Telly appropriate (or not) for Toddlers

[Uwila]

What tv programs do you think are good for toddlers (say age 18 - 36 months)? My nanny puts on Max and Ruby for my DD every morning. Maybe I'm just an extremist feminist (which I don't really think I am), but I HATE this program. Ruby cooks, has tea parties, like to do her friends hair/make-up, and looks after mischievous little Max who is always exibiting streotypical boy behaviour and always seems to get away with it in the end. A bit like grown ups that say "oh well, boys wil be boys..."

I think it's a horrible influence on DD. I only let her watch it because I figure she isn't old enough to catch onto these sexist lessons anyway. I would much rather she watch tweenies or Bob the Builder. Actually, Max and Ruby is the only show I don't like. Oh, and Dora the explorer, but that's just because she irritates me, and not because I think she's abad influence on DD.

Any thoughts? What other programs do you like / dislike?

I'm thinking about buying a bunch of DVDs and asking nanny to play them when Max and Ruby is on (which seems to be every bloody time I turn around).

peppa pig is excellent. I don't know anyone who doesn't like that.

So, why do you hate the ones you do? Is it because you don;t like them, or because you think they are a negative influence on your toddler?

Forgot to add that I HATE I spy too - it's so annoying. ds refuses to watch it, he also won't watch Fimbles or The Wiggles.

Oh nerly forget my absolute fave - Little Bill!

Uwila - hate 'I Spy' because it is really irritating, same with 'The Wiggles' and Tweenies. I don't really dislike any of them ont eh grounds that they are bad influence - I save that for Peter Pan!

Oooh, I don't know northerner. I think the things they learn when they are young really shape their attitudes. Not sure if you can just correct them later?

I admit I may be a bit extreme (obviously since I feel so strongly and no one seems to agree). I also won't buy her a child's buggy to push around. However, she does have a wagon of bricks which she seems equally happy to push around.

DD likes :
Come Outside with Pippin dog and the spotty plane!
Tweenies (although I'm not a fan!)
Bob the Builder
Postman Pat
Baggimorgi (Ballamory)
Storymakers
Booh - or is it just Boo!
Kipper (CITV - sadly not on anymore!)
Jungle Run - she loves those monkey statues!!!
We don't have digital/satelite TV yet - phew!
I HATE the Teletubbies - and Poohbah (although we've never watched it just seen the creepy toys!)

thumbs down for I Spy.

My two dds love Max and Ruby and they both love Max - imo its not stereotyped but a good representation of an older child and a toddler. Ruby has an annoying voice though.

The Ferocious Beast is God in our house.

And dd2 (2) loves Dora, Noddy and Maisy with a passion.

dd1 (nearly 5) now loves Raven on CBbc - she's moved on! I must say I rather love the bloke on it too but hopefully for different reasons than dd1

Both dd and I love Kipper the Dog (both tv prog and books)!
She also likes Dora, Little Robots, Max and Ruby
Hates the Tweenies
I refuse to let her watch Barnaby the Bear (gives me the creeps) and obviously Barney (it's always good to have an opportunity to reiterate how evil he is )

Uwila - I think your views are a bit extreme. YOu say you won't buy your dd a buggy to push around. What exactly do you fear she will be like aged 19 if she had a dolls buggy aged 2?

I bet most of todays prominent females pushed dolls prams as kids.

I just think the world is going a bit crazy today if we stop 2 year olds doing things they enjoy for the sake of being PC.

As a child I loved the famous five books by Enid Blyton which are now not classed as being PC - did it do me any harm in reading them - no.

Not having a dig - just really curious as to why you won't let her push a buggy

Uwila, IME both boys and girls like to push those little buggies round - because they love to copy us. I caught my DS puting my nipple cream on and BF'ing his bear the other day! I have to admit the thing I hate most on TV are the ads - I try and avoid Channel 5 for that reason despite the charms of Pooh, noddy etc.

Uwila, I see where you're coming from about the buggy, actually - I hate seeing little girls pushed exclusively towards 'girly' things; but I find it OK in practice. (It's also a very good way of getting them to walk a long distance, as it happens.)

Barney is not allowed in the Inferiority Complex as it makes me feel far too ill to be an effective parent. Barnaby and Clifford make me feel queasy too but I live with it. Ditto Tot's TV.

I like the Storymakers, and Spider, and Binka, and Monty the Dog. And the more stoned/camp flights of fancy in Balamory.

I was going to be a "no tv in our house mum" when dd was tiny. That soon went out of the window and she's a bit of an addict now although usually no more than an hour or two, split up over the day (weekends as at childminder's M - F).

Her top favourites are:
Storymakers which I approve of
Fimbles - neutral on this I think
Bits and Pieces - OK
Come Outside - OK
Tikkabilla - great if Paul didn't have such a cringy voice
Balamory - Don't like the new series

She also enjoys:Teletubbies (which I said I'd not let her watch but hey)
Bob the Builder
Barney (sorry Twiglett)
Angelina Ballerina
Maisie
Postman Pat
Tots TV
Andy Pandy

I loathe with a passion, The Shiny Show; Dora the Explorer as I can't stand her voice; some programme with a smarmy Scottish woman who sings songs to children and goes to visit places - no idea what it's called); Tweenies and there's a few more that I don't know the names of.

