In Which I Praise the (Questionable) Virtues of (Certain) Children’s Television Programs (Sort Of)

My children watch TV, and I’m not ashamed to say so.

My children watch TV, and I cringe to admit it.

My children watch TV, for better or for worse.

Friends and family tend to be surprised at the amount of children’s television that is watched by the Growing Up / Reading offspring. I can understand this. We’re all about the kids’ books here, but then we also embrace our television-watching, primarily PBS and educational DVDs (*Brainy Baby*, natch). Last night there was another study featured on the news about the negative effects of too much TV on little ones. I know, I know, I shouldn’t let them watch as much as I do. But while I recognize the drawbacks, I also maintain there are good things about children’s television, as well:

1)      The Sing-along Effect: My two-year-old daughter is crazy about anything sing-along, where the words to the song appear on the screen. She even loves the sing-along feature on musicals such as *The Sound of Music* (and her mother appreciates the opportunity to view something in daylight hours that does not feature any animated animals.) I am convinced that my daughter’s affection for sing-alongs played into her teaching herself to read months before she was two. Now she will even read the closed captioning off the TV, which strikes me as pretty awesome.

2)      Shows about Reading and Books: There are a number of these around now. Some are programs devoted to words and reading (i.e. *Super WHY!*, *Between the Lions*,  and *Word World*) while others are episodes that explore literacy (i.e. the “Masked Retriever” episode of *Backyardigans* which celebrates the delightful virtues of libraries and heroic qualities of librarians.)

3)      Housebound Entertainment: When Baby Growing Up/Reading was recovering from open heart surgery, we were firmly instructed not to take the kids out in public. And we don’t have a front yard or a back yard. So, yeah, that left limited options for entertaining the children. Books, while wonderful and beloved to us, can only take you so far for so long. (The TV was a comfort to me personally during this pseudo-isolation period as well. I don’t know what I would have done without you, Winter Olympics…Vancouver Games, you salvaged the remaining shreds of my so-called sanity…)

4)      Effective, Albeit Dubious, Solution for Picky and Slowwwww Eaters: I’ve read and heard plenty about how allowing kids to eat while watching TV is particularly heinous and just about The Worst Thing You Can Let Your Child Do. But given the choice between a toddler who eats next to nothing and then wakes (herself, her brother, her parents) fretfully throughout the night and a toddler who eats enough dinner with the help of a little *Backyardigans* on TV to sleep for twelve solid blissful hours …well, you get the picture.

5)      Spark for Imaginative Play: My daughter’s devotion to dramatic play can find inspiration in certain programs, especially *Super WHY!* — lately she has been acting out scenarios of discovering and naming “super letters” in interesting places at home and in the park, which is pretty great. (She has also determined that the hall nightlight is her “computer” which is not so great.) She will declare “Here come the guards!” (thank you, *Backyardigans*) and scurry out of the room with dramatic importance; “What’s gonna work? Teamwork!” is also a favorite (ah, *Wonder Pets*, you weird, weird show). I recall using TV and movie experiences as fodder for my own childhood play; in particular, there was a complex and very serious game of superheroes played out each day during kindergarten recess. I remember having a grave discussion with a “boyfriend” who regularly played King Kong as to the necessity of his helping out the enemy team one day in the name of fairness. (In my usual role of Wonder Woman, I was devoted to these superheroic endeavors.) And not much could match *CHiPs* (middle brother) and *Star Wars* (baby brother) in my siblings’ arsenal of imaginative play as youngsters.

6)      Fodder for Analytical Adult Thought: Spending nine to ten hours a day primarily solo with a baby and a toddler is wonderful and a choice I am proud to have made and a gift I will always treasure. It can also be the teeniest bit brain-numbing and lonely-making. At times, I find myself contemplating the logic behind various televised worlds…Why are some of the Backyardigans recognizable animals and others, not so much? Why does Dora always wear that annoying backpack even if she is in, say, a swimsuit? Are Jack and Mary dogs who have a pet dog (Mel)? Why are the Super Readers comprised of three humans and…one pig? And so forth. This line of thinking provides ample subject matter for lively evening repartee and sophisticated banter with Mr. Growing Up / Reading.

It would be accurate to say that I have a simultaneously guilty and grateful relationship with children’s television. It’s a topic that can inspire judgmental and vociferous debate.  Am I saying that kids should be plopped in front of the TV all day? Of course not. Am I committed to limiting and monitoring  my children’s television-viewing? Of course. But do I also think children’s television has merit? Yep. Yep, I do.

With that said, now it’s time to turn off the TV and spread out the books. Or, as they say on *Super WHY!*, “back to the book club!”