Home » Partners & Parents » Large Families » Remotely Impossible

Remotely Impossible

© Shannon

As a stay-at-home mother of four children I'd be lying if I said that T.V. was a bad thing. I realize that television can deeply impact an audience in a negative way. Filthy language, nudity and violence are definately things that I don't want thrown at my children. But as with anything, T.V. can be a useful tool and a great source of entertainment when used properly and in moderation.

I'm sure there are many people who blame television and the media for all of the world's problems. However, as a parent, I feel that television can be a great learning tool, reward and on some days even save my sanity. It's also a great and inexpensive way to spend time together as a family. Parental viewing can spark discussions. We ask our children "Is what that person did wrong?" or "What would you do in this situation?". This helps us as parents know how our children react to what they watch and gives us an idea of what shows are appropriate for our children.

It's hard for me not to let my children watch more than enough television because I work at home. In order to keep this from getting out of hand, I've alotted a certain amount of television for each day. I try to limit it to one hour in the morning and one hour in the afternoon. Sometimes it's a little more and sometimes it's less, but time allotment has helped me keep the amount of T.V. viewed per day in check.

There has been a T.V. ratings system developed in order to help us as parents decide what is appropriate for children. Don't assume that everything on the Disney channel is appropriate for your young child. For the first 15 seconds of every program except sports and news in the upper left hand corner there is a rating. The following categories apply to programs designed solely for children:

TV-Y: This means that the program is designed to be suitable for all children and is not expected to frighten young chidren ages 2-6.

TV-Y7: The programs in this category are designed for children 7 and above and may be inappropriate for children who have not acquired the developmental skills needed to distinguish between make believe and reality.

TV-Y7-FV This rating is given to programs where fantasy violence may be more intense than other programs in this category.

The following categories apply to programs designed for the entire audience:

TV-G Most parents would find this program suitable for all ages. It contains little or no violence, no strong language and little or no sexual dialogue or situations.

The copyright of the article Remotely Impossible in Large Families is owned by Shannon . Permission to republish Remotely Impossible in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.