Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

[Guest guest]

when your horizon is cartoons what is your life going to be.

its a question of being exposed to great minds or lesser...

the difference between emily dickenson and alan ginsberg.

there is a very conspicous bankruptcy of thought on the as irc

channels...

i already see the adults

the current crop of teenagers are right offs.

> I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter even

> more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

losing

> herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is always

> responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She is

> good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something else

quite

> easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters with

> reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than kids

> believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of kids

> believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed animal

> she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but I

don't

> think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch are

> camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been in a

> couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family, etc-

so

> this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no? I

am

> not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines from

> videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a productive

> habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more, but

she

> spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends so I

> don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

learned

> alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she was

> very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I guess

each

> situation can be unique.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi: her repeating lines from videos, etc. is called scripting- it is part of the

way she learns language, and is beneficial to her.

D

Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

when your horizon is cartoons what is your life going to be.

its a question of being exposed to great minds or lesser...

the difference between emily dickenson and alan ginsberg.

there is a very conspicous bankruptcy of thought on the as irc

channels...

i already see the adults

the current crop of teenagers are right offs.

> I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter even

> more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

losing

> herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is always

> responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She is

> good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something else

quite

> easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters with

> reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than kids

> believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of kids

> believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed animal

> she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but I

don't

> think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch are

> camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been in a

> couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family, etc-

so

> this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no? I

am

> not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines from

> videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a productive

> habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more, but

she

> spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends so I

> don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

learned

> alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she was

> very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I guess

each

> situation can be unique.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Yes, you are right about that. Videos are actually what

finally got my daughter talking in the first place. I also believe

because she has apraxia, she was encouraged with the video talk

because if she is repeating lines of familiar videos we knew what she

was saying. She used to be very uninteligable even to us, but we

understood the movie lines she would say. Many times now when she

tells us something(not about a video just general conversation) she

will lock eyes with us until she is positive we understood what she

was saying. She gets very frusterated-understandably-when she is not

understood. She also enjoys the closed captioning-we put that on

alot so she is reading along with whatever she is watching. I believe

that is a big reason why she could read so well so early.

--

- In , " CJ Dir " <gstone98@t...> wrote:

> Hi: her repeating lines from videos, etc. is called scripting- it

is part of the way she learns language, and is beneficial to her.

> D

> Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

>

>

> when your horizon is cartoons what is your life going to be.

>

> its a question of being exposed to great minds or lesser...

>

> the difference between emily dickenson and alan ginsberg.

>

> there is a very conspicous bankruptcy of thought on the as irc

> channels...

>

> i already see the adults

>

> the current crop of teenagers are right offs.

>

>

> > I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter

even

> > more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

> losing

> > herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is always

> > responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She

is

> > good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something else

> quite

> > easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters with

> > reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than

kids

> > believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of

kids

> > believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed

animal

> > she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but I

> don't

> > think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch

are

> > camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been

in a

> > couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family,

etc-

> so

> > this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no?

I

> am

> > not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines

from

> > videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a

productive

> > habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more,

but

> she

> > spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends so

I

> > don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

> learned

> > alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she

was

> > very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I guess

> each

> > situation can be unique.

> >

> >

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi : have you checked out the hyperlexia website?

Most hyperlexics read or recognize numbers very early and have speech problems.

They script and love closed captioning. My son is both dyspraxic and hyperlexic.

My son learned much from videos also... he is an honor roll student now- and I

do believe they were of benefit in many ways.

Just a thought....

Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

>

>

> when your horizon is cartoons what is your life going to be.

>

> its a question of being exposed to great minds or lesser...

>

> the difference between emily dickenson and alan ginsberg.

>

> there is a very conspicous bankruptcy of thought on the as irc

> channels...

>

> i already see the adults

>

> the current crop of teenagers are right offs.

