TV TIPS

Helping Your Children Get the Most from Television	Children like television. It attracts them like a magnet. Children absorb information, ideas, and values from television. They respond to its messages quickly. Because television is such a powerful medium, ask yourself, "How can I use television to excite children about learning?" or "Does this program encourage the attitudes and behaviors I want my children to have?" Quality programs for children, like those on PBS, The Ready to Learn Service, can have a positive impact on children's behavior, thinking and language. Yet even the best children's series require your participation to help children get the most from what they watch. Television used selectively, and within the framework of an overall experience, can be one more useful tool in an educator's or a parent's tool box. How can you help children get the most from television?
Helping Your Children Get the Most from Television	Select specific programming. Help your children establish guidelines for choosing programming that is geared to their ages and interests. Watch programs, not just television. Teachers should look for program segments that fit in with and extend the concepts you are working on with your group. Teachers: Make use of the VCR. Tape programs in advance. You can create a video library and then select desired segments.
	Before viewing. Find out what your children already know about the topic, and what they would like to know. Co-view with your children. When possible, watch programs with your children so you can ask questions, monitor their level of understanding, and relate the material to other activities. Join in the program's activities along with your kids. (Parents will have a better idea of what your child is watching if a television is not located in their bedroom.) Extend the learning. Extend the learning. Encourage your children to read books and do activities that relate to the themes of programs they like. Hands-on activities help children make connections between what they read in books or see on television with their own lives.
Helping Your Children Get the Most from Television	Encourage active viewing. Show by example that children can ask questions and express their reactions to the things they see and hear on TV. Once your children are use to the questioning that goes on during viewing, encourage them to suggest when to use the pause and rewind button to review or check for understanding.
	Limit television time. Although television can be a useful part of your learning experiences, it cannot replace hands-on experiences or sub- stitute for the interaction and caring children need from you and their peers. In the class- room, use program segments for a specific purpose, rather than a whole program at one sitting. At home, remember children need time to exercise, talk, create and interact with others. Help your children set clear guidelines for when and how long the TV can be on.