TV in kid's bedroom? Yes/No? Limitations?

[DisneyBamaFan]

Tried it - it caused them to lose sleep, stay up too late. We now have no TVs in any bedrooms, including ours. We all read more and sleep better.

We do have 3 entertainment rooms on the other floors, though. Their gaming systems are connected to a TV in the basement.

 

[Tinkermommy]

No TV in the kids bedroom or even in their playroom. They are young now, but I don't foresee getting them one in the future either. Several of DD's friends have them. Even new flat screens!

We do have a TV in our bedroom. I sleep great and no problems with other activities either. Sorry, that's probably TMI!

 

[ICF]

No---my kids are 10 & 7.

ML SIL's two kids both have TVs in their room (with sat. service) and they are 7 & 4. The 7 yr old got it when she was 3 or so, b/c her parents apparently have trouble telling her no when she wanted to watch TV all day.

All that said.....I had a TV growing up in my room. I'd guess I was 10 - 12 or so when I got it, but dont really remember. I think I turned out pretty much ok. I don't think either of my kids need one today, but I am not opposed to putting one in there as they get older.

 

[DeniseinNS]

NO, I don't feel that kids need tv's in their rooms when they are young. We as a society spend and waste too much time watching TV as it is. There is alot of violent and inappropriate things on tv, you cannot always monitor that in bedrooms as you can in the living room.

http://www.myfamilyexercise.com/TV in Kids Rooms Leads to Obesity.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8471072/

 

[pooh4evr]

No way- I had one when I was a senior in HS - but that was before the digital change of course- so now for them to have one we would have to have special outlets put in their rooms - and I would NEVER see the kids, and i am sure the TVs would be on all night too.

 

[Tinkerbelle's Mom]

Yes, when dd (9) I moved into our new house about a year ago and dd finally got her own room my cousins gave her a TV and DVD/VCR combo for her room.

It is not connected to cable and her gamiing system (Wii) is in the living room so we can play together (or I can play after she has gone to bed, ).

In the enitre year I think it has only been used twice and once was by me when I was cleaning out some storage space in her room (quite the chore).

My cousins all grew up with TVs in thier room so they wanted dd to have a room like they had as kids. It was a very nice gesture but dd is not the type to want to go off alone to watch TV. It is just the two of us afterall.

 

[beck0321]

No TV in the kids bedroom or even in their playroom. They are young now, but I don't foresee getting them one in the future either. Several of DD's friends have them. Even new flat screens!

I'm not really sure they make tube televisions anymore, or if they do, I don't think they are readily available. But small flat screens are pretty cheap now anyway.

I had a TV in my room growing up and I was fine. At first it was this old knob TV from the 70s that only went to channel 12
When a lightening strike fried it, my parents got me this small TV with a VCR. I only really watched it during the summer (nick at night) or on the weekend when my friends would come over (we would usually rent a movie).
It's weird though that during the summers when my parents were at work, I would watch the TV in my parents room and not the one in the front...I don't know why.

But my family wasn't really big on watching TV when I was growing up so I never locked myself in my room to get away and watch it. Usually I would go do something outside if I felt like I really needed to get away (or maybe I never felt like I needed to get away from my parents BECAUSE I was always outside). TV was just something I did on the weekends or summer nights when I would stay up late.

 

[NMAmy]

DD's had one in her room with a VCR since she was about 10. For many years, it was just the VCR. It's been hooked up to cable for the last couple of years.

She's 19 so I don't really care what she's watching. When she's home, she still hangs out with us and really only watches it in her room when she's up later than us or during the day when we're at work.

Now, I absolutely refuse to have a television in my bedroom.

 

[Tinkermommy]

I'm not really sure they make tube televisions anymore, or if they do, I don't think they are readily available. But small flat screens are pretty cheap now anyway.

He he, see how long it's been since I shopped for a TV. I am hoping our old one dies so we can get a new one! This is what the one in our family room looks like

 

[NeverlandClub23]

My brother and I weren't allowed to have a TV in our room until we were 16 (and by then we never even wanted to BE at the house, let alone watch TV). We were never TV kids anyways (we had one TV in the house). Neither of us cared for movies or to watch TV. Why? When there was a perfectly good neighborhood to terrorize?

