Even when I was a teenager I knew that TV was not good for children and swore that mine would never watch it. Then I began to back down, because I would watch a “classic” like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and wonder how my children could go through life without the same pop cultural lifestyle I did, especially with enduring movies such as The Wizard of Oz. (“I’m melting, I’m melting.”). Then there were movies that were great for milestones, such as License to Drive, not to mention moral lessons. Okay, so I figured when my children were beyond the baby stage they would be allowed to watch parent-approved films. When they were older, we could study the films in the same way one would books in school, and even compare the movie to the book. In what I thought were no uncertain terms I even got DH to agree that DD would not watch any television until the age of two. He was pretty good with that for awhile, but then he actually began to buy her DVDs. Ugh.
It all began with good intentions, mind you: Baby Signs. She received it as part of her Bebo backpack when we took the class. DD loved the video immediately. Since she was already watching that, DH decided to purchase Disney's Sing Along Songs - Disneyland Fun: It's a Small World. After all, how else were we going to prepare DD to meet larger than life characters at the Disney parks if she didn’t see them in the videos? So she began to watch the video on occasion, especially as a distraction while at her grandparents’ house. One of the cool features of this DVD is that not only is there a French audio track, so DD can listen to the songs in French, but it’s an entirely different video filmed at then EuroDisney. Over the months DD has not only come to love the songs, but she dances along with the characters! There is one song in particular, “Main Street, USA,” where she actually tries to dance the proper choreography, complete with hand motions and turns, and now even goes to her little piano to play like Mickey does. It is so cute. She even has her own sign for “small” based on an action Pinocchio does during the song “It’s a Small World.” DH then bought her Sing-Along Songs: Beach Party At Walt Disney World for some variety, though it took her awhile to really enjoy it, but now has attempted to say "Ariel" at least twice, and Disney's Sing Along Songs - Happy Haunting: Party at Disneyland for my bday, as it’s supposed to give me a break during the day. I think I enjoyed it more than DD did during the first viewing.
During all this DD also received Barney: Now I Know My ABC’s, which keeps her happy while I’m showering and, hopefully, teaches her some things about colors, shapes, and words. This particular video also has episodes from Bob the Builder, Rubbadubbers, Angelina Ballerina, Kipper, and Pingu, though I haven’t played those for her very often. I also admit that I used Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as a form of somewhat educational entertainment for her when she began to wake up hours earlier than was usual for her. She came to love the Hot Dog song, so that became a source of amusement for the family every time we’d pull it up on YouTube, as she’d get all excited the moment she heard it and would run over to the computer to watch it. I finally opened Gymboree’s The Very Brave Elephant and his friends. At first DD didn’t seem to enjoy it, but the other night she began to clap and stomp just like they do in the video when I was getting her ready for bed, letting me know she wanted to see the show. Not only that, but it wasn’t until she began watching the video that she started making animal sounds and doing the signs that DH and I had been trying to get her to do for months prior. She even started to add some on her own that she saw the children do. Is it watching other kids do these things, or just seeing it repeatedly on TV? I also found another Baby Signs DVD at Half Price Books, and she began doing signs and matching sounds after the first viewing that I’d been trying to get her to do for months as well. My grandmother did order her Your Baby Can Read, and she will now finally indicate her arms, never mind the fact that I’ve been pointing out her arms to her since her first month of life. All this has got me thinking that, despite the fact she now asks for certain shows, TV is not all that bad, even for the under age 2 crowd. Of course, I try to stick with the more educational shows, and most of them get her actively participating, so I’m not going to beat myself up if I put on a video to entertain DD while I shower, do laundry, make a meal, or, well, you know with DH.
It all began with good intentions, mind you: Baby Signs. She received it as part of her Bebo backpack when we took the class. DD loved the video immediately. Since she was already watching that, DH decided to purchase Disney's Sing Along Songs - Disneyland Fun: It's a Small World. After all, how else were we going to prepare DD to meet larger than life characters at the Disney parks if she didn’t see them in the videos? So she began to watch the video on occasion, especially as a distraction while at her grandparents’ house. One of the cool features of this DVD is that not only is there a French audio track, so DD can listen to the songs in French, but it’s an entirely different video filmed at then EuroDisney. Over the months DD has not only come to love the songs, but she dances along with the characters! There is one song in particular, “Main Street, USA,” where she actually tries to dance the proper choreography, complete with hand motions and turns, and now even goes to her little piano to play like Mickey does. It is so cute. She even has her own sign for “small” based on an action Pinocchio does during the song “It’s a Small World.” DH then bought her Sing-Along Songs: Beach Party At Walt Disney World for some variety, though it took her awhile to really enjoy it, but now has attempted to say "Ariel" at least twice, and Disney's Sing Along Songs - Happy Haunting: Party at Disneyland for my bday, as it’s supposed to give me a break during the day. I think I enjoyed it more than DD did during the first viewing.
During all this DD also received Barney: Now I Know My ABC’s, which keeps her happy while I’m showering and, hopefully, teaches her some things about colors, shapes, and words. This particular video also has episodes from Bob the Builder, Rubbadubbers, Angelina Ballerina, Kipper, and Pingu, though I haven’t played those for her very often. I also admit that I used Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as a form of somewhat educational entertainment for her when she began to wake up hours earlier than was usual for her. She came to love the Hot Dog song, so that became a source of amusement for the family every time we’d pull it up on YouTube, as she’d get all excited the moment she heard it and would run over to the computer to watch it. I finally opened Gymboree’s The Very Brave Elephant and his friends. At first DD didn’t seem to enjoy it, but the other night she began to clap and stomp just like they do in the video when I was getting her ready for bed, letting me know she wanted to see the show. Not only that, but it wasn’t until she began watching the video that she started making animal sounds and doing the signs that DH and I had been trying to get her to do for months prior. She even started to add some on her own that she saw the children do. Is it watching other kids do these things, or just seeing it repeatedly on TV? I also found another Baby Signs DVD at Half Price Books, and she began doing signs and matching sounds after the first viewing that I’d been trying to get her to do for months as well. My grandmother did order her Your Baby Can Read, and she will now finally indicate her arms, never mind the fact that I’ve been pointing out her arms to her since her first month of life. All this has got me thinking that, despite the fact she now asks for certain shows, TV is not all that bad, even for the under age 2 crowd. Of course, I try to stick with the more educational shows, and most of them get her actively participating, so I’m not going to beat myself up if I put on a video to entertain DD while I shower, do laundry, make a meal, or, well, you know with DH.
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