Parenting Guide

Why You Should Let Your Kids Watch TV

Published by SchoolAdvisor | Jan 27, 2016

The first thing you should know about television is that it's not all that bad. It's not bad parenting if you let the kids get a few hours of TV everyday. All this while we've been fed about the downside of watching television. So why don't we look on why you should let the kids watch TV for a change?

1. Valuable Family Time

Besides being the evil machine that it's mostly known as, televisions can also be the reason for a family to spend time together. Agree on a show that is of interest to everyone so the kids would be willing to participate in this activity as well. You don't have to always be watching TV as a family, you can limit these sessions by making weekly schedules and ask the kids to come up with the kind of TV shows and movies that they would enjoy watching.

2. Educational Exposure

If you notice that the kids have been watching too much of Spongebob Squarepants, you might want to introduce them to Animal Planet and Discovery Channel instead. Kids can learn about animals, where they're originally from and even witness the prey-predator relationship which will surely pique their interest. They can also learn about different cultures and places that they might not have known otherwise. You can bring them to the zoo afterwards so they will have fun spotting the animals they've seen on television.

3. Helps English Language Learners

For kids who are not native speakers of English, watching television can expose them to the conversational rhythms of spoken English. They can only learn so much in classes so giving them exposure through television will definitely help them improve their proficiency over time. You can even choose to turn off the subtitles and the voice dubbing function so they will be motivated to actually look for words in the dictionary to have a better understanding of the subject.

4. Inspirational

Besides reading books, watching TV can also help develop interests in certain subjects for kids so they can further explore the topic on their own. You can even encourage your kids to watch cooking channels to expose them to what actually happens in the kitchen and the various types of ingredients. Make learning fun by having them practice their cooking skills in the kitchen under your supervision. When a child sees something of interest or has questions about a particular topic, parents can use that as a springboard for deeper study.

5. Build Analytical Skills

Ask questions and discuss with the kids about the show that you're watching. What do you think would happen? What should the character have done? What would you do in that situation? By asking these questions kids will learn to think, problem solve and predict which will make TV viewing a more active experience. Developing thinking skills is important because they will use the skill for the rest of their life.

6. Make It Interactive

 Watching TV doesn't have to be a one way interaction, you can make it an interactive session with the kids. Children learn better when they are given feedback on their inquiries. For example when watching Sesame Street and learning about the letter E, you can have your kids point out to all the words with the letter E in them around the living room. You can also teach your kid words that start with the letter E and what they mean. Televisions can only be used as a tool when teaching kids so it's important to not let the kids get carried away and remember to limit the screen time that your kids are getting.