>

>

> > I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter

even

> > more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

> losing

> > herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is always

> > responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She

is

> > good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something else

> quite

> > easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters with

> > reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than

kids

> > believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of

kids

> > believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed

animal

> > she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but I

> don't

> > think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch

are

> > camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been

in a

> > couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family,

etc-

> so

> > this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no?

I

> am

> > not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines

from

> > videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a

productive

> > habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more,

but

> she

> > spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends so

I

> > don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

> learned

> > alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she

was

> > very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I guess

> each

> > situation can be unique.

> >

> >

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

This is an interesting thread! Wow!

's first speech was a recitation of the movie Pinocchio, word for word.

For a long time, he'd give responses from movies as answers when he didn't

have any language of his own to offer.

I'm a great believer in teaching concepts " through " the reinforcer (high

interest items, in this case videos) with my children. I feel I get more

attention and mileage out of a lesson that is in itself a natural reinforcer

for my kids. Like any kids, if they're engaged by the materials I'm using,

they're more likely to " learn. "

Recently, after a great tip from the verbal behavior list, we used videos of

's sister and a friend engaged in various situations to teach the

concepts behind " give and take " in conversations, and for various " social

situations " , such as birthday parties, receiving and giving gifts, circle

time behavior in school, how to order a meal in a restaurant, how to tell

someone you're lost.....wow, the list was endles.

He picked it up immediately. The home videos represent some of the best

conversation builders we've ever used with him. Because of the familiar

people in the video's, LOVES them. We weren't able to get too much

" unscripted " progress in conversational and social language until we started

using video models of " real life " situations. We were sick of doing

discrete trials, trying varying prompting strategies that weren't working,

and was sick of feeling like he " wasn't getting it. " (I hate " no,no "

prompting for that reason).

So, the videos shook things up for him. We'd present the video " lesson " to

, set up a few practice runs, then as a reiforcer for mastering the

" video " lesson, we'd re-video involved in the situation he'd just

learned and let him watch that. Seeing himself on TV just thrilled him, lol!

Video's of doing what kids so also provided us with a ready

" maintenance " review lesson to do from time to time.

Of course, 's now looking for an agent for his budding career, but

hey....I'll take it. ;c)

I have always found it much easier to teach using high interest items and

situations than to attempt to eliminate them from my children's lives. Since

I changed my thinking on this (used to be such a behaviorist, lol), my

children have not only blossomed cognitively....they are also happy kids who

are allowed their interests as long as they don't " get lost " in them.

Perseverance can be your friend!

Hugs and Merry Christmas to all!

Liane

Liane Gentry Skye

author

<A

HREF= " http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books & field-auth\

or=Skye%2C%20Liane%20Gentry/103-0462897-9459854 " >Turn Around, Bright Eyes -

Snapshots from a Voyage Out of Autism's Silence</A>

<A HREF= " http://talkingwithpictures.com/ " >Talking With Pictures</A>

" nonverbal " does not have to mean " unable to communicate "

[Guest guest]

Liane wrote:

<I have always found it much easier to teach using high interest items and

situations than to attempt to eliminate them from my children's lives. Since

I changed my thinking on this (used to be such a behaviorist, lol), my

children have not only blossomed cognitively....they are also happy kids who

are allowed their interests as long as they don't " get lost " in them.

Perseverance can be your friend!>

I very much agree with not allowing to get lost. But how do you do that. What do

you do if it happens? How much can they be in it if they do not get lost?

I tried to follow this with my son (7 3/4) but this is the 3rd or 4th time in

his life that I had to forbid him doing something for a longer while.

It was Donkey Kong earlier, because he was " lost in it " in a way that the themes

of DK started to dominate his life (at ege 5). I took hom off it for half a

year. Then he was allowed. Then I had to take him off again.

