TV/educational application suggestions?

[Dreamalittledream]

So, I have just introduced a TV (gifted to me) to our daycare space. My last intention is to simply pop movies on and plop the children in front. But, I'm all for anything that makes learning fun! They love their turns at our IPad learning station! Hoping for ideas on plug and play/educational applications that you may use in conjunction with a TV? Or any great learning DVDs (my plan is to utilize my local library for a variety of those). Thanks so much.

[babydom]

Leap frog has a lot of plug in games like the leapTV. Fisher price has a bike. Smart Cycle. They have to cycle to move the car etc. it's fun and great to get moving when stuck inside.

[bright sparks]

So, I have just introduced a TV (gifted to me) to our daycare space. My last intention is to simply pop movies on and plop the children in front. But, I'm all for anything that makes learning fun! They love their turns at our IPad learning station! Hoping for ideas on plug and play/educational applications that you may use in conjunction with a TV? Or any great learning DVDs (my plan is to utilize my local library for a variety of those). Thanks so much.

Exciting receiving anything as a gift!! :) There are so many great things on the ipad that I'm sure you already utilize. Even in Kindergarten a lot of school boards are using certain apps as part of their regular curriculum. Do you have any before and after kids because I only really know programs for K+. How have your parents taken to going from a tv free play space to this new addition? I don't have a tv in my playroom and never have in all the different spaces I have had over the years. The kids get @ 20 minutes if at all while I put lunch together and I'm old school loving Sesame Street and I will sometimes go onto a uk website called "cbeebies" as they have loads of awesome episodes and it gets me all a bit nostalgic back from when my kids were little :) That's probably good site to checkout for toddler and preschool educational learning for the tv.

[5 Little Monkeys]

We are upstairs in the morning and than for a bit before last pick ups. They get to watch cartoons then.

The dc tv is hardly ever on. In fact, it's been well over a year since it had been on. However, I started doing yoga with them in January so we watch YouTube yoga videos on it now through the wii.

[Lee-Bee]

I limit tv to 30min a day (my DCG is a tv junkie), I really like the Leap Frog shows. They introduce key concepts (colours, shapes, numbers, letters) in a musical, fun way. They use a lot of vocabulary for the kids that I try to use as often as I can throughout the day as well. The kids love it. You might find those at the library. We use Netflix (no cable), they have a few episodes on there.

That's about all I have to suggest, aside from Leap Frog, some youtube learning videos I pretty much limit shows to Caillou and Barney as they are slow moving enough to not overwhelm their little brains as much as most of todays shows!

[Dreamalittledream]

Yes, we have no cable either...the other TV in the house is rarely on. I love the yoga ideas and the video ideas! As for the question on Parent reaction: Of course, didn't have a TV before, but honestly have never thought to promote my space as TV free. We would wander upstairs before for the odd movie (for my group that means about 10 min. Max of sitting still viewing) time (usually in conjunction with PJ Friday's). I'll be keeping an ear out for any negative feedback for sure.

[bright sparks]

Yes, we have no cable either...the other TV in the house is rarely on. I love the yoga ideas and the video ideas! As for the question on Parent reaction: Of course, didn't have a TV before, but honestly have never thought to promote my space as TV free. We would wander upstairs before for the odd movie (for my group that means about 10 min. Max of sitting still viewing) time (usually in conjunction with PJ Friday's). I'll be keeping an ear out for any negative feedback for sure.

If you have never labelled your daycare as TV FREE then I doubt anyone would be concerned. I've just had a large number of parents who during the telephone interview stage ask me if there is a tv in the daycare space. Those are the people who would likely not be okay with a tv. Each to their own. I think technology has its place and everything in moderation is fine. I was heavily restricted in this department as a child and so now I'm a bit of a junkie if I allow myself. My husband on the other hand grew up with tv on all the time and he is rarely interested in it now. I think any parent who has a concern is really just worried about viewing time. The fear of being babysat by the tv all day which probably does happen sometimes. Maybe even putting together an info sheet on how it is used along with other technology would curb their worry, likely open their eyes to how productive it can be. My friends younger brother was all but deaf till he was 3 when he had grommets put in his ears. He really struggled to learn to talk until his therapist suggested particular tv shows and wow what a difference in his vocabulary once that became a regular component of his learning program. So that is a perfect example of how it can be very positive. I wouldn't worry though, I'm sure your families will be fine. I just remember when I started business nearly every parent asked me about tv. I even have a policy in my contract. I'm a paper person all the way, but my son uses a lot of software for learning and enrichment which is so vital for his success. Anyone with a child who loves math or logical reasoning should check out spirit math-JK+ (app or online), dream box Pre K-JK+ (app) and Math genie (online). bbc kids also has some great games to teach touch typing with sounds and music. I'm sure they'd have all sorts of other games and shows too. Okay so they are more computer oriented but if you hooked it up to the tv you could utilize more things without necessarily having to invest more money into buying add ons.

