also be focusing on the importance of preschoolers needing real experience with real people.

I agree that too much tv does take away from the meaningful interactions with objects and people (play). Children should be using their imaginations, learning how to occupy and entertain themselves so they are not "bored", interacting with each other and their parents and teachers inside and outside the majority of the day. If they are stuck in front of a tv all day, these interactions will ot occur. However, I also feel that there are tv shows out there that promote interaction between the child and his/her environment, other people and even the characters on tv. I am thinking in particular of my daughter, who is 2 1/2. She absolutely loves to watch Dora the Explorer. 95% of the time she is following the directions that Dora tells her to do (usually involving doing some kind of physical movement, repeating something in Spanish, predicting what will come next, finding an object on the screen, counting, color identification, etc.) I feel shows like Dora, Blues Clues, Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers or Jo-Jo's Circus (just to name a few- there are many more!), do promote interactions, teach lessons and promote intellectual, emotional and social growth to some extent. But, they do not take the place of real life experiences which foster this growth. I guess what I am saying is that there are quality tv programs out there that are educational and fun for children, and it is okay for them to watch these programs in small doses, but we need to limit the amount of time spent in front of the tv so that these programs don't become a child's only source of real life experiences.

This comment didn't go far enough. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time for children under two, partly because exposure starts an early addiction to hectic, disjointed entertainment that's not as real or helpful to growth as interaction with real people and objects. Commercial exploitation begins early and has lasting, negative effects on external vs. internal exploration and gratification, greed, and vulnerability to suggestion. The huge amount of time that children and adults devote to the tube takes away from meaningful interactions, play, learning, and physical health and growth.
Where is today's equivalent of Mr. Rogers. Can you find it?