When Kenzie boy was still a baby, I told myself that I would not do these, not until he reached 1 year old:
1) No TV
2) No Tab or Ipad (for games, etc)
3) No YouTube
But, I broke all my own rules when he was just as young as 1 month old!
1) I let him watch the TV when I needed to do house chores
I strapped him on the bouncer, on the DVD, and he would quietly watch until I finished my house chores. Each time I let him watch the TV, I felt guilty, but I needed to do my chores and have some me-time too. How?
2) I gave him the Tab when we went out for dinners or eating out in restaurants.
That way, we could eat in peace for at least half an hour or more. Before we decided to bring the Tab out, he would not sit still when we were eating. The hubs needed to carry him and walk around, while I hurriedly ate. When I was done, I would carry him around and the hubs would eat. We hated attending wedding dinners because we really could not enjoy the dinner with a toddler around. Not to mention the long hours, from 7pm-11pm and the couple only marched-in around 8.30pm. The toddler would get pretty restless by then.
The Tab solved everything.
3) Kenzie boy started watching YouTube as early as a few months old because he saw us watching the YouTube. So he was curious and wanted to know what was it, and not long after that, he could swipe and select his own programs from the Tab. Now, Kenzie boy types on his own what he wants to watch.
Example: He types "Wheels On The Bus", and all things related to the song will appear.
He even knows the developers such as "Muffin Song" or "Hooplakidz", so when he types those words, all nursery rhymes and programs developed by Hooplakidz will appear.
Not bragging, but just for my own record:
1) He knows his (complete) phonics by 10 months
2) He knows his numbers by 14 months
3) He knows how to recite A-Z by 15 or 16 months
4) He knows how to write (on the doodle) A-Z and 1-10 by 24 months
5) He can now type, spell and read! Write anything on the doodle, he can read it out. Even "Maggi mee kari" or "Selamat Hari Raya". I tried letting him read Peter & Jane 3A, and he reads like they are peanuts.
And from where and how did he know everything?
Yes, YouTube.
So, would you, like me too, let your kids play with the Tab and watch YouTube?
I know it's not good to let them start young on this kinda gadgets, but:
Would you, like me too, give in, when you wanted to do house chores or rest or need a break or have some me-time?
Would you turn to the gadgets for help when you want to have a peaceful dinner or when you are eating out?
Would you let them learn from the YouTube so that they could learn more? Or would you, like me (initially), insist that you can teach them yourself, read stories to them and teach them ABC's and 123's every night after coming back from work.
Sorry for my long-winded-ness. but here are my two boys, age 2.5 years and 6 months, watching the YouTube yesterday. I was down with flu, the hubs was not around, I felt giddy, but I still needed to do house chores, wash clothes and hang clothes and mop and vacumn and cook. How?
Would you have done this if you were me?
aiyoh, i think it's quite impossible to not let them watch movie and play with the tablets lah, especially if you have a huge TV and iPad with you, haha!! i think it's rather okay, provided that it's just a very short time of usage and they know when to stop..
ReplyDeletePhew, lucky you didnt condemn me.. haha.. I know some parents really insist and say loud loud NO TV, NO GADGETS until the age of 1, and not more than half an hour a day.. Cheh, like they can do it.. (ok, maybe they really can, if they have maids to entertain the kids and clean the house while they go for pedi & meni)
Deletei think kids nowadays are more intelligent lah, especially towards the usage of electronics, probably due to the environment they grow up and also the formulated milk they consume.. it's quite inevitable that they get to know all those pads, pods, phones and games earlier.. just that as parents, you also need to have set a bottomline on the acceptable level of usage for them lor :)
ReplyDeleteYes, of course I do.. Kenzie knows when to stop. When it's time for nennen or sleep, I will tell him to stop using the Tab, and he will leave the Tab and come into the room for his nennen/nap..
DeleteBut I have to admit, during wedding dinners or eating out, he has full excess and freedom to the Tab for hours, from the time we arrive and until the dinner ends..
I attended one friend's wedding and the stupid bridal couple walked in after 8.30pm and food was served almost 9.00pm!!!! All the guests were playing with iPads and phones... When the food was still not served at 8.45pm, they started cursing the bride and grrom's facebook!!! I had a good laugh at them.
Deletefuyoh, your Kenzie boy sure is smart lah, maybe he is a potential genius waiting for you to unleash his potentials?? hmmm, never say impossible, just have to keep monitoring him and don't "mai moot" his talent~~ :0
ReplyDeleteYeah wor, not bragging here, but a lot of friends and relatives also commented the same.. Well, I just want him to be a normal, happy and healthy kid, no need become genius or wat, hehehe.. If he is too smart/genius, we cannot afford also to send him to high class schools.. People everywhere are talking about private / international schools.. *shrug*..
DeleteDon't say primary/secondary private schools first... Talk about play school / pre school / kindy first.. Now there are Q-Dees la, Smart Reader la, Cosmotots la, Vital Care la, Real Kids la, Fungates la...
DeleteWah, you name it.. Then there's this Schicida (dunno spelling ngam mou), Montessori la, Waldorf la, Bao Bei la, wah, I also cannot follow liao.. Then there's this new trend, Home School..
Wah lao... God, help me, I hope money falls from the sky :)
If my wife reads this post, she will scream at you. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Education at University Malaya where her American professor has pointed out the wrong doings of parenting. You have just commited a sin in their eyes!
ReplyDeleteMy wife goes around telling all young parents the correct way to teach their kids from birth till schooling stage which is most important years of a child's development. Please throw away your iPad!! your kid should play in the padang and not watching so much TV or play games! What a terrible mama!..... Muahahahahaha - jangan marah yeah.
TM, how can I marah you wor.. "Sek lei tit lei mm chit la"... I always can't wait to see what you have to write wor, so I where will marah you oohh? Hahahaha.. Yes, I somehow agree the iPad is taking over adult's and kid's lives now. Sit down at the dining table, lunch with colleagues, dinner with family, you name it, all will take out their hp to click click click..
DeletePlay candy crush ke, play FB ke, update Blogger ke...
I understand your situation. Being a mum is not that easy when we have to juggle between house chores, work and baby. Plus, sometimes things will be broken now and then and I need to take care of it. For example I have sliding door repair done last week. Let's us support each other and stay strong.
ReplyDelete