I still only watch about 2-4 hours of TV a week. And that's only when I'm running on the treadmill (which is a shame 'cause my parents bought my brother and I very nice flat screen plasma TV's for Christmas last year and it's basically just a decoration).

 

[beck0321]

He he, see how long it's been since I shopped for a TV. I am hoping our old one dies so we can get a new one! This is what the one in our family room looks like

We had a tube til about a couple of years ago when it finally died. My parents' TV died around the same time and my dad was DEAD SET on getting another TUBE TV!
We went shopping with them and every store we went to, the salespeople were telling him to just get the LCD TV (because most places didn't carry the tubes anymore...I think only Circuit City had like three different kinds to choose from). It was funny! We finally convinced him to JUST GET THE FLAT SCREEN!

 

[Crystal0608]

My kids have our old 32", cable, dvd player, and a game cube in their room. My FIL got dd her first tv when she was two b/c she liked to fall asleep watching Disney movies. I really don't have limitations unless they are misbehaving and I cut the tv off, but they usually only watch in at night or if were watching something they don't want to in the living room.

 

[MickeyCrazedMom]

No....

Although I did have one in my room growing up...and I used it as a teen to get away from my family. Maybe my mom would have had a clue what was going on with me if we had to spend that time together. She never said anything. But I spent many nights in my room alone. Not a good thing in the long run. My kids can stay in the living room and we can all be together if they want to watch something.

I had one...in hindsight, it was not a good idea, so in this case. My kids will not.

This was the very reason I swore my kids would never have a tv in their room. We did change our thinking this past year though for a few reasons. One - when my son has a sleepover, the boys like to watch a movie without the sisters getting in their face. Two - i have discovered that when they are sick, they prefer to be in their own beds, but want to watch a movie. Three - Every once in a while I want to hide from the world in my room and veg with a movie. Why wouldn't they want to do that sometimes?

So the big kids have them with very very strict rules about when they can use them and they know that the first time they break those rules, the tvs are gone.

 

[Planogirl]

Our 17 year old has a TV complete with satellite and dvd player in his room and has had these for many years. I don't expect him to want to always watch the same things as his Dad and I. I also don't expect him to want to hang out with his parents all the time at his age even though he does so a lot. There also a TV in the master but it's very rarely turned on.

 

[minnie1012]

I vote no. I just don't think its necessary when they are younger. I would never see my daughter. lol Plus now we watch Wizards and Hannah at night together which is nice. Although we have seen every episode so many times!

Its really only an issue when my daughter is sick because I have to put her in my room with the TV an then she infects my bed but that doesn't happen too often.

 

[jimmalru80]

Yes. I have no problem with it.

 

[brockash]

My dh thinks it would be perfectly fine for our kids (ds-8 and dd-3) to have tv's in their bedroom. I, however, do not so they don't, even though my ds really would like to. Honestly, I don't see the point, and I think there would be a good chance that he'd never want to come out of his room, if he had his own tv I'm sure there will come a day where my kiddos will get their own tv, but I would guess it would be around 14ish I started to have a tv in my room when I think I was in 8th grade, so I guess I think that's when my kids should

 

[charming23]

I was not allowed a tv in my room until I was in high school and even then I had "rabbit ears" until my senior year when I got cable. My parents gave me a tv when I graduated 8th grade because they knew I would start wanting to watch what my friends did like Dawson's Creek and 7th Heaven and they did not. They had three major rules I had to follow or else it got taken away.

1. If my homework was not done the tv was not allowed to be on until it was
2. If we were all watching the same show I could not watch it in my room I had to watch it with them in the living room.
3. On school nights the tv had to be off at 10pm no exceptions.

I thought they were good rules and follwed them. It was nice to be able to watch movies with friends at sleepovers without having to be in the living room with my parents.

I am not a huge tv watcher today. I do have a few shows I love but I am not obbessive about it. Most times I would rather listen to music or read.

 

[Deb in IA]

No.

 

[mamacatnv]

No. Not in kids bedrooms
I got a TV in my bedroom 2 years ago at age 42