Guest guest Posted May 13, 2004 Report Share Posted May 13, 2004 Hi, My wife and I are having a little dispute about cartoons on TV. My son is 7 and all he wants to do lately is have pretend fights to see who is stronger etc. He wants to watch a couple of cartoons with " super " heros. I say yes, let him, it will give him an outlet for his aggression etc. My wife says no, they are too violent. He does know the difference between cartoons and real fighting and knows that real fighting is wrong. Any thoughts Ken M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 13, 2004 Report Share Posted May 13, 2004 Ken, I feel your pain, and Janets. I have a boy with lots of energy, always kick boxing, wrestling and shooting pretend guns. I don't let him watch cartoons much, I mean like a show once every 2 weeks. I just can't deal with the added energy after the show is over. I am not sure it encourages him, since he is doing it already. I am just too selfish to waste my afternoon yelling at him after a show. We use the tv as a reward for good behaviour at school or a good day of eating, which is probably wrong, but that is the deal we have going. So, I guess I am on the fence and not much help..... Beth > Hi, > > My wife and I are having a little dispute about cartoons on TV. > > My son is 7 and all he wants to do lately is have pretend fights to > see who is stronger etc. > > He wants to watch a couple of cartoons with " super " heros. I say yes, > let him, it will give him an outlet for his aggression etc. My wife > says no, they are too violent. > > He does know the difference between cartoons and real fighting and > knows that real fighting is wrong. > > Any thoughts > > Ken M > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 Ken- Whether he watches the " super hero " cartoons or not, he's still going to be exposed to violence in other TV shows, movies, snippets in the news, what he watches at friends' houses, etc. So she's not really protecting him from violence THAT much. I'll also say this. When I was a little girl (figuratively speaking ), I wanted to be a Brownie. I mean I REALLY wanted it. My parents wouldn't let me, using the excuse that I wouldn't fit into the uniform. As it turned out, years later they told me it was becuase they didn't want me hanging out with (forgive me) " the kids from the projects " (lower income). I guess the fact that a lot of those kids were in my classes at school never occurred to them??? Whatever. Anyway, although I won't say that I'm SCARRED from never being a Brownie, to this day I truly do regret that I never was and I still blame them for it. So before you, as parents, put your foot down and say a definite no, see how important this is to him and weigh it against having slightly less exposure to violence. -Sharon- Just an RSS kid who grew up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 14, 2004 Report Share Posted May 14, 2004 Hi Beth, We too use TV as a reward for completeing homework. He can watch TV anytime as long as he is eating while he does so. Ken M > > Hi, > > > > My wife and I are having a little dispute about cartoons on TV. > > > > My son is 7 and all he wants to do lately is have pretend fights to > > see who is stronger etc. > > > > He wants to watch a couple of cartoons with " super " heros. I say > yes, > > let him, it will give him an outlet for his aggression etc. My wife > > says no, they are too violent. > > > > He does know the difference between cartoons and real fighting and > > knows that real fighting is wrong. > > > > Any thoughts > > > > Ken M > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 15, 2004 Report Share Posted May 15, 2004 Hello Ken, Interesting subject. My husband and I debate about what our older son (almost 5 yrs) is exposed to on TV and how much time he is exposed to it as well. I'm sure everyone is probably familiar with the study that came out in April of this year that confirmed the more television children (preschoolers particularly) were exposed to, the more likely they were to acquire ADD. Here's an excerpt and link to a couple of articles about it. " They (Journal of Pediatrics)found that the rapidly changing images could overstimulate a toddler's brain, at a time when it was vulnerable. The study found up to 10 per cent of the children developed some attention problems by the age of seven. " http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s1082529.htm and/or http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-04-05-tv-bottomstrip_x.htm Regardless, we know enjoys certain shows and we let him watch them...especially at 5 p.m. when I or my husband are alone with him and the toddler and we're trying to prepare dinner! I have to think back to when I was growing up. I am certain I watched umpteen episodes of " Popeye " , which is LOADED with violence (not to mention the deragotory terms used on poor Olive). I don't feel that it caused me any irreparable harm! does enjoy " play wrestling " with dad, the only problem we have noticed is he does not like to lose. He becomes very angry and frustrated (sometimes cries) if he loses and even calls himself " a loser " . We're still trying to figure out the most constructive way to deal with that one. I'm sure that was more than my two cents worth. Hope it was somehow helpful. Mom to RSS 07/03/03 & non-RSS 07/08/99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 Ken, You are facing an issue like that of parents who do not allow their children to have any sugar... The more you forbid it, the more enticing it seems to be. Eventually curiosity will win out and the child overdoses on the forbidden fruit. In my humble opinion, you and Janet should reach a compromise. Let watch a little of the superhero cartoons he wants to see so badly, but make sure it is limited. You could even tie it into a reward if you would like. If he does _____, then he can watch an episode of ______. If it really bothers Janet that much, then perhaps one of you can watch the cartoon with and talk about what he has seen. The rest of the time you could limit TV time to channels like Nickelodeon, PBS, Disney, or whatever. Boys, by nature, are more physical and will play with pretend guns, space-age adventures, superheroes, etc. even if they have no other experience with them. Haven't you ever seen take, for example, two spoons and have them fight each other? Man, I remember when Max would do that and more. Everything that came into his posession was a weapon, a bad guy or some sort of flying machine. And the noises that went along with them! He could pow, roar, bang with the best of them. The decision is ultimately up to you and Janet. I, however, do not see any difference in behavior between my students who watch cartoons and those who are in a more controlled environment. But I CAN see a difference between those who watch educational TV often and those who don't. Jodi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 16, 2004 Report Share Posted May 16, 2004 Years ago I was very involved in the Quaker community. Friens are passionatly opposed to violence and passionatly in support of human rights, They are at the forefront of the peace and justice movement . In raising their children they usually do not allow violent film and television images or toy weapons. Many of their children attend private schools with the same focus. They actively involve their kids in protests, fundraisers and letter writing campaigns. A Friend told me a story once about some adults haveing a Meeting to discuss an anti-war protest action while outside the little boys were playing cowboys and indians using their fingers for guns. This kind of play seems to be hardwired into little boys. I will say that as adolescents and young adults most Quaker children share their parents religious and social views. , mom to Destiny RSS, and a host of others Cartoons Hi, My wife and I are having a little dispute about cartoons on TV. My son is 7 and all he wants to do lately is have pretend fights to see who is stronger etc. He wants to watch a couple of cartoons with " super " heros. I say yes, let him, it will give him an outlet for his aggression etc. My wife says no, they are too violent. He does know the difference between cartoons and real fighting and knows that real fighting is wrong. Any thoughts Ken M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 18, 2004 Report Share Posted May 18, 2004 i guess some people say that that seemingly-violent play they do acts out their fears, etc, but I wonder how many of those fears originate form the TV shows. My older son was in a Waldorf preschool and we actually shut the whole thing-videos and all-off for quite a long time. I was more spurred by Willie's (RSS) laying in front of it. It seems that he needs no calories for watching TV and may actually burn a few, eat more doing something else? It was much nicer in our house w/o the TV but I got lazy, asthma season came, (TV w/nebulizer) and we are fully super-heroed and insane. I scream a lot. There has been a study released lately relating ADD and TV also. Kathy (Willie, 3 .RSS , Periactin, 23 lbs) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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