TV at nursery

[tomps]

Do you think that watching an hour or so of tv at nursery every day can be justified when there are paid staff watching who could easily be leading a singalong or reading stories or just encouraging the kids to have a lie down and relax if necessary ? I don't, so I'm going to complain, but I'd appreciate your views.

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Hear hear HappyMumof2 and MaryPop. Videos are used sparingly at dd's nursery from 2 and up and judging from the quality of care she is getting in the baby unit I am confident the TV will not be abused when the time comes.
I think the nursery nurses I know all do a super job. Dd is incredibly happy at her daycare nursery and clearly adores both her current room staff and the lovely team she left behind a couple of months ago. They are extremely patient and attentive to the children and it shows in the happiness of their little charges.

I don't know how some think this is a negative attitude towards carers or teachers. I ahve issues with the nursery management not asking me if I think it's okey. I am paying a fortune for my son to be in this nursery and I don't expect him to watch tv. I never watched tv at school nor nursery when I was little. Why can't they read a book?
Actually one of my main reasons for choosing nursery over childminders was that I didn't want them stuck in front of the tv all day (not that all childminders do this) and I try to limit tv watching at home as much as possible. My children watch tops 5 hours tv a week. They must know some parents don't approve, because they never mention this on the weekly forms they fill out about what my son has done during the week and the tv-time is always in the middle of the day when parents aren't collecting. A massive conspiracy/cover-up is obviously going on!

But why is tv the only way to relax for kids and chill out? I can see its advantage for short bursts but is an hour really necessary?

I wouldnt have like the thought that I was paying a lot of money for one hour a day to have been spent watching tv either. That's not an attack on people who work in nurseries. I just wouldnt want my child to go to one that did that.

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One nursery we looked at did sit the kids facing the tv and they were expected to watch it without getting up.
Not saying others do that but that's not what I wanted for my child.

Not sure if this discussion is about how hard staff work in nurseries.

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Yes, ds went to an excellent one with wonderful staff.

So the telly is for the staff or for the children? My son personally relaxes more when listening to a story that watching tv. I do appreciate how hard you work and how underpaid you are. However, I pay a fortune for a private nursery and I expect to receive quality care back. That is the responsibility of the management and I am not blaming the teachers.Could well be they need tv for one carer to get a lunch break, but this is not my problem, not teachers problem, but mngt! I did not object to an hour of tv now and again on a rainy day in my children's last nursery (same as Marina's nursery I believe), but in our new nursery it's about an hour a day and this I don't like at all.

I would complain, fairymum.

Yes, I should. But now I do worry that I will take away the much needed break from already overworked nursery teachers so I am a bit torn.

An hour is tto long. 10-29 mins possibly but I'm sure they get breaks.

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Yes I am happy and my son seems very happy and settled quickly despite new nursery. The teachers seem very good. It might just be might personal issue with tv-viewing. I am a bit uptight about it. I think I will just ask to reduce it like you suggest Hercules

Im a nursery nurse and I find it odd that your nursery does this. In my previous placements tv has been a big no no, and only as a treat on special occasions..There are so many other activities going on to fit a whole hour of tv anyway. VERY ODD...

Hercules, no where have I said that an hour of television is good for anyone. I am not looking for an arguement, just making sure that quick conclusions are not drawn.

[off-topic] FairyMum - you've moved nurseries then! I have been making friends with various mums at ours and wondering if one of them might be you...seemingly not. I am very happy with ours and remember you speaking warmly of it too. Sorry you had to move...did you relocate?

As I have said earlier, if television viewing is an issue - and a subjrctive one at that, parents need to raise it with the nursery if they feel touchy about it. I want to know if all foods are cooked on site - and the telly viewing length and its relevancy. If a question is asked and answered differently from what you find out happens, of course you have a right to complain and do so bitterly.

As I said before the nurseries I know that use them (mine included) on use them for short bursts (less than 20mins). I could understand if they were plocked in front of the TV for a large postion of their time in the nursery but for short bursts with programmes that are educational I really see can no problem. This is especially the case for my nursery given the layout of the nursery. Otherwise while a story was going on we would have children climbing over each other to go home/come in. Very disruptive to story/song times.

Bit late coming in here but read this thread with interest. My dd goes to nursery 2.5 hours x 3 days a week and they do not watch tv and do not have a tv in the nursery, this was one of the things I asked before she started. No disrespect for nursery staff but I would not expect my dd to be watching TV at nursery. If it was in the nursery blurb, well thats fair enough and parents can make a decision on if thats what they want for the children, but to not mention it I think is wrong.

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I agree with gwenick, toothache, cod etc. Cannot see what the problem is with a bit of TV. Also if kids are there from 8-6 I'm sure the last thing they want is to be entertained/stimulated all day.

Ds2's nursery uses videos- no idea if they have a daily video time or not, but they make no secret of using the telly of it as its often on during the tricky luch drop off pick up time (about 40-50% of days I'd guess). I would imagine its on for maybe half an hour. Absolutely no problem with that- it means the lunch things can be cleared, the children are safe. They get to watch a complete mix of programmes- including things like makaton Dave. i do not see how watching makaton dave can be bad for anybody.

They also leave the children to play with trains etc by themselves (supervised of course) at certain times. I'd much rather they were doing that than being entertained or "stimulated" all day. I hate the way everything is expected to "stimulate" a child these days. I love the way ds2 will go off and play by himself with his trains and love watching and listening to him.

interesting thread. I found out inadvertently after my son started at his very expensive private nursery school (3 hours a day) that they have the kids watch videos, and was really put out. The school only operates from 9-12:15 and then from 1-4 and no kids go for the full day, so it's not really like a day nursery. As some others here have said, it was clear that this was deliberately not mentioned by staff/management at the outset. Because no parents can come into the nursery until the staff unlock the doors on the dot of 4 PM, it's hard to get a good sense of how long they're really watching for (it seems to be at the end of the day, and also as a frequent substitute for outdoor playtime). In my view, TV should be for home - pre-school is where they go to socialise and play, and the staff should be facilitating that, not getting the place cleaned up (they're always out of there on the dot of 4:10 PM!) while the kids are plonked in front of the set. I'd not have a big issue with a little TV if the kids were there 9-6 as I understand the staff need a break, kids need a calm activity and yes, it can be educational if done right. I just don't see it as at all appropriate in a 3 hour pre-school class.