[Dreamalittledream]

I completely understand how parents would be concerned. Very valid:). A good thing to keep in mind for new clients especially. For current families I post all kinds of pictures daily of all the things we are doing; I think that reassures them that the day is full and well-rounded. I cued up an action song this morning and we had a blast!

[AmandaKDT]

Don't know if you would be able to access it, but 'The Learning Station' on Youtube has all sorts of action songs. My kids love them, I put them on when we can't go outside to play in the morning due to the weather. I like it better than just cartoon, even educational ones, because it encourages movement, dancing and singing. I have an Apple TV box that allows Youtube to stream on my TV.

[bright sparks]

Don't know if you would be able to access it, but 'The Learning Station' on Youtube has all sorts of action songs. My kids love them, I put them on when we can't go outside to play in the morning due to the weather. I like it better than just cartoon, even educational ones, because it encourages movement, dancing and singing. I have an Apple TV box that allows Youtube to stream on my TV.

Thanks for sharing that...sounds awesome!

[Lee-Bee]

Muffin Songs on youtube is great too, not really action songs but good children's songs with voice and video that seem to capture attention. I'll have to check out The Learning Station too!

[mickyc]

We do tv in the morning and tv at the end of the day. Around 45 minutes each time. I do also put tv on during nap for any that stay up. We sometimes do movies. Just because the tv is on doesn't mean they are watching it. It is good in the morning for the ones who come in grumpy or tired - they can just veg for a bit and watch tv. At the end of the day everything is cleaned up so time to rest and wait for pickups.

I think it's funny when parents are concerned about too much tv when 90 percent of them have the tv on all the time at home, let the kids play video games, play iPads or on their phone.

[MonkeyPrincess]

We do tv in the morning and tv at the end of the day. Around 45 minutes each time. I do also put tv on during nap for any that stay up. We sometimes do movies. Just because the tv is on doesn't mean they are watching it. It is good in the morning for the ones who come in grumpy or tired - they can just veg for a bit and watch tv. At the end of the day everything is cleaned up so time to rest and wait for pickups.

I think it's funny when parents are concerned about too much tv when 90 percent of them have the tv on all the time at home, let the kids play video games, play iPads or on their phone.

my thoughts exactly. and that is why i don't feel bad about my allowed tv time. I do the same as you. There are some days that the TV doesn't go on at all. I don't advertise a TV Free daycare because we do have tv time, i allow it and i like it :D

[Lee-Bee]

my thoughts exactly. and that is why i don't feel bad about my allowed tv time. I do the same as you. There are some days that the TV doesn't go on at all. I don't advertise a TV Free daycare because we do have tv time, i allow it and i like it :D



Even families that have the tv on all the time at home are allowed to pay for/hope for tv free daycare. It just means they hope their child's day is full of engaging, hands on activities. I see nothing odd with that request.

[Wonderwiper]

"I think it's funny when parents are concerned about too much tv when 90 percent of them have the tv on all the time at home, let the kids play video games, play iPads or on their phone."


This is exactly why I don't want my own kids watching TV during the day ha ha!!!

I have no problem with tv (I watch A LOT) but I do not have a tv in my daycare.

[AmandaKDT]

"I think it's funny when parents are concerned about too much tv when 90 percent of them have the tv on all the time at home, let the kids play video games, play iPads or on their phone."


This is exactly why I don't want my own kids watching TV during the day ha ha!!!

I have no problem with tv (I watch A LOT) but I do not have a tv in my daycare.

I'm the same, I really limit TV time to little or none at all during daycare hours because I don't want my own kids watching it all day long. I save it so that I can have some moments of peace after the daycare kids have gone home (probably to watch TV there - lol).