Currently we have a problem with computer games. My son very quickly goes

through them and always wants new ones, which - unless you 'download' free of

charge - is a big money eater. His latest favourite is Empire Earth. The problem

is that I always apply time restrictions to computer games but he is harder and

harder to stop and lately every single time there is a tantrum and a huge drama

when his time is up. He is sorry that he must go to school because he would

rather play the computer. He begs for more time first, but can not take an

answer of NO. We decided after giving him a lot of 'another chance'-s, that he

will not play the computer for 2 weeks initially but it may be longer. I would

like him be forced to discover alternative ways to spend his time.

We had a different arrangment for a while. If he went outside to play, he got 2x

the time spent outside as screen time. He went outside for an hour, he got 2

hours. It is not much if you add TV and computer together. And if you consider

that 1 hour outside for him was a long time. But it was still too much and he

ended up with collecting time some days and then playing 2 - 3 hours on the

computer. I stopped the method, because it was not good enough. He was also

really angry and felt controlled. He would like to do what he wants and have no

limits. I told him that nobody lives without limits, even adults have lots of

limits.

I think is right in a sense that this highly entertaining media (TV,

computer games, etc) is not good for AS kids.

I am not debating that there is also value. One just need to find a balance for

that individual. A balance where real life things do not get lost and neglected.

The biggest problem is that real life is EXTREMELY BORING compared with the

thrill factors and visual stimulation levels of movies and games.

The biggest lesson I learnt in life is that nothing is as valuable than DOING

SOMETHING YOURSELF, TO APPLY YOURSELF, TO GET INVOLVED in real things.

Did you notice that the entire society is going to a different direction? Being

entertained! All the time! Life is not about being entertained. Life is about

doing something with yourself. Building a box or a bird house. Planting some

flowers in the garden. Observing a part of nature. Walking. Helping somebody.

How can we show these kids the value of all these things if these are so boring

and slow compared with a high action shooting game?

What we are missing is those real life kids movies where a bunch of kids have

all sort of 'possible adventures'. Not magic. One day we were watching a drama

about some kids who were living in an orphanage, because of various reasons. My

son accidentally started watching it and he got absolutely interested. I could

not let him watch it, because it was a MA drama, intended for adults (the kids

were abused in different ways in that orphanage), but I remember having these

sort of things on TV when I was a kid. Like the Brady bunch for you guys. We had

different ones in Hungary. ALL SHOWS TODAY are missing these elements. They are

all magic and unreal. I do not even like Disney any more for this reason. AS

kids do not need the impossible adventure. They would benefit from seeing a

bunch of kids from the neighbourhood having their everyday fights and struggles

and playtime and talktime layed out in front of them, so they could see it all

and watch the parts that are more interesting all over again. Stuff that is

relevant. Stuff that is connected to today but is not about shooting in space or

being a magical captain who can save the earth from pollution. These things are

TOO BIG. Stuffed with too much meaning. Or no meaning at all. No middle way. No

simplicity.

Something like ER but with kids for kids. Like a school or a neighbourhood. With

kids that are 6 - 10 years olds. A different series for 10 - 14.

This is why Harry Potter is good (kids in a school), but it is still way too

magical.

Unfortunately, big cities are not good places for promoting a balanced living.

This discussion is too complex. I stop here.

All the best

Elvira

Australia

[Guest guest]

Videos work great for my NT kids. My daughter Jenna (w/ autism) is just now

able to watch them and get something out of them We took her completely off

of them when our youngest was born 22 months ago. What a pain! She was

like an addict screaming and trantruming for more TV. That was her stim.

I'm sure she had no real sense of what was going on on the screen, just the

colors and lights flicking. A few months ago I bought the " Baby Bumble Bee "

video set for Jenna. I watched the first tape with her every day for a

week. Every day she would say a couple of the words but she wasn't able to

use them outside the video. The baby of course watched the tape 3 times and

knew every word before it was said. At least now when Barney is on Jenna

laughs at the appropriate places. But for some reason videos don't prompt

speech for her.

Have you seen those " Muzzy " tapes? They have an ESL tape that I thought

would be good for apraxic kids.

