Television in the Bedroom?

From what I've read, everything bad and no good comes from having a tv in a child's bedroom. I never wanted my kids to sit in their rooms isolated from the rest of the family. Plus any tv time in a room could easily be replaced by reading, which is so much better for kids. Instead of watching tv to fall asleep, kids should be reading! We have enough tvs downstairs for everybody to watch.

My DD's 3 and 6 will never have a TV in their room.

My oldest would NEVER go to sleep and I would never see her, if the TV is on, she is zoombified. She has asked several times for a TV and I told her no.

My youngest could care less about TV and im ok with that.

I think it's a personal preference. I am in the 'no tv in the bedroom camp' for kids (and if it were up to me, I wouldn't have one in my room either). My thinking is that kids have full days of TV, media, etc. so night time, has become almost sacred to me. They need to unwind, and be still... I think it helps them sleep better and will be a good habit as they get older.

zip, zero, nada...

no tvs or computers in their bedrooms....and mine are 9 and 11..

Nope - no TVs in any bedrooms here. I just don't see that it adds value. Yes - it could help with quiet time, but then if kids learn to depend on the TV to relax, they won't learn to entertain themselves or read for pleasure. Plus it adds headache when kids demand TV or fight about how much they can watch in their room (like you're dealing with now).

The biggest reason we don't have TVs in bedrooms here, though, is that I want our family to spend time together, not in individual bedrooms. We're all busy during the days doing our individual things - work, preschool, etc. So when we get home I prefer people to be in the main part of the house together to interact, converse, and relax together. If we had TVs in bedrooms, there would be a big pull to go play a video game in bedroom #1 while someone else watched cartoons in bedroom #2 (or whatever).

And last but not least... the light emitted from televisions and computers actually interferes with melatonin production, so people have a harder time falling and staying asleep if they watch TV or play on a computer in the hour before bed. (this is documented by scientific studies, not just some hippy mumbo jumbo I made up, promise!)

Our daughter got one when she was in 5th grade, only because someone gave us a brand new one so we gave her our old one. .. she did not watch it that often and never at bed time.. She like to read at night. but if she woke up early she would still go into the living room and watch videos in there.

We finally took it out of her room because she said it took up too much room.

Nope. We have 2 kids. Neither of them has a TV in their room. Never have. They are 13 and 10. They never will, either, until they move out and decide that they want to go buy one and have it. :)

My siblings and I also never had one in our room... but back then, not many folks had more than one in the house at all, at least until I was a teenager, then it became more common to have a 2nd set in the house. Usually in the parents room or a basement/bonus room.

It will never be allowed. No tvs or computers in bedrooms, not even in ours. To many documented reports on how damaging it can be both psychologically, socially, educationally, sleep disruptions... you are already starting to experience some of those results and the kids aren't even preteens or teens yet. While there may be some exceptions of responsible watching, it just isn't worth it to me to take that risk.

No tv's in the bedroom...period. That's been the rule forever. And even when they say "well so-and-so has one...". That's our family rule. We would never see them if there was a tv in the room and you can't monitor what they are watching. Even if it's abc or nbc...you still want to know what they see.

I have a 16, 13, and 7 year old.

My daughter has had one since she was fairly young. 5 maybe? Grandparents bought it for her to start off, with a VCR. It was only hooked up to the VCR at first for her movies. After that was all the channels, but she never "needed" it and it was never an issue.

I need to add, she is THE most creative person I know. She is an art student (attends an Arts High School and will pursue an Art College for next year), and makes the most creative things from buttons, paper and just..stuff, in addition to her drawings. She is great student and overall, normally adjusted kid who thinks drugs are stupid, piercings and tatoos are too, other than for the art involved in the tatoos, is NOT boy crazy, has never been a "fan" person (crazed by the fad's like the Hannah Montana's and Justin Biebers, etc)...but rather is very unique and follows her own inclinations. She has a bigger book collection than I do and that is what she spends most of her allowance on (and we ARE talking about a teenage girl here!) Shes a great kid, really.

TV is not the enemy everyone makes it out to be. Thats my opinion.

We have 1 TV in the entire house. It's in the living room. For a little while we had one in our room but we never watched it, like ever. The only reason it stayed as long as it did was because we didn't want to try to carry it downstairs to get rid of it. It finally got removed when we needed to make room for our third child and it was officially in the way.
The computers stay downstairs as well and out of the bedrooms.
I don't even like the kids' toys in bedrooms, they have a separate playroom for that. To me bedrooms are a place to sleep.

