Is TV Bad For Your Child?

The issue of kids watching television has been a hot debate in recent years. Most experts agree that while TV isn’t inherently bad, it should be watched only in small doses. The AAP changed their policy a few years ago to recommend that children under the age of 2 watch no TV at all, and children over that age watch only small amounts, no more than an hour a day.

Still, for better or for worse television is a part of daily life in most homes. Most children do watch some television during the day, and there are benefits to be gained from watching the right programs. Experts agree that educational television is better than mindless entertainment. “If programs are age appropriate, and send children messages that you would want your children to have, then the watching can be entertaining and instructional”, says educational, health, and clinical psychologist Dr. Nancy Mramor.

On the other hand, studies have shown numerous unwanted effects of watching television. It has been linked with poor imaginative skills and can slow language development due to the use of visuals instead of words. “Even the better shows rely on visuals at the expense of talk” says author Jane Healy, PH.D. Children also learn to expect much more entertainment out of anything educational, and find it hard to adapt to school where they are expected to pay attention without the benefit of colorful cartoon characters and music. Their attention spans are shortened as a result.

While some studies show a link between watching television programming like Sesame Street and better academic performance later in life, these studies concerned children who watched the venerable children’s program in the 1980’s, when children watched far less television in general.

Today’s children watch on average of 2-3 hours of TV a day – and it isn’t all Sesame Street.

Experts generally recommend the following guidelines for television time:

-Keep television watching to an hour at most each day
-Select and monitor the programs your child watches and be sure you know the content
-Choose educational programming
-Select channels that do not advertise to children

The bottom line when it comes to television is that it can be bad for your children if they are spending too much time watching it at the expense of time spent reading books, engaging in physical activities or spending time as a family. But as long as your children only watch small amounts of age-appropriate, educational programming, it’s unlikely there will be any long-term problems as a result.

Protect, nurture your baby's brain

While we always have known that a baby's first years were important, we now are learning from many sources how important the early years of a child's life are. One study brings added emphasis to this fact.

The Carnegie Corporation of New York found the following:

_ Brain development before age 1 is more rapid and extensive than previously realized.

_ Brain development is much more vulnerable to environmental influence than suspected.

_ The influence of early environment on brain development is long-lasting.

_ Environment affects the number of brain cells, connections among them and the way connections are wired.

_ Early stress has a negative impact on brain function.

Each of these facts stresses the need to be sure that each child has a good start in life. Opportunities for learning need to begin right away because a baby is ready and needs to be stimulated to keep his capacity for maximum intellectual growth. In reality, if he doesn't use it, he loses it. The study also found that stress has a huge negative impact on the child.

Babies are born with billions of brain cells. During the first months of life, connections between these cells are constantly multiplying. Cells and the connections between cells that are not being used quit working. For this reason, the baby needs to have a chance to be stimulated from his very earliest months. Stimulating the child doesn't mean teaching the child. But it does mean taking time with him, reading to him, putting him on your lap and talking to him.

It means spending time ... "not just quality time but also quantity time."The evidence continues to accumulate. You are your child's most important teacher. What you do today does affect how your child will do tomorrow.

Why should a parent teach his/her baby how to read?

Because it is much easier to teach a little baby (6 to 24 month-old) to read at home than it is to teach a 6-year-old at school. Also, there are few activities as joyous for mothers and babies as reading ‘play’ sessions.

Reading is the basis of all learning and the acquisition of knowledge and success go hand-in-hand. By teaching your baby how toread, parents can open the door to all that is beautiful in this world insteadof turning the child over to the current educational system hoping that the
teacher will know what a brilliant mind this child has.

“Every child has, at birth, a greater potential intelligence than Leonardo Da Vinci ever used” Glenn Doman, author of ‘Teach Your Baby To Read’.
We expose children to reading too late! By six or seven years of age the ability to take in spoken or written facts without effort is just about gone.

In the same way that it is easier to teach a 5-year-old to read than
it is to teach a 6-year-old, it is easier at 4 than at 5 ...and easiest of all for
babies below one!!

So have you started on you baby? It's never too young to start !

What is multiple intelligence theory?

Dr. Gardner identified eight different Intelligences that every person would have, to varying degrees. These intelligences are verbal/linguistic, math/logical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical , interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist.

The Eight Intelligences Explained

1) Verbal-Linguistic
- The Writer/Speaker Children with strong Verbal-Linguistic intelligence will have a propensity to produce language and sensitivity to the nuances, order and rhythm of words. These students love to read, write and tell stories. They have good memories for names, places, dates and trivia. Professionals with strong VL intelligence will be writers, public speakers, teachers, and actors. Some historical examples include Abraham Lincoln, T.S. Elliot and Charlton Heston.

2) Math-Logical - The Scientist
Children with strong Math-Logical intelligence have the ability to reason deductively and can recognize and manipulate abstract patterns or relationships. Students who have strong problem-solving and reasoning skills will excel in this intelligence. Adults with this intelligence will work as scientists, mathematicians, computer programmers, lawyers or accountants. Some historical examples include Albert Einstein, Nicolae Tesla, Alexander Graham Bell.

3) Spatial - The Builder
Children with Spatial intelligence have the ability to create visual-spatial representations and can transfer them mentally or concretely. Students who exhibit this intelligence need a mental or physical "picture" to understand the information being presented. Professionals in this intelligence are typically graphic artists, architects, cartographers and sculptors. Some historical examples include Frank Lloyd Wright, Pablo Picasso, and Bobby Fischer.

4) Musical - The Composer
Children with strong Musical intelligence have great sensitivity to the rhythm of sounds (e.g. pitch, timbre, composition). Students strong in this intelligence will enjoy listening to music and may ultimately work as singers, songwriters, composers, or even music teachers. Some historical examples include Ludwig van Beethoven, J.S. Bach, and Mozart.

5) Bodily-Kinesthetic - The Athlete
Children with strong Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence gravitate towards athletics; however, they also may use their bodies to solve problems, or convey ideas and emotions. Students with BK intelligence will be good at physical activities, have good hand-eye coordination and may have a tendency to move around a lot while expressing themselves. Professionals using BK intelligence will include athletes, surgeons, dancers and even inventors. Some historical examples include Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Andre Agassi.

6) Interpersonal - The Peacemaker
Children with strong Interpersonal intelligence work effectively in a group and understand and recognize the goals, motivations and intentions of others. Students with this intelligence thrive in cooperative, group work situations and are skilled at communicating, mediating and negotiating. Professionals in this intelligence may be teachers, therapists, and salespeople. Some historical examples include Mohandas Gandhi, Mother Theresa and Ronald Reagan.

7) Intrapersonal - The Philosopher
Children who are strong in the Intrapersonal intelligence have the ability to understand one's own emotions, goals and motivations. These students have good instincts about their strengths and abilities. This intelligence will be highly developed in professionals who work as philosophers, psychiatrists or religious leaders. Some historical examples include Eleanor Roosevelt and Sigmund Freud.

8) Naturalist - The Earth Lover
Children with strong focus in this intelligence will exhibit an affinity for all things nature. These students will enjoy and thrive when learning about nature topics, such as flora and fauna. Some professions with focus on this intelligence will include forest rangers, botanists, farmers and biologists. Some historical examples include Charles Darwin, John Muir.

Please remember, while we have outlined some of the specific traits, professions and historical examples associated with each intelligence type, everyone has some level of proficiency in each and every intelligence, and it behooves us, as parents, to learn how to cultivate each of these intelligences in our children