YEs, I accept my views are a bit extreme. I just think she's too young to promote "girls are supposed to take care of babies". If I thought she REALLY would be happier with one, I'd let her have it. But, I think she just likes to push and steer something around. And seems to be just as happy piling her stuffed animals into the the brick trolly and off she goes.

I think that girls get a lot of encouragement ffrom society to sit pretty and act peacefully, so I try not to do the same at home. Now that isn't to say that other people don't give her dolls and offer her a buggy to push. I don't stop that, I just try to encourage more useful skills (like spacial relationships, etc. at home that I don't think other people will push elsewhere). In the end I figure she'll get a fair balance of exposure and choose her own desires/hobbies which will shape her future. But, I think that the typical "boys" things should beon offer as well.

florenceuk, I know what you mean about the ads on Channel Five. I have written to complain.

Oooh, tell me about the ads on channel 5???

MilkyWay - do you mean Zingalong - hate that with a passion.

Without wanting to get hung up on the buggy pushing, my dd loves pushing hers but not cos she's playing at being 'mummy', it's just a great transport aid (stones and twigs often go in as does Nemo but never dolls).

Dd (3.6) also loves Scooby-Doo more than anything else now

Oh dear, I actually quite like the Tweenies! Sorry!

What's with this new Roly Mo show, though? How irritating is that?? Personally, I think Rocket should have got his own show, not Roly Mo. Am thinking of starting a petition.

Worst show for me is Andy Pandy - outrageously sexist. Someone tell Looby Lou that she doesn't have to cook, clean and sew for Andy and Teddy!

Most irritating person on Cbeebies has to be Chris the presenter. His eyebrows have a life of their own. I find myself becoming alarmingly agressive when he's on screen.

DS (2.5) likes a lot of the Cbeebies stuff and the only other channel we regularly put on for him is Animal Planet (Sky). That way we get round ads aimed at kiddies, although I'm slightly worried that he'll soon be taking out a loan to consolidate his debts and have a holiday, or suing DH and me next time he falls over...

Anyone else worry about how strongly they react to kids' tv???? Think it has a worse effect on me than DS

Children love to copy what grown ups do. My DD loves to take care of her 'babies'. I had to rescue a teddy the other day after she applied copious quantities of nappy cream to its bum. But she also loves to help with DIY (passes tools and takes a keen interest), cooking, pretending to drive when I'm driving. I cannot see any harm in children having dolls and buggies. DD has these, as well as a tool set, farm, train set. I hope that she will have a balanced choice of things to play with. Certainly seems that way at her nursery.

Yes, agree they just like too push something around. All the better if they can fill it up with posessions and junk from outside. Brick trolly is easy to clean, fairly weather proof, and if my next baby is a boy, he can make use of it as well.

That being said, you'll all be interested to know, that this morning she went over to the soft toy ches, and dug out the pink dolly and gave her a kiss.

Uwila - I do have a lot of sympathy with what you say and I think the key is to have a mix of toys around and don't get hung up on what are stereotypical 'boys' and 'girls' toys. I have a ds 4.5 and a dd just over 2. We have lots of cars, trains, knights etc around as you can imagine, but we did get dolls for my ds and he had a buggy too. But, of course, out of everything there is to play with, these are my dd's favourites - she just has a passion for babies at the moment (this includes real life babies too). The nice thing though is that they play together and ds is as happy to play looking after babies with dd as she is to play cars and garages with him. Interesting nature or nurture question though - ds always played with the buggy like it was a vehicle - racing it round, pushing it down slopes on its own, transporting 'stuff' from a to b. DD very much uses it as JUST a baby carrier.

My DD loves tweenies and altho agree with the criticisms on here, I don't get too hung up about it. She loves fimbles and the new roly mo thing, balamory, noddy and pingu too.

my ds has a play buggy - and loves it - it often has scoop, muck or dizzy strapped safely in. One of the mums from playschool had to get her two ds's buggys as she was so tired of the mums of dd's in her street knocking on her door to ask for theirs back!!!
Ds knows i hate the tweenies, but we agree we both like Doodles though

Ds2 likes Dora, Kipper, Angelina Ballerina, Maggie and the Ferocious Beast, Max and Ruby. He refuses to watch Balamory, I Spy, and v often Blues Clues, calling them all rubbish

What about DVDs. Does anyone have good recommendations for a 20 month toddler?

By the way, thanks everyone for your input. I work full time so it's difficult to keep up with what is on the telly and what I would/wouldn't want DD to watch. This discussion has been most helpful.

Uwila, when you've got both of them, big tip: buy an ENORMOUS teaset. They will both play happily with it. And you can feel pleasantly non-sexist. I have two girls, but it works just as well with my nephews.

DD loves her Kipper DVD and anything to do with Winnie the Pooh! Old BEar (although that's not on DVD only video), Bob the Builder and Postman Pat!