Valeri, mom to:

Jenna (4 1/2)

(3 1/2)

LeeLee (1 1/2)

Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

Yes, you are right about that. Videos are actually what

finally got my daughter talking in the first place. I also believe

because she has apraxia, she was encouraged with the video talk

because if she is repeating lines of familiar videos we knew what she

was saying. She used to be very uninteligable even to us, but we

understood the movie lines she would say. Many times now when she

tells us something(not about a video just general conversation) she

will lock eyes with us until she is positive we understood what she

was saying. She gets very frusterated-understandably-when she is not

understood. She also enjoys the closed captioning-we put that on

alot so she is reading along with whatever she is watching. I believe

that is a big reason why she could read so well so early.

--

- In , " CJ Dir " <gstone98@t...> wrote:

> Hi: her repeating lines from videos, etc. is called scripting- it

is part of the way she learns language, and is beneficial to her.

> D

> Re: O/T More thoughts on the video debate...

>

>

> when your horizon is cartoons what is your life going to be.

>

> its a question of being exposed to great minds or lesser...

>

> the difference between emily dickenson and alan ginsberg.

>

> there is a very conspicous bankruptcy of thought on the as irc

> channels...

>

> i already see the adults

>

> the current crop of teenagers are right offs.

>

>

> > I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter

even

> > more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

> losing

> > herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is always

> > responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She

is

> > good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something else

> quite

> > easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters with

> > reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than

kids

> > believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of

kids

> > believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed

animal

> > she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but I

> don't

> > think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch

are

> > camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been

in a

> > couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family,

etc-

> so

> > this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no?

I

> am

> > not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines

from

> > videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a

productive

> > habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more,

but

> she

> > spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends so

I

> > don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

> learned

> > alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she

was

> > very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I guess

> each

> > situation can be unique.

> >

> >

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

> Currently we have a problem with computer games. My son very quickly

goes through them and always wants new ones, which - unless you

'download' free of charge - is a big money eater. His latest favourite

is Empire Earth. The problem is that I always apply time restrictions

to computer games but he is harder and harder to stop and lately every

single time there is a tantrum and a huge drama when his time is up.

He is sorry that he must go to school because he would rather play the

computer.

I would not allow computer time in the morning before school. In my

opinion, the best time for tv/computer, is right AFTER school when

there is a transition period from " school " to " home " . Give 30-60

minutes of computer time [use a clock or timer], then stop. Be sure

to give a 5 minute warning to allow him to transition, before the time

ends.

If he tantrums, don't say anything, just stand there and set a timer

[or a stopwatch]. As long as the tantrum goes on, that amount of time

will be removed from the next day's tv/computer session. Be sure to

explain this to him before you actually implement it. When the

tantrum stops, say " that was 3 minutes " or whatever, and the next day,

he can physically watch you set the timer for 3 minutes less than it

would usually be.

This worked very well for my son, and for others I know. Maybe it

will work for your child also.

>>felt controlled. He would like to do what he wants and have no

limits.

What I described above is considered a compromise. You set the

outside limit, he chooses the maximum by the amount of time he is

cooperative. He can choose to tantrum at the cost of lost time, or he

can choose to cooperate.

> What we are missing is those real life kids movies where a bunch of

kids have all sort of 'possible adventures'. Not magic.

As my son has improved, he has gone from preferring animated videos

[which are the only ones he would watch] to preferring " real " videos.

Right now the only videos he will watch are videos of real trains and

animals and things [like There Goes A Train]. Not even with story

lines, just videos where he watches the trains and animals, and people

interacting with them.

The only television we watch is animal shows, and I do allow the

holiday specials like Charlie Brown Christmas, which they will

sometimes watch and sometimes not.

We don't play video games here, altho I allow some computer time for

animal and other similar related CDs.