[5 Little Monkeys]

I have no issue with tv (as long as it's not 24/7) and I've had a few parents ask about it. Some don't even notice it's there. I had one parent comment that I had no tv and I pointed it out to her (in the dc space it's a huge flatscreen mounted on the wall so not sure how they miss it lol) I just let them know that it's on at the start and end of our days and depending on when your child gets dropped off or picked up will depend on how long they actually get tv time and than the odd pj day there is always a movie. So far none have had an issue with this (that I know of!) but I do find it odd when a parent will comment that they don't watch much tv but yet I know their child is on their iphone/ipad all the time....to me, it's no different. Screen time is screen time and it's all not recommended by the professionals for children under 2 and only 2-4 hours for children over 2 years.

On the days where I only have 1 or 2, we spend a lot more time upstairs in the morning so that I can bake/cook for daycare and I admit, those days the tv is on more often while they play. (how much they actually watch it is hard to gauge because sometimes it's just background noise to them as they don't watch it all the time) Those are days that I say "I was just a babysitter today" and I think that is why parents ask about tv time to daycare providers. When you're paying a daycare provider, you expect more of them and I wouldn't want my daycare provider using the tv a whole lot because I expect them to have the knowledge and resources to entertain them without it.

[mickyc]

I actually had a parent drop off this morning after the tv had been turned off. He commented to his daughter that she missed tv time! lol. she is the kind of kid who just wants to sit and watch tv for the first 10 minutes and then gets going to go play. I had to chuckle to myself.

[Fun&care]

I often think and wonder why TV has such a bad rap. If you look at someone reading a book vs watching TV there aren't many differences aside from the obvious fact that the one reading is practicing, well, reading skills. But both parties are sitting and processing a story. Why is it the end of the world if the story is coming from a screen? Plus so many shows are educational these days and like someone else mentioned TV can actually be great for developing vocabulary, I see a huge difference in my kids French skills when French TV is on more often.

I am in no way saying that it's ok to plop kids in front of the TV all day. We do have set limits for screen time here and at our house TV, ipad etc all count into that time. It's just that I've actually been putting a lot of thought into this issue lately. It was bothering me that my son plays a lot of video games with his dad but when I take a step back I realize that there is actually a lot of problem solving (at least in the games they play....no violent stuff here) and other elements such as achieving goals and needing a certain amount of "coins" or whatever to "buy" things....that doesn't seem so bad after all, it's actually kind of educational in its own way.

And in the end, I grew up with restricted TV, while hubby played video games hours upon hours and guess what? We BOTH turned into productive members of society. So who knows. Like everything else, moderation and balance is key.

[Suzie_Homemaker]

I would have big issue with my kids seeing TV in daycare. In my family we do not watch TV at all. We do not even have one so I would be very angry if TV was being used. If I wanted my kids doing that I would hire babysitter not day home.

I know some day home does this and that okay for them but not for me. I think to say that at home people have TV 90% of time is presuming.

[AmandaKDT]

There is lots of research showing that excessive screen time is detrimental to the development and health of children, and that follows them to adulthood.

There are lots of articles about it online, here is one :

http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/tv.htm

Reading is more than practicing the skill of reading, your brain is more active than when just watching tv. The link above addresses that issue, as well as many other issues.

We watch TV in our house, but I consciously limit it and find that having it on while they play is unnecessary. I have found no need to have it on at drop off time in the morning or at pick up time with the daycare. The kids have no expectation of TV being available and just go off and play. If they are feeling tired or grumpy they go lay on the pillows and look at books. Most of the time I use it as a quiet time activity when I want the kids that don't nap to get some body rest and time of total quiet.

I also would also have expectation of little TV time if I was paying for someone to care for my kids. I would be disappointed to find out that the TV was on several times a day at their daycare.

[Lee-Bee]

I often think and wonder why TV has such a bad rap. If you look at someone reading a book vs watching TV there aren't many differences aside from the obvious fact that the one reading is practicing, well, reading skills. But both parties are sitting and processing a story. Why is it the end of the world if the story is coming from a screen? Plus so many shows are educational these days and like someone else mentioned TV can actually be great for developing vocabulary, I see a huge difference in my kids French skills when French TV is on more often.

