I Am Being Watched

Re:I Am Being Watched by ebbv on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @03:54PM (#6207870)

This strikes me as far too neurotic. You'll never get through the challenges of parenting if you are second guessing yourself and scolding yourself for such minor infractions. You have decades of parenting ahead of you. Smart phones and computers aren't going anywhere. While yes, I think you probably shouldn't be getting your phone out while actively watching your child, the other things you mention like canceling your cable are probably over the top.

Here's reality; you're gonna screw up. You're going to make mistakes. And your own neurosis will in some fashion affect your kid(s). This is unavoidable. You won't know the full extent to which you've truly damaged your child until they reach adult hood.

But here's the other part; they will also surprise you with how wonderful and amazing they become despite your short comings.

It's important to take parenting seriously and do the best you can by your child. But it's also important to realize you're a human being and to take time to enjoy life and cut yourself some slack along the way. Otherwise you're just going to drive yourself insane.

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Re:I Am Being Watched by aestra on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @04:05PM (#6207930)

Getting rid of cable during the younger years is smart. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends zero screen time for babies younger than 2 years old and there is strong evident to support limiting screen time = healthy brain development in the very young.

http://www.aap.org/en-us/advocacy-and-policy/aap-health-init...

The AAP recommends that parents establish "screen-free" zones at home by making sure there are no televisions, computers or video games in children's bedrooms, and by turning off the TV during dinner. Children and teens should engage with entertainment media for no more than one or two hours per day, and that should be high-quality content. It is important for kids to spend time on outdoor play, reading, hobbies, and using their imaginations in free play.

Television and other entertainment media should be avoided for infants and children under age 2. A child's brain develops rapidly during these first years, and young children learn best by interacting with people, not screens.

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Re:I Am Being Watched by danielweber on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @04:36PM (#6208111)

This is exactly how I raise my children.

Well, it's what I was going to do.

Then I had kids.

(I still demand no TV in the kids' room. Our household only recently got a second teevee, and it's in no one's bedroom.)

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Re:I Am Being Watched by will_work4tears on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @09:26PM (#6209464)

My son will never have a TV or computer in his room. We will severely limit his TV intake and computer usage. We are active adults, hiking, biking, YMCA events, and will include our son in as much outside activities as possible.

That said, I think it's silly to go to such an extreme and do "zero" screen time. My wife regularly let's my 15 month old play Fischer Price games and he's probably watched three or four Dora the Explorer episodes and a handful of Nihau Kai-Lan shows and maybe a couple Curious George shows. He doesn't seem to be able to watch an entire episode for the most part, and he is still way ahead on development milestones.

Could he be further along? Who knows, he could be further behind. I think it is as bad to be neurotic about these things as neglectful and uncaring to be honest.

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Re:I Am Being Watched by unimpressive on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @10:12PM (#6209608)

>My son will never have a TV or computer in his room.

Just curious, did you?

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Re:I Am Being Watched by will_work4tears on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @10:40PM (#6209669)

Great question, IMO, but nope, TV was entirely a family event that happened in the living room. I did, however, spend many hours in my room reading books.

edit: And didn't have computers until I was in my teens. I think my first computer was when I was in 9th grade or so, and they were like 3,000 bucks, so no chance of us having one of our own in our room, lol.

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Re:I Am Being Watched by gcb0 on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @05:18PM (#6208331)

TV is ok. i bet most people here do not watch TV as adults. But using the computer and less passive screens, i bet everyone here is only here because they started using computers earlier than the average. So limiting those for a child seems foolish.

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Re:I Am Being Watched by jamesjguthrie on Tuesday August 13, 2013 @06:02PM (#6208548)

> But using the computer and less passive screens, i bet everyone here is only here because they started using computers earlier than the average. So limiting those for a child seems foolish.

Great point. I'm going to make sure my kids are brought up learning how to code etc even younger than I was.

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