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The Parent Perspective - The Parent Perspective is a monthly feature where parents tell us how their families navigate today's media-saturated environment. This month's Parent Perspective comes from Andi in Massachusetts, the mother of 2-year-old Gloria: Until my daughter, Gloria, was one year old, we did not give her opportunities to watch television. Now that she is 2, we have figured out how to incorporate television in into our routine in a balanced and thoughtful way. Gloria is allowed to watch one show a few times per week. She enjoys Dora the Explorer and I take the time to watch it along with her. I like how she interacts with the characters on TV. "Say Abuela," they'd say, and Gloria would shout, "Abela! Abela!" at the television. "What color flower is Isa hiding behind?" Dora would ask. "Blue!" Gloria would shout to Dora, and Dora would smile and say, "Muy bien!" I liked watching the show with her, hearing her use Spanish words, and seeing her enthusiastically try to help Dora and Boots through their adventures. What really got me thinking about balancing TV with her life was what was happening when we were outside of the home. While we were walking through the city one day, we cut through a hotel with automatic doors. When the doors opened, Gloria shouted, "Abre!" – the Spanish word for open. I paused for a minute and realized that she was using what she learned on TV and applying it to a real-life situation. 2 year-olds could do that?! I had no idea! That one little shout got me thinking of how else we might start using what we saw on TV in our day-to-day activities. If you're not familiar with a Dora episode, the characters rely on a map to plan their adventures. On weekends, Gloria and I started making our own maps to plan our days. Often times we'd have something fun to do – a trip to the museum or a play date – but I would also have several errands to run first. I would write out our plan for the day – drawing some food for shopping, some money for a bank, some faces for friends – and Gloria would color it in. We'd leave for the day with Gloria clutching her map, telling me where we should go first, then next, checking the map every time we finished one errand to tell me which one followed. Dora also takes help from her trusty backpack throughout episodes, and we started incorporating this idea into packing our own bags. To get ready for a sleep-over at her grandmother's house, I'd ask Gloria what we might need. "What if we're at Nana's and are ready for bed," I'd ask. "What will we need from our backpack?" She'd think for a minute, then shout, "Pajamas and a toothbrush!", and we'd put these things in her bag together. I asked questions in a similar way that Dora did, and Gloria would be so proud of herself for figuring out how to pack her very own bag. It's been so much fun to see her apply what she's learning and seeing on TV to real life situations. Using TV this way has helped us to see media not only as entertainment for 30 minutes but as inspiration for more lively and creative ways to get through our daily routine.
If you'd like to share your own experiences or suggestions in a Parent Perspective, email us at cmch@childrens.harvard.edu |
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