How much screen time do your (young) kids have?

[Fillyjonk]

Am curious. I suppose I am especially interested in under 6s.

I mean EVERYTHING. DVDs, tv, computers, wii, EVERYTHING.

I keep reading on american sites of the shocking levels of screen time that our kids have but I wondered what was normal in the UK.

[GooseyLoosey]

TV - 30 mins a day except at weekend where we watch 3 milkshake programmes together in bed in the morning.

DVDs - happen instead of TV

Wii - don't have one, or any computer games

Computer - If either dh or I have one out for work, the dcs will often play games off the BBC site for up to an hour. This happens about once a fortnight.

In general, we do screen based activities as a family rather than park the dcs in front of it. It means I know more than I would ever wish to about Charlie and Lola, but the dcs do see TV watching as a family activity.

[Fillyjonk]

yes see that is Not Much. You seem quite aware of screen time? Do you intentionally limit it?

(disclaimer is we have virtually NO screen time atm but am weighing up pros and cons of introducing some educational tv and computer use)

[choosyfloosy]

Ooh loads. More than I think there should be. DS will turn 5 in January.

The major rule we have is No Screen In the Mornings. Elections and the Olympics are allowed to breach this rule.

During the week, no screen until 5. This applies to telly, DVD and computer (I promised he could start using the computer when he started school last September. It is nearly always cbeebies website, but we have also answered some questions for him on it, found footage of volcanoes etc).

That still means around 13 hours a week!

We also tend to allow 30 mins of screen after lunch on sat/sun just so I can read the paper.

What I don't do is limit it to educational stuff - I limit to 'vanilla' stuff I suppose and very little telly with adverts, but am happy for him to watch complete trash, partly because it's much funnier for me.

[needmorecoffee]

we didn't have a TV for a couple of years when they were little but I have no real idea how much they watched. We've never limited it.
TV is fun.
My older 3 are teens and rarely watch TV now although they pplay computer games. dd2 is 4 and I wish she could watch TV cos it would give me a break and give her something to do. She's blind.

[GooseyLoosey]

I do Filly and actually I wonder if I go too far. I think maybe I have an irational dislike TV and the dcs might be missing out on something they would enjoy. On the otherhand, they both love books and ds has just got to the point where he will read to entertain himself which I am so proud of!

[needmorecoffee]

liking TV doesn't stop them reading. My teens read several books a week. dd1 even reads tedious stuff like Dickens and Conrad. This is despite no limits on TV and computers.
I love TV too but read all the time.
I think if TV or computers are rationed they become a desired item. If they are always part of life and are one thing amongst many it doesn't become an issue.

[bozza]

DD is 4. She will occasionally go on Cbeebies website with her big brother, so maybe 1/2 hour once a week. She watches Strictly with the family - well only half this week as she fell asleep on my lap. She sometimes watches You've Been Framed on a Sunday morning with her brother and sometimes watches some children's TV. Other than that it is mainly recorded episodes of Charlie and Lola or Peppa Pig on an evening when she is tired. But lots of days she watches nothing at all. I would reckon she would come in at about 5-7 hours a week.

That is quite low and 7yo DS is significantly higher. But that is because of the PS2/DS factor.

[bozza]

Actually 7 hours would be an exceptional amount for her.

[cupsoftea]

Just a bit in the morning but when they come home they want to do things rather than sit in front of tv. If they are tired they will watch a film or Blue Peter. My eldest uses the computer to write on or do games (non violent) but not everyday. They limit themselves & know they can turn the tv/computer off

[MrsBadger]

rofl at 'tedious stuff like Dickens and Conrad'

dd is only 1 and has probably 30min a week, mostly when she;s climbed on my lap while I am MNing

the only time we sit down specifically to watch TV is 10min on Saturday morning for nailcutting

[Anna8888]

My DD doesn't watch TV but she is mad about musicals at the moment and can watch My Fair Lady or Mary Poppins seemingly day in day out... But she does it in a very interactive way that involves dressing up with umbrellas, fans, feather boas, tiaras etc and singing the songs. So it's not exactly passive entertainment.

[cory]

When they were under 6, it was mainly DVDs on a Saturday afternoon. Family all watching together for an hour or two once a week. Except for when dd was under 4; didn't have a TV then.

Now they are 8 and 12, but still have to ask permission to switch on the telly/watch a film. And I won't give it every day, particularly not in the summer. They don't watch more than an hour a day spread out over the week.

They didn't have computers/DSs/Wiis when they were under 6. Dd (12) has a DS now, but ds (8) has been told he needs to improve his reading first.

Dd uses my work computer, but really needs her own because of her disability. Ds could do with one too, for same reason, but no money just atm.

I've never noticed TV becoming very desirable because of being rationed, as needmorecoffee says. I think more my dc's have got used to other ways of entertaining themselves.

My dn otoh who has no TV restraints will sit inside for hours watching even on the sunniest summer day, because he is hooked. He gets very whingey when he can't watch for some reason. He expects some visual entertainment even on the shortest car journey.

I don't particularly have a dislike of TV, just not terribly interested myself, so tend not to know what's on.

But I wouldn't like to have my kids always sat in front of it the way my dn's do, wanting to eat their meals in front of it, preferring it to playing outside.

[FrannyandZooey]

about an hour a week

[Gateau]

My DS (19 months old) watches about 30 mins (that varies a little) of tv in the morning and an hr at most in the evening.
He enjoys it, so why not? He's a child - childhood is about fun. As long as he's not plonked in front of it all day, then no worries. It also gives me a chance to get housey things done, but I also enjoy watching it with him.

