Question of the Week: Do you limit media in your home?

[jpapadpapa]

I thought this might be an interesting question for this week! So, tell us...Do you limit media in your home?

We don't have any hard and fast rules on this, but I do try to keep my kids from spending too much time with any one thing, media included. That said, I think I probably need to limit the Legos a little more! I think it's like all things in life...moderation is key. Anything that becomes so focal to our lives that it can take the place of everything else, including God, needs to be limited. We just need to teach our kids to have self-control in all areas, media and otherwise.

On the other hand, media can be a wonderful tool. We do part of our school days on the computer (typing exercises, Khan Academy, and math games). They also have some books online that they read and I sometimes allow regular, non-educational computer games, as well. They have to ask to do that, though. I have heard it argued that we live in a culture of play and that computer games are frivolous and should be avoided. I somewhat agree and if needed, I would get rid of them entirely. However, I think sometimes play is a good reward for hard work. And, further, computer games have been shown to be beneficial for learning hand-eye coordination. So, we feel that games have their place in limited amounts.

As for TV watching, that is virtually non-existent when it comes to just turning it on and watching. We tend to record shows (Jeopardy, Hogan's Heros, etc.) and watch on our own timetable, commercial-free. One of the things I like about this is that it keeps us from falling into the temptation of neglecting important things because "our show is on". I noticed that we had started to skip family devotions and reading time at night because we wanted to watch Jeopardy. Now we are not tempted to do that because it's set to record every night! We also rent movies through Christian Cinema and Blockbuster (we'd do Netflix except that we run Linux on our computer/TV, so we can't stream them). I am very pleased with the fact that my kids would often rather play on their own or go outside than watch TV. I consider this one of my successes!

[Karen Davis]

I will be brave and reply. I would have had different answers for this question at various stages in my homeschooling life. My oldest loves to remind me of the timers on AOL that we used to use and how much she hated them! At this point, I have almost no limits on media at all and that does often provoke strong comments (ie judgments). I have no issue about what others choose to do so when reading my "reasons," please don't read into them any implied sense that I think everyone should do the same.

One reason that I do not have limits is that I have a whole brood of very right brained, electronic oriented children. Interruption of the internet in our household is considered a disaster on par with losing our water supply. I have the highest turbo version of TWC, the latest modem/router and wireless everywhere. At any given moment of the day, there are at least 3 different electronic devices going in our house. Multiple computers, game thingies and Netflix.

After doing various configurations, the house is more harmonious this way. And for mine, unlimited access doesn't mean that is all they do. But I cannot say that mine would rather go out and play in the dirt because that would be a bald faced lie! They do enjoy a number of non-electronic pursuits including drawing, building, cultural events, cooking, airsoft and animals.

We do not get cable. The movies and TV are mostly from Netflix which does eliminate the "commercial" aspect and since it is always available, there is no huge rush to watch based on schedules and such. My children will "OD" on a series or a game and then put it away for a long time.It is kind of hard to describe how this works exactly.

As far as browsing the internet is concerned, I am more of a "teach them how to use it and how to be safe" parent. I detest filters and so do they. I do understand their use and am not advocating not using them! But we prefer the other way. Part of that is that we are not terribly shocked at bad language, etc. My children understand that if they start picking it up and repeating, then limits will happen which is a huge motivation for them. Also note that my children are mostly older - now 23, 21, 15 and 10. When you have older kids living at home, it changes the nature of limits and rules considerably in a way that you have to experience for yourself since I am sure it is different for everyone though i have never heard anyone say that it made no difference at all. I would imagine if your standards were super high (ie adults also expected not to watch anything with any language, etc), it wouldn't make a difference. But for the majority, allowances are made for maturity and as that happens, it tends to trickle down no matter what.

Here is an interesting article from this week as well as a link to a TED talk.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/...ccur-if-so-why

http://www.ted.com/talks/jane_mcgoni...G80Aw.facebook

[jpapadpapa]

Karen, I actually thought of you when I posted this because I remembered that you did not limit media. I'm glad you replied! I think you made a really good point about the ages of your children being a factor to limits. I, for one, could not live without my internet! I totally related to this:

Interruption of the internet in our household is considered a disaster on par with losing our water supply.

For me, the internet has become an indispensable tool. I shop, write, research, connect with friends, try to earn a little extra income, etc. on my computer and even have started using it to remind me of things (mainly household chores in my "real world") via pop-ups from my online calendar (I call it my own personal nag). So, I do think it can be a very useful thing, while at the same time finding myself somewhat wishing I were not so dependent upon it!

Years ago when Konur was just a baby, I remember being very annoyed with my husband, who is in IT, because he was always on it. One day, I decided to take an "if you can't beat him, join him" approach and I have never regretted it. I allowed him to teach me about computers and how they operate and I began to discover on my own how useful they really are. I now somewhat understand what he is talking about when he tells me about his day, which is more than most women with "geeks" for husbands can say! So, I think it's been a good thing. I'm sure one day my kids will be just as techie as we are, but until then, I'm enjoying keeping them semi-unplugged just a bit longer!