What is Going into Your Child's Brain?
Written by
Tammy Simmons, M.S., CCC-SLP
CEO, Co-Founder of ACCESS
(originally prepared for Little Rock Family, February 2008 Edition)
Televisions and computers are shaping the brains of our youth. Dr. Jane Healy, author of Endangered Minds says, “Television anesthetizes our higher brain functions and disrupts the balance of interaction between the left and right hemispheres.”
The development of connections between areas in children’s brains depends upon the kind of exercise the brain gets. It is these connections in the brain that are critical for development of language, reading, and analytical thinking.
American children spend 22-28 hours per week watching television. That is about three to four hours a day, and that does not even include time spent playing video games. What does this mean to our children?
Recent studies indicate that as little as two hours a day watching TV can cause significant sleep problems in children. It contributes to obesity and poor school performance.
Researchers have found that for every hour young children watch violent programs per day including violent cartoons the risk of later attention difficulties doubles. Research also shows that watching violent or non-educational TV before the age of 3 correlates with the likelihood of having attention problems five years later. Attention problems include difficulty concentrating, restlessness, impulsive behavior and the tendency to be easily confused.
Alternatives to TV include playing and interacting with family and friends, reading, riding bikes, running, playing ball and laughing with friends. Interaction and play teach creativity, social skills, language development and motor skills to name a few. In addition, parents who spend more direct interaction time with their children are able to shape their behavior and give positive reinforcement.
By third or fourth grade, children are reading for content and mastery of subject matter. Any barrier to language development slows this step for success in school. Following the suggestions in TIPS can help your child learn and retain information and have a positive academic experience.
All incidences of attention problems and social skill deficits are not linked to too much TV. If your child exhibits any difficulties discussed above, there are solutions to explore. ACCESS offers a full range of programs including comprehensive psychological, educational, and therapy evaluations to diagnose difficulties. Educational technology training, therapy and tutoring offer treatment for diagnosed difficulties. For more information, contact Beth Rice at 501.217.8600.
TIPS for parents: Limit the amount of TV children watch. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no television for children two years and younger and a maximum of two hours a day for children older than that. Watch TV as a family so that you know what your child is watching. Don’t put a TV in your child’s room. Replace the time spent watching TV with other activities such riding bikes, working puzzles, playing games, making art projects, and reading books.
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