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Many parents will disagree, but there are certain positive elements of television for children. Many of us will have grown up watching shows like sesame street which show positive effects on children's development. Shows like this help to improve literacy, cultural awareness, imagination and how to deal with feelings. The following are a few ways for television to be a positive influence in a child's life.
The most important thing that a parent needs to do when allowing their kids to watch TV is to choose wisely and carefully monitor their viewing. Television is like food, in that not everything is good for you, but the right foods in the right doses have a positive influence on your life. Watching TV is exactly the same and the right shows can help children to develop in the right way.
Content is certainly very important. Many children shows are things like cartoons and many of these will have no educational element to them but will merely be entertainment. For very young children you need to select content rich programmes that teach kids about the alphabet and numbers and shapes. These shows tend to teach kids in a fun way with music and colours that help to activate the child's mind.
Another top tip is to make the most out of the time when watching television. You could talk to your children about what they are watching and engage them afterward in activities that follow on from the show and re-enforce what they have just been learning about.
You can sing songs and read books with your children. Also the internet is a wonderful source that will allow you to add additional content and enrich the experience the child is having watching the TV. Therefore, making the most of the time your child spends in front of the screen is important. Make sure you don't just sit them down and go about your daily business.
Finally, you should certainly limit the time they spend watching. There are many other activities that help a child's brain develop and allow children to indulge in some creative play. Things like books, building blocks and puzzles are excellent.
The important thing therefore is to maintain a sense of quality ahead of quantity. Develop a good spread of different shows that you children can watch and make sure that they indulge in other additional activities to stimulate their learning.
