TV TIPS

TVStraightTalk.com believes in responsible viewing habits for all ages, but particularly for young, small children.

Here are some television viewing tips to ensure that all family members get the most satisfaction:
1. Be a role model for good television viewing behavior.
2. Practice and plan selective TV viewing.
3. Watch TV with your kids.
4. Plan activities related to the TV programs you watch.
5. Budget your TV viewing time!

TV tips especially for your family:
• Understand that children of different ages interpret what they see differently. What may be exciting to a teenager may be frightening to a preschool child.

• Make television a planned activity. When a program is over, turn it off, rather than channel surfing for something else to watch.

• Give older children a budget of TV time. Let them look through the listings and determine which programs to watch. Have them present their list for parental approval.

• As a family, go through the TV listings and plan your television viewing for the week. Discuss the reasons for choosing quality family programming.

• Set family TV rules and strive for consistency. The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests children watch no more than one to two hours of TV each day.

• Establish family guidelines for selecting programs. Children should know what you value and the reasons for your choices.

• Choose quality television. Make it a part of your family routine to view educational TV programs often.

• Model good viewing habits. Intentionally decide what you will watch and make it clear to your children that you make decisions about viewing.

• Let TV programs lead to other activities. Have your child draw pictures of the whales she saw in a nature documentary or look up whales in the encyclopedia.

• Use TV to capture your children's curiosity. Encourage them to go to the library to learn more about issues or ideas raised by programs they like.

• Pay attention to what your preschooler sees you or other adults watching. Children are often unintentionally exposed to programs with violence or mature subject matter.

• Set an example for your children. Make your own TV watching a conscious planned for activity.

• When your children stay at the homes of their friends, make sure you ask them if they watched television and if so, what they watched.

• If you're unsure if a program (even cartoons) is suitable for your children, videotape it. You can then preview it when your children are asleep and decide if it's OK for your children.

• Balance children's lives. Make sure children have a variety of activities throughout childhood.

• Regularly talk with other adults about media literacy. When your children see you taking media literacy seriously, they will too.

• Avoid random viewing. Keep the TV off when doing other activities. Make television a planned activity.

• Watch the programs your children watch. It's the best way to monitor their viewing habits.

• Check the ratings and read descriptions of television programs to help you decide
whether a program is appropriate for your children.

• To assure consistency, divorced parents should agree on viewing guidelines that are implemented in the homes of both parents.

• Do not watch news within the hearing or viewing range of young children. The images are often violent and produce anxiety in young children.

Encourage your children to spend as much time reading as they spend watching television.

Listed below are various sites that list program information along with the program ratings we have provided with this site:
o www.screenit.com
o www.moviereports.com
o www.moviemom.com
o www.psvratings.com

We encourage you to get to know filtering systems that allow you to block TV programs, parts of movies, and the Internet. Both cable and satellite companies offer parental control locks for the services they provide.