[Gateau]

Eatinmg meals i front of tv is horrendous! Very antisocial.

[bozza]

DS has more reading time than screen time.

[GooseyLoosey]

Needmorecoffee, I think I agree with you and that is why I am slighly concerned with my policy. I try and implement it subtley so if the dcs ask to watch TV, I would try never to say "no", but would suggest doing something else first and then watching TV.

Cory, that's what I was trying to say with regards to reading - not that children who watch TV don't enjoy reading, but that a lack of TV may teach otherwise reluctant entertainers (and my son would never entertain himself given the choice), alternative ways of amusing themselves.

[Acinonyx]

Anything from 30 mins to 3 hours in a day - dd is 3. I'd like to keep it down to about an hour telly and 30 mins pc and maybe keep a flying pig too

[Fennel]

My 4yo has around 30m a day, sometimes quite a bit more, sometimes none. Only TV, no computer time.

I limit it pretty rigidly including for my 8 and 7 yos, and under about 2.5 none of them really watched tv at all. it's a constant battle and when they moan or seem too keen on the TV we put it away for a week. Which they quite like.

I'm not convinced that limiting TV makes them want it more, most of the children I know have a lot more screen time than mine and seem to want it more too. IME many children and adults too don't have much ability to limit screen time effectively.

[MilaMae]

My 5 year olds (at school)range from nothing to 2 hours Milkshake on Sat/Sun mornings so we get a lie in.

Having said that they have interactive whiteboards at school and I know they dip in and out with video clips eg Pollyphonics etc. The white board(giant big computer screen) is on a lot for demonstration purposes(letter formation etc). They go to the computer suite once a week and have a computer each there. Due to this I try to limit the boys to nothing midweek at home( not a lot of time anyway after tea etc), sometimes they collapse in front of a bit of Cbeebies (Charlie and Lola) after tea. I ban computer time totally at home midweek as they do enough at school imho.

DD(3 nearly 4) also ranges from nothing to a couple of hours to nothing, just CBeebies. Some days we're so busy it never gets switched on other times she'll have a couple of hours down time at lunch time. I never let her go on the pc,no need they pick it up instantly at school anyway.

I've always had more concerns with computer time than tv as they sit so close to the screen and it's antisocial. Tv in our house is always quite social,often I'll watch too and chat about what's going on.

My lot are avid book worms one of my twins is a very advanced reader for his age,was reading before school and we've always had tv(Cbeebies). I have to say I've always been strict with it though,it's what I want them to watch when I want them to watch it and I'm in total control. Never had any fuss over it or winging when it goes off. I get more winging for huge,long laborious art projects to be frank. We do have a house filled with books,craft stuff,lovely toys and are very outdoorsy so screen time for my lot is just one nice activity amongst many iykwim.

I wish parents could get more recommendations re screen time limits though but I'm suspecting as white boards are so widely used in schools now they can't exactly start putting suggested time limits out. God help me when I go back to teaching!!!!!!!!

[heather1980]

my dd is 2 and i have the tv on all day, BUT she hardly ever sits down and watches a program from start to finish, we dip in an out as we like. so it's more for background noise, we're usually playing or crafting instead and it goes off at teatime.
it's hard though coz i have a 4 week old baby and found that cbeebies helped me through those last few weeks of pregnancy and these few weeks of new baby and establishing bf, in a few weeks it will go off again, coz we're gonna potty train, so tv will become her 'treat' for a dry day iyswim.

[Fillyjonk]

interesting, interesting

DP and I don't watch tv (I think I have been here before on this but I don't get the dvd/tv distinction-isn't it all screen time?) , so my kids don't watch it much. I suspect we are looking at about an hour a month total atm, mainly things involving david attenborough (sp?). They don't seem to want it though.

I didn't have a tv growing up and never missed it, it was never forbidden fruit or anything. I still don't watch much. I have noticed in the past that if I do start watching it I want to watch more, and I have to make a conscious effort to reduce screen time.

I am wondering about introducing some additional computer time and tv time though. They are home educated and I think there is certainly a lot of useful tv/computer stuff out there....

Also we all had a go on a wii recently and it was SO MUCH FUN!

Oh it is very hard.

[bythepowerofgreyskull]

so DS1 has an episode of roary the racing car before school but only after he is dressed and as soon as it is finished it is time to go to school

when he gets back from school at 4pm he has screen time until we have tea at 5 and although the tv is on he watches it about 50% of that time..

after tea we tend too have the telly off until 6ish but then it goes on until they get in the bath at 6.30pm

so probably about 1hr 45 mins out of being awake for 12 hours a day.

At the weekend the screen time is on a timer basis - unless it is a dvd there is a 30 minute limit to playtime then we have to go and do something else.. it probably goes up by 30 mins to an hour per day at the weekend.

[Takver]

Interesting to see these, and also Fillyjonk to hear from someone who didn't have a tv as a child and doesn't feel damaged for life. We don't have a tv, and I do sometimes wonder if dd (currently age 6) will start to feel odd at school about it at some point.
She does have screen time though, we have a few dvds for the computer & some computer games which come out from time to time - maybe 2 hours a week for a couple of weeks, then it could be nothing at all for a month or more. We don't really limit it, but since we very rarely get new dvds or games, they're not particularly exciting!