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TV Tune Out
by Rich Thomaselli
National TV Turnoff Week means shutting off the television and opening childrens' minds
It’s National TV Turnoff Week. That means shutting down the boob tube and turning your grandchildren on to… well, almost anything else.
TV Turnoff Week is sponsored by the nonprofit Center for Screen-Time Awareness. Its goal is simple: reduce the amount of time kids spend in front of the television.
In fact, at TVturnoff.org, the group offers several alternatives and suggestions, from a national poster contest, an essay contest and national scavenger hunt, and more. In addition, even TV networks such as Nickelodeon offer alternatives to viewing.
The concept is supported by a variety of organizations, both nationally and locally. Many community recreation groups and libraries offer special after-school activities for children as alternatives to television during the week. Check with your local municipality.
While TV Turnoff Week is directed at all ages, and it is especially important for grandparents and adult to serve as role models and turn off the TV themselves, however difficult that might prove to be in this particular year. The lengthy writer’s strike over the winter shut down virtually every television show, so late April has brought a plethora of first-run episodes at a time when shows are usually pre-empted or in repeats, gearing up for the May sweeps.
In addition, there are playoff games being contested in the National Basketball Association and National Hockey League, respectively.
To be sure, it will be a game of willpower.
However, it is an important cause, especially for your grandchildren. The American Academy of Pediatrics supports turning off the television, and in fact has maintained for years that every week should be Turnoff Week. The AAP has conducted extensive studies on children and television, concluding that, for some, excessive screen time can have negative effects on children and teens, including increased obesity, poor body image, violent or aggressive behavior, substance use, sexual activity, and decreased school performance.
According to its policy statement, the AAP recommends the following guidelines:
1. Limit children's total entertainment-media time to no more than 1 to 2 hours of quality programming per day.
2. Remove television sets from children's bedrooms.
3. Discourage television viewing for children younger than 2 years and encourage more interactive activities that will promote proper brain development, such as talking, playing, singing, and reading together.
4. Monitor the shows children and adolescents view; most programs should be informational, educational, and nonviolent.
5. View television programs along with children, and discuss the content. Two recent surveys involving a total of nearly 1,500 parents found that fewer than half of parents reported always watching television with their children.
6. Use controversial programming as a stepping-off point to initiate discussions about family values, violence, sex and sexuality, and drugs.
7. Use DVR wisely to show or record high-quality, educational programming for children.
8. Support efforts to establish comprehensive media-education programs in schools.
9. Encourage alternative entertainment for children, including reading, athletics, hobbies, and creative play.
10. Turn off the TV and other computer games 1 to 2 hours before bed time so it does not disrupt a child's ability to fall asleep.
Of course, all this is easier said than done. The Los Angeles Times reports (read article) that an AAP study found that fewer than 20 percent of children met guidelines for increasing their walking and limiting their TV time.
A group of 709 children (ages 7 to 12) from public elementary schools in Iowa and Minnesota were given pedometers to wear for a week. They were also surveyed about their weekday and weekend television habits, which included watching TV and playing video games.
Among those who met both recommendation levels of walking and TV, (12 percent of the boys and 16 percent of the girls), 10 percent of the boys and 20 percent of the girls were overweight. Among boys and girls who met neither guideline, 35 to 40 percent were overweight.
“I wouldn't say those numbers surprised me,” Kelly Laurson, a doctoral candidate in the department of kinesiology at Iowa State University, told the Times. “But it reflects how important it is for children to meet these physical-activity and screen-time cut points.”
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