Dana

[Guest guest]

-Elvira,

What about making the computer disappear until he is over this

obsession with it? If you have room in your house maybe you could

put the monitor away and tell him it broke. We do this sometimes if

my daughter gets too caught up in something about a movie, toy

whatever-it disappears and she gets over it much faster than if we

just tell her she cannot use it. In the summer we spend a great deal

of time at our camp on a lake and there is no tv allowed whatsoever-

she knows and accepts this and is perfectly happy there all day

without it. At home she asks for it alot, but will find something

else to do when I am firm that tv time is over. If she continues to

sneak the tv on I unplug it and that's that. Luckily (in my opinion

anyway) we live in a small town so we have a big backyard, parks, etc

and she loves to play outside. Does your son enjoy books? Maybe he

would enjoy going to the library to pick out some new books to read?

When your son does use the computer does he insist on " fluff " games

or does he enjoy the learning ones like Reader Rabbit? I ask because

my daughter got started on the computer with cd's like the Lion King,

but now she enjoys the educational ones alot. I have to make time to

sit with her so she is really working them, though or she will just

play around with them. Like if she likes the noise it makes for a

wrong answer she will not try to get the right answer lol.

If your son is finding school unexciting, maybe its time to get on

his teachers to spice it up! Does he enjoy making things like art

class projects? My daughter loves this and is always very proud of

her creations. I had to request she get more time to do this this

year because she is in 2nd grade and there is alot more book work

(read that as not fun) than crafty stuff and she was not enjoying it

at all. She needs regular breaks from the tough stuff to exercise

(she uses a trampline, ball pit, etc several times throughout her

school day) and do something crafty. Her teachers recently agreed to

let me send in some of her favorite educational cd's for them to

install and then she can have computer time as a reward for

completing her work. We have only been doing this a few days but she

brought home a huge pile of papers she had completed yesterday and

she was still in a great mood!

Where tv programs are concerned, you are the parent and it is

certainly up to you what you let your son watch. I understand what

you mean about there not being very good tv for kids these days! If

you feel the tv shows are too inappropriate maybe rent him some feel

good movies instead. Not the fluff Disney stuff or violent stuff, but

old ones like The Appledumpling Gang or Homeward Bound or whatever.

Movies with a real story he might get into but not be spellbound

by.There are some really good Christmas ones this time of year.

Anyway, just a few rambling thoughts. I enjoyed reading your post.

This is something I am always considering as well.

-- In

, " Elvira Kurti " <elvira.kurti@o...>

wrote:

>

>

> Liane wrote:

> <I have always found it much easier to teach using high interest

items and

> situations than to attempt to eliminate them from my children's

lives. Since

> I changed my thinking on this (used to be such a behaviorist, lol),

my

> children have not only blossomed cognitively....they are also happy

kids who

> are allowed their interests as long as they don't " get lost " in

them.

> Perseverance can be your friend!>

>

> I very much agree with not allowing to get lost. But how do you do

that. What do you do if it happens? How much can they be in it if

they do not get lost?

>

> I tried to follow this with my son (7 3/4) but this is the 3rd or

4th time in his life that I had to forbid him doing something for a

longer while.

>

> It was Donkey Kong earlier, because he was " lost in it " in a way

that the themes of DK started to dominate his life (at ege 5). I took

hom off it for half a year. Then he was allowed. Then I had to take

him off again.

>

> Currently we have a problem with computer games. My son very

quickly goes through them and always wants new ones, which - unless

you 'download' free of charge - is a big money eater. His latest

favourite is Empire Earth. The problem is that I always apply time

restrictions to computer games but he is harder and harder to stop

and lately every single time there is a tantrum and a huge drama when

his time is up. He is sorry that he must go to school because he

would rather play the computer. He begs for more time first, but can

not take an answer of NO. We decided after giving him a lot

of 'another chance'-s, that he will not play the computer for 2 weeks

initially but it may be longer. I would like him be forced to

discover alternative ways to spend his time.

>

> We had a different arrangment for a while. If he went outside to

play, he got 2x the time spent outside as screen time. He went

outside for an hour, he got 2 hours. It is not much if you add TV and

computer together. And if you consider that 1 hour outside for him

was a long time. But it was still too much and he ended up with

collecting time some days and then playing 2 - 3 hours on the

computer. I stopped the method, because it was not good enough. He

was also really angry and felt controlled. He would like to do what

he wants and have no limits. I told him that nobody lives without

limits, even adults have lots of limits.