I am in no way saying that it's ok to plop kids in front of the TV all day. We do have set limits for screen time here and at our house TV, ipad etc all count into that time. It's just that I've actually been putting a lot of thought into this issue lately. It was bothering me that my son plays a lot of video games with his dad but when I take a step back I realize that there is actually a lot of problem solving (at least in the games they play....no violent stuff here) and other elements such as achieving goals and needing a certain amount of "coins" or whatever to "buy" things....that doesn't seem so bad after all, it's actually kind of educational in its own way.

And in the end, I grew up with restricted TV, while hubby played video games hours upon hours and guess what? We BOTH turned into productive members of society. So who knows. Like everything else, moderation and balance is key.

There is actually a HUGE difference between reading a book and watching tv. I won't even pretend to understand it enough to properly explain it but there is plenty of research that has looked at what is happening in the brain while watching tv, and different types of tv and the brain is going on rapid fire overload. Research shows that while watching tv the brain is reacting the same as it does when under attack, the brain is in fight or flight mode trying to access the situation.

The reason I try to stick with the show caillou is one of the studies looked at the difference between todays common cartoons and caillou since caillou is incredibly slow moving and has very little stimuli in it the children's brains were much calmer in response than to other shows.

I am not against tv by any means but I do limit it for young children, I don't think it is wise to have it on in the background all day and I think it is worthwhile to choose your shows wisely. It is incredibly different than reading a book. Brains need time to process and rest. Tv does not allow this. Using tv for 'rest' time is counteractive as while the child's body is still it is only because their brain is so overloaded that the body freezes trying to process. The brain can't process anything it has learned until it sleeps therefore sleep is more important than rest.

There is no doubt that there is plenty to learn through tv and other screen time. But the brain can't actually learn it if it is overloaded and on high alert...so the brain needs a break from the screen to process and learn. Which basically brings it all back to having set limits on screen time. But, reading and tv are incredibly different in what is happening in the brain.

[AmandaKDT]

There is actually a HUGE difference between reading a book and watching tv. I won't even pretend to understand it enough to properly explain it but there is plenty of research that has looked at what is happening in the brain while watching tv, and different types of tv and the brain is going on rapid fire overload. Research shows that while watching tv the brain is reacting the same as it does when under attack, the brain is in fight or flight mode trying to access the situation.

The reason I try to stick with the show caillou is one of the studies looked at the difference between todays common cartoons and caillou since caillou is incredibly slow moving and has very little stimuli in it the children's brains were much calmer in response than to other shows.

I am not against tv by any means but I do limit it for young children, I don't think it is wise to have it on in the background all day and I think it is worthwhile to choose your shows wisely. It is incredibly different than reading a book. Brains need time to process and rest. Tv does not allow this. Using tv for 'rest' time is counteractive as while the child's body is still it is only because their brain is so overloaded that the body freezes trying to process. The brain can't process anything it has learned until it sleeps therefore sleep is more important than rest.

There is no doubt that there is plenty to learn through tv and other screen time. But the brain can't actually learn it if it is overloaded and on high alert...so the brain needs a break from the screen to process and learn. Which basically brings it all back to having set limits on screen time. But, reading and tv are incredibly different in what is happening in the brain.

Which is exactly why I call it body rest, not brain rest. It also give me a total break, because having kids that don't nap can mean no break all day unless I give myself one. They look at books, colour, play with my Leapreader books for awhile, then go watch cartoons until the little ones wake up. I don't bother having the 5 year olds even lay down anymore, unless they are looking tired.

[Lee-Bee]

Which is exactly why I call it body rest, not brain rest. It also give me a total break, because having kids that don't nap can mean no break all day unless I give myself one. They look at books, colour, play with my Leapreader books for awhile, then go watch cartoons until the little ones wake up. I don't bother having the 5 year olds even lay down anymore, unless they are looking tired.

I completely agree with using a bit of tv to give a caregiver a rest :-) It's just important to understand that it isn't the equivalent of sleep or non-screen time rest for the child!

[AmandaKDT]

I completely agree with using a bit of tv to give a caregiver a rest :-) It's just important to understand that it isn't the equivalent of sleep or non-screen time rest for the child!

For sure! It isn't equivalent to sleeping.

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