Reception class watching TV every day and it's not educational stuff - AIBU to be annoyed?

[uncrowdedhouse]

Title says it all. DD is in reception. The class is watching TV every day after lunchtime break, even if it's nice weather.
I am really annoyed. I know it's all learning through play at this age but that doesn't go as far as watching Paddington/ Dora/ Lazytown.

AIBU to be annoyed? Is this normal? And what should I do about it?

(Have namechanged in a paranoid way in case any of the other mums from the class recognise this!)

I would be annoyed. Sometimes they used to watch films at dd's nursery and that was annoying. I don't pay a nursery - or send my dd to school - to watch TV. It's difficult enough to curb that at home.

You have every right to be annoyed. I would be speaking to the teacher and/or the head tomorrow.

Dora ffs.

It could be because reception age children are very tired by the afternoons, also a gentle way of starting big school. I would not be against it.

Surely it is just something they are doing at the moment and things will change.

YANBU - that's just lazy on the teacher's part. The odd bit and bob, ok but not every day as a matter of course.
I had this problem at my ds's preschool a few years ago but then they weren't even watching children's programmes and I arrived one day to collect my son to find the children in front of ITN news!!!!
I'd ask the school about it if I were you and express your disappointment.

Before you go rushing off, I would check carefully that they are actually watching tv every day. Your dc may be getting muddled, you know what they are like at that age

They can rest when they get home. It's a lazy teacher and nowt else.

dd1 (in reception) is pretty much out in the playground all afternoon so long as it isn't raining (I can see her from my window). At this age they should be learning through play, not sat on their arses watching Dora the Gimping Explora.

cross on your behalf uncrowdedhouse

Eyetunes, a very good point but this is corroborated with two other people i.e. based on what three children have told their parents independently and also I then checked back with ds, asked when it was and he told me after lunch every day as others had said.

do they watch it until home time? Or is it some kind of treat for those who are finished their lunch and tidied up sort of thing? Just wondering if it is a 10 min programme . I have not heard of it in a school before, but as i say am not against it.

I don't know eyetunes - maybe I can use that as a way of gently asking the teacher about it?

oh my goodness,
no this is not normal. I would complain, I would be against it.

DS has "quiet time" after lunch to deal with the fact that they are probably all quite tired, but I think they sit on floor cushions and listen to a story (might be a story tape; you know how forthcoming Reception children are about the details of their day so I've never quite been able to gather).

Television is one of those things that it seems ought to help you to unwind but IIRC the research suggests that it doesn't have that effect in children at least.

Mind you, you could class Dora as Spanish, Lazytown as PHSE and Paddington as... umm... probably Ancient History, given that it was on when I was a child. And then they are educational.

After lunch in reception we have 'quiet time' where the children read, go on the computer or do something at the writing table. This enables us to do group reading with some of the children.

All I can think of is maybe it is something like this, where some of the class are kept quiet while the teacher listens to readers. OK, TV not brilliant I agree. I'd speak to the teacher first though, children aren't always accurate!

Just a thought - is the 'TV' the interactive whiteboard? It might be educational stuff using using those characters. E.g. phonics

Ok this is a really stupid question...if I want to speak to the teacher do I just ask for a word at dropping off time or put a note in the book bag or something?

Hocus - it could be I guess but not sure it is. I could ask gently about it to ensure I don't sound like I've lept to conclusions.

Ds says it's for quiet time. I don't think it's while groups are going on as apparently they all watch it and also they aren't doing any small group work on reading afik.

Personally I would have been very worried if DD had this at that age. She rarely watched TV in school, but at least anything was appropriate to their age. She is now 10 and I dread how she may have turned out had she been 'educated' by TV shows to the exclusion of reading, writing, play etc.

TV can be educational and I don't doubt that, but this sounds wrong to me.

If my DD school shows tv programmes to my DD on a daily basis, showing things she can watch at home. She will bloody well stay at home with me and watch it so i can control what she watches. Children go to school to learn in a way they cannot at home. Tis the point i thought.

well to be fair it is only one programme a day, not all they do. But I am definitely very unhappy about it.