Homeschool World Forum

watching tv. After finishing his work all he wants to do is watch tv. He is only 6. Not only am i worried that he is watching too much, but im worried about what he is watching. I dont worry when im at home, but when is at a friends house or i have to get a babysitter, i dont know what he is watching. ther eis so much filth on tv today that it is sickening. Before i do something drastic like get rid of cable, or tv completely, are there any alternatives?

Limit him to no more than 1 hour per day-stick to that. Turn it off and ignore the fuss. If he throws a fit, keep the TV off the next day. If you have a babysitter, there's no reason you can't enforce the 1 hour rule.
When he plays at a friends' house, let them know about your rule, and the type of programs he is allowed to watch. That works for us.

You may find this thread interesting. My advice is to disconnect the TV - anything you want your son watching can be rented, and you really want him reading more books and watching less TV, at least until he gets older. We've never had a TV in our house.

I voice an amen to getting rid of the TV altogether. We raised the first of our four children without it and they turned out to be wonderful readers who learned to think for themselves. We made a weekly trip to libarary and pulled a cart to drag all the books in and out. We had to get rid of the TV altogether, because my husband and I were the worst violators. We had been raised by the TV in the 70's and we didn't want our kids sitting in front of it all day. Instead, we took our kids on walks, went on bike rides, and did an old fashion concept called - work.

However, somewhere along the way, my youngest children begged for a TV again so they could watch videos - which led to a few programs, which led to watching TV full time again. My youngest son confessed a personal struggle with lustful thoughts from all the underwear commercials and also all the suggestive comments in much of the programming that is on.

Pray about it. I think God has already shown you what to do. Psalm 101:2-3 - I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart. I will set no worthless thing before my eyes.

God bless.

I just heard about a new program from tivo called kidzone. I think it is like the vchip. you might want to check it out. Sounds like it could be a good thing for your kid.

GUESS WHAT!

i got a TIVO! So far it works great. Thanks everybody for their input. I think i might consider the earning tv time through reading. That sounds nice. In the mean time im excited to be using Tivo's Kidzone to help me out!

Thanks again everyone.

You can use parental lock as well. You can allow only some of the good channels for your kid and restrict him from obscene material.

Amen to no TV. We don't have it at our house. We just watch DVD's that I have approved of. We don't watch them regularly, just a few per month. Our house has been a lot happier since we have quit watching all of the bad news. I can easily check out the latest headlines on the internet. Disconnect your TV. Believe me, you'll be much happier.

Have you tried engaging him with other fun activities? Maybe an educational game on a computer or tablet, or involve him in an after school activity to keep him busy?

Hey folks,

Chatting about homeschool sports and activities is awesome! Have you checked out local sports leagues or clubs? They're a blast! Also, for cool extracurriculars, art classes or volunteering can be super fulfilling. Any hidden gems you'd recommend? I'm eager to hear your suggestions!