If Your Kids Don't Watch Tv...

...do they ever learn who all those characters are? Mine have never really seen TV because they don't watch it at daycare, and on the weekends we just don't (except during football season). I'm not in a hurry for them to watch TV, but I wonder if they'll ever learn about things like Thomas and Dora?

 

You can read them books with those characters. I know we have TONS of Thomas books.

 

My kids have picked them up from stories...and we do get the occasional video from the library with them on. My twins new who elmo was before they had ever seen him on tv... I have no idea how. Personally I could care less whether or not they know who most of those characters are.... I don't let them watch a whole lot of TV...and it's for that same reaon that I really don't want them to know who some of those cartoon characters are out there.... I feel like the quality kids shows have just gone down the toilet... So I prefer giving them their weekly dose of tv in a little more controlled manner... we do videos that I have seen and are educational or at the very least, very clean fun.

 

Alden, it's a good thing. It takes them about a week to pick up characters! Scary how fast.

I put on Mickey Mouse Club this weekend while I took a shower and they were saying Micky Mouse by the end of it! SCARY!

They are using their imaginations better when they aren't watching tv!

 

We read books with all the characters. they love sesame street books.

 

I think that they will. Mine never watch Spongebob (we just don't like it here) and they still know who he is. Even if they don't watch tv at home they might see it elsewhere (visiting etc) and pick up on the characters.

 

Mine learned all the Sesame Street characters from their diapers, LOL. Thanks Pampers! Really the SS characters are the only ones they know, and that's from their diapers and also we do have a couple of SS books, plus I have bought them some of the SS plush toys. Otherwise the only characters they know are from books...Curious George, Courdoroy, Emily Elizabeth (who they find much more exciting than Clifford, LOL), etc. Not terribly eager for them to learn about a lot of the other characters, though I know it will happen soon enough. I definitely try not to buy them character-branded things when there's a generic version available, just because I'd like for them to enjoy toys based on the merits of the toy itself and not because it has Dora or whoever on it. If/when we buy a train set I will probably not get Thomas stuff. I dunno, all the character-ification of everything wigs me out!

 

K&K knew the Sesame Street characters from the diapers also. The first year we went to Sesame Place they had never seen an episode and still pretty much recognized the major characters. We have a ton of Dora books and K&K learned who the Clifford characters are from the Clifford snacks (they are a special treat they get only on long car rides, they really are more toys than snacks but it keeps them happy and that keeps mom's peddle to the metal ). Oh, I just realized Kyle recognizes Thomas because of the aquadoodle he got with the trains.

 

My guys didn't watch much TV until my DD was born when they turned 2. They are now well versed in all characters. They seem to even pick ones up when I am flipping thru the channels. Also like pp said there are books and stuff.

 

I've thought a lot about this lately, but probably for not the same reasons you are. I get very annoyed by these commercialized characters being pushed on children. I rarely visit Wal-Mart, but last time I ran in for diapers and scanned the baby clothes, I didn't see one article of clothing that didn't have a character of some sort on it.

Why on earth if my babies do not watch TV (and I don't want them to) would I want to dress them in those characters?

The only exception I can make is Winnie The Pooh, and even that is pushing it for me on some things. I did get them a Spinning Top with those characters on it last week at a local resale shop.

I hope to delay the recognition of Dora and other Cartoon Network/Nick, etc. cartoons for as long as possible -- until I feel they have experienced many other things first, like real animals and real people and classic story books.

Sorry. I didn't mean to spout off ...

 

Mine developed a serious Elmo obsession just from seeing him on their diapers. We do watch some videos, but mostly Baby Einstein. They loved Elmo so much that I finally got some Elmo's World out from the library.

I agree about not wanting to buy stuff covered in characters. I also make some exceptions for Winnie the Pooh (as did a PP), but that's because I love Winnie the Pooh, and the twins only know the characters from the books (the real books - not the Disney books - they love to "read" these - which just means looking at the pictures and naming all the characters).

I'd certainly like to keep my kids from buying into the commercialization of everything, but I'm sure it just gets harder as they get older. I'm sure I'll give in on some things, but for now the one unbendable rule is NO BARBIE!

-Rachel

 

Mine do watch, but my niece really doesn't -- so I'm told. She still seems to know who they all are somehow. Probably from books and from stores and from just the general unavoidableness of it all.

 

They learn incredibly quick...we were going to a Train Exhibit so I had them watch Thomas the Train for 3 days about 2 shows a day...and they recognized the Thomas exhibit immediately.

I purchased the Dora Lego set using Pampers points and they were going to try a Spanish Class so I had them watch about 4 Dora episodes. We switched to an art class so we didn't continue watching any more. Last week...which is about a month and a half later, we went to the grocery store and my girls kept saying Dori, Dori and I looked up and saw some mylar Dora balloons! So that day we opened up our Lego set!

As people mentioned above, there are many ways to introduce popular children's characters.

Sharon