>

>

> I think is right in a sense that this highly entertaining

media (TV, computer games, etc) is not good for AS kids.

>

> I am not debating that there is also value. One just need to find a

balance for that individual. A balance where real life things do not

get lost and neglected. The biggest problem is that real life is

EXTREMELY BORING compared with the thrill factors and visual

stimulation levels of movies and games.

>

> The biggest lesson I learnt in life is that nothing is as valuable

than DOING SOMETHING YOURSELF, TO APPLY YOURSELF, TO GET INVOLVED in

real things.

>

> Did you notice that the entire society is going to a different

direction? Being entertained! All the time! Life is not about being

entertained. Life is about doing something with yourself. Building a

box or a bird house. Planting some flowers in the garden. Observing a

part of nature. Walking. Helping somebody. How can we show these kids

the value of all these things if these are so boring and slow

compared with a high action shooting game?

>

> What we are missing is those real life kids movies where a bunch of

kids have all sort of 'possible adventures'. Not magic. One day we

were watching a drama about some kids who were living in an

orphanage, because of various reasons. My son accidentally started

watching it and he got absolutely interested. I could not let him

watch it, because it was a MA drama, intended for adults (the kids

were abused in different ways in that orphanage), but I remember

having these sort of things on TV when I was a kid. Like the Brady

bunch for you guys. We had different ones in Hungary. ALL SHOWS TODAY

are missing these elements. They are all magic and unreal. I do not

even like Disney any more for this reason. AS kids do not need the

impossible adventure. They would benefit from seeing a bunch of kids

from the neighbourhood having their everyday fights and struggles and

playtime and talktime layed out in front of them, so they could see

it all and watch the parts that are more interesting all over again.

Stuff that is relevant. Stuff that is connected to today but is not

about shooting in space or being a magical captain who can save the

earth from pollution. These things are TOO BIG. Stuffed with too much

meaning. Or no meaning at all. No middle way. No simplicity.

>

> Something like ER but with kids for kids. Like a school or a

neighbourhood. With kids that are 6 - 10 years olds. A different

series for 10 - 14.

>

> This is why Harry Potter is good (kids in a school), but it is

still way too magical.

>

> Unfortunately, big cities are not good places for promoting a

balanced living. This discussion is too complex. I stop here.

>

> All the best

>

> Elvira

> Australia

[Guest guest]

> > > I have been contemplating this alot and observing my daughter

> even

> > > more as she watches different videos. I really don't see her

> > losing

> > > herself in them, but maybe I'm missing something. She is

always

> > > responsive to anyone around her even while the tv is one. She

> is

> > > good about it when I shut the tv off and will do something

else

> > quite

> > > easily. The thing about her confusing fictional characters

with

> > > reality...I don't know...how is that different really say than

> kids

> > > believing in Santa Claus and the Easter bunny? Don't alot of

> kids

> > > believe in fictional characters? She has a favorite stuffed

> animal

> > > she loves and enjoys videos of (Alvin from the chipmunks) but

I

> > don't

> > > think she seems him as " real. " Her favorite videos to watch

> are

> > > camcorder movies from things like school events (she has been

> in a

> > > couple of school plays/concerts) holidays, stuff with family,

> etc-

> > so

> > > this would be more about her just enjoying these memories, no?

> I

> > am

> > > not seeing the damage, I guess. She does like to repeat lines

> from

> > > videos sometimes so I can see where that isn't exactly a

> productive

> > > habit and we are trying to cut her down on tv time even more,

> but

> > she

> > > spends a ton of time interacting with her family and friends

so

> I

> > > don't see a great harm. Like mentioned before, she has

> > learned

> > > alot from shows like Blues Clues, Sesame St, etc and when she

> was

> > > very little and quite unresponsive videos drew her out. I

guess

> > each

> > > situation can be unique.

> > >

> > >

> >

> >

> >