Give it to me straight - how much tv are your kids watching?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:are you a SAHM or working while your kids are at home?

I am on maternity leave will go back to work in 8 weeks or so. But am up every 2-3 hours at night plus dealing with a newborn. Not how I thought my maternity leave would look like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All the TV.

This!

[Anonymous]

I have a 4 year old and a 16 month old. We really only do screentime for the 4 year old. She usually gets an hour a day but it's yoga or a virtual storytime or music class. She doesn't have a tablet and her online learning consists of a 15 min video from her teacher every morning and afternoon. On the weekends we might let her watch an hour or two in the evenings as a treat.

[Anonymous]

1-2 hours during the day and then a movie night every single night after dinner. 2 working parents just trying to survive. we let them do screens when both of us have to work, then we do shifts where one of us is taking them outside or playing or helping with school work. it isnt perfect and i have had a lot of guilt about it, but it is what it is. kids are K and 1st.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kids are 3, 5 and newborn. The older kids are probably watching 3-4 hours a day right now. I feel like that is a lot but I cannot get anything done with them in the house. I need to get the newborn down for naps, fed, pumping on top of making food for the older kids, laundry, cleaning etc. What about the rest of you? Similar?

It’s fine. You are in a difficult situation. Keep everyone alive, fed, social distanced. That is enough.

[Anonymous]

5 and almost 3 year old. Doing our best to hold off on screens until the afternoon, then 5 year old gets to do scholastic lessons, watch home safari, or play educational games on the kindle while her sister naps for an hour. After that, they both watch Paw Patrol/Octonauts/Frozen for 2ish hours. It's definitely an increase, but it is what it is.

[Anonymous]

Sahm with kids ages 8, 5, 3, and 8 month. Everyone home with me all day. Probably 2 hours of tv and 1-2 hours of kindle a day. So far the schedule are are establishing is tv from 6-7:30 (when kids wake up and I get food ready), outside time, oldest starts school work while younger ones play, one 20 min show while I make lunch, eat lunch, kids do chores, 8 year old and 3 year old get kindles (if 8 year old has finished his school work) while I do school (letters and writing) with 5 year old for an hour 1:30-2:30, then 5 year old gets her kindle and 8 and 3 year old play while I exercise in basement and ignore them. Then play outside between 3:30-4:30, one more show while I
make dinner. Then dinner bath bedtime.

[Anonymous]

6 months and 4 year old here. Probably an hour a day. 30 min in the am while we get ready and dressed. Then dh or I go into the office (essentials) and the other has the kids for half a day and then we switch. Another 30 min in the afternoon while someone makes dinner.
But the 4 year old is really really good at playing alone or being chill while the baby is fed or needs to be taken for a nap. There are days there is a movie after dinner. But in our case more tv is not a good solution as that makes her whinier for even more etc etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm working at home with one kid. I try to keep her off screens until 2 or 3 and then it's a free for all, but if I have a meeting sometimes I need her to be distracted, we are also watching more movies together in the evening. Do what you need to do. It's better for your kids if they look back on this time as "those cool months when we hung out in our pajamas and watched tv all day" than "that scary time when mom was losing her s**t every day."

Thank you for this. This totally makes sense. Not OP but worried about the same things.

[Anonymous]

As much as they want.

We kept restrictions in place the first week and it was nonstop interruptions about it.

Last week we let them have free reign on the TV and were pleasantly surprised that they didn't just veg all day watching TV. They'd watch some, get bored, and go find another activity.

We may keep the loose restrictions once school does start back in the fall (if it does). There's been zero fighting and chores are still getting done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As much as they want.

We kept restrictions in place the first week and it was nonstop interruptions about it.

Last week we let them have free reign on the TV and were pleasantly surprised that they didn't just veg all day watching TV. They'd watch some, get bored, and go find another activity.

We may keep the loose restrictions once school does start back in the fall (if it does). There's been zero fighting and chores are still getting done.

This, exactly. The novelty wears off fairly quickly. We’re allowing pretty much unlimited screen time right now, and they still prefer games and story time and playing in the backyard. If you need to use screens to have time to put the baby down or get chores done or anything else, you should feel no guilt.

[Anonymous]

The second my DH is in charge of out toddler the TV goes on.. so I'd say we are doing 1.5-2hrs a day

[Anonymous]

We are doing 1-2 hrs in morning and watch a movie as a family at night. I feel zero guilt about it. 7 and 8 year old. Also doing 3 hours of school for each spread out, we are both working, making all the meals, laundry, dishes, cleaning up. I also totally agree - if you are less strict about it, they lose interest. Just let them alone for an hour and they will walk away. This is not true for an ipad, IMO and we don't have one for that reason.

[Anonymous]

about 2 hours a day for my 7 year old, plus movie nights. This is up from about 1 hour a day. I feel no shame! if I had as many kids at OP, they'd probably be at about 10 hrs/day lol.

[Anonymous]

3 and 5 year old and two parents who are WFH full time. They watch probably 3 hours a day, which is so much but I need them to sometimes be entertained while I get meetings or work done. Other than that DH and I have been trying to switch them off and honestly they are doing ok entertaining themselves sometimes but it’s risky during meetings bc I don’t know when they may blow up.