NEVER! No bedroom tv's.....even in my bedroom.

Our girls have never had one in the room because I noticed with my oldest when she would be in her room hanging out it brought out her creative juices and when the youngest 2 are in the room they read, paint, color et..... and they are lazy and would use television as a crutch so we dare not go there with them, they would be like tv zombies. It is easier for us to monitor how and when they watch televison by having it in the family room.

None of our 3 kids have TVs in their rooms and neither do my husband and i have one in our room. Young children especially need supervision when viewing programs. My 1, 3 and 6 yr olds have neither wisdom or discretion as to what and when to watch.
As for my husband and I choosing to keep TV out of the bedroom....if you want more "action" off the screen, move the TV out of your bedroom.

Our kids will never have a tv in their room. Ours are 2 and 5 years old. TV is a treat in our home and we try to limit screen time. We haven't had cable in over 10 years, so their viewing choice would be very limited anyway. We don't want our children to be dependent on tv for entertainment or soothing. We also don't want the family spread out all over the house watching tv. A recent study showed that television can actually over stimulate a child and make sleep harder. No sense beating yourself up. You tried it and it didn't work. And now you are changing your choice.

No tvs in the bedrooms - ever.

My son is 11 and has never had a tv in the bedroom and never will. All the medical studies I have read for both adults and kids say that there is nothing good about having a tv in the room where you sleep. Also, if the tv is in his room it makes it much harder to monitor what he and his friends might see on it. We have a large tv in our family room where we watch movies or shows as a family. If my son has friends over and they want to play video games or watch a movie, we have a smaller tv in a cabinet in the living room and my husband and I can watch something else- but still easily keep an eye on things in the family room just by going through the kitchen.

Your kids are little now, but trust me, as they get older, there is just more and more crappy stuff they will want to watch on tv and they can get addicted to 'screen time'! Just bite the bullet and take control now, would be my advice. I think setting them up with the expectation that they can have a tv in their room will really backfire on you even more when they are older. Good luck!

Bedrooms were for sleeping. We never put tvs in their rooms.

No tv's or computers in my son's bedroom (or mine, either).
The tv and laptops are in the living room, (my work desk top is in my home office) and our son never turns them on without permission (he's 12).

My kids are 12, 15 and 18 and they have never had TVs in their rooms.
We have a TV in the family room for everyone, and a TV in our bedroom for the grown up stuff.
We also have an extra TV in the basement, but it's not hooked up to anything, it's just used for video games.
I don't judge people if they decide to let their kids have TVs in their rooms, for me, it's just a personal preference. I think it's good for them (and us) to share it :)

I love this question! I was going to ask it after having a weekend of Diary of a Wimpy kid marathon movies. Please help.

My daughter is 7 and son is 6. Neither of them have TV's in their room. I have never been a fan of kids having TV's in their rooms. If our kids want to watch something different than the adults, they go to our bedroom and watch it (no cable in the our room, movies only so supervision is easy!).

I have a feeling if I put a TV in their room I would regret it, just as I regret them getting a Wii (I didn't purchase).

Great question!

nope not here. we only have 1 tv in our home and that's in the living room. We don't even have one in our bedroom! There is no way I would let my kids have one in theirs.

Our daughter just turned 4 and has never had a TV in her room. I just never wanted to start a bad habit and instead she will sometimes look at books in bed if it's bedtime but she's just not sleepy enough yet. She sees enough TV when she's awake as it is. I doubt I will ever allow TV in her room unless she's old enough to have a job and earn the money to buy it herself!

No tv in the kids room. There is one in our bedroom and very rarely does it get turned on.

Yep! We have one in our room and so do our kids. We have a family member/friends that always talk so highly of their lack of TV in their room and the superior inteligence that goes along with it ( they " read instead") but sure enough their children have TV' in their bedrooms. I'm guessing it's so they won't be bothered while their gaining all that extra inteligence. I do feel my room could be a more relaxing place without the TV but I just can't break my husband of it. It's probably better that way, we would probably have more than our 3 kids, without a TV ;) Sorry, got off track and didn't actually answer question... same as someone earlier stated, we put the TV in their room around 2, after they no longer napped but we all needed some quiet time.

My son (now 8) has O. in his room. I think he got it in there when the naps headed south and quiet time began...so...maybe about 3.

Depending on what time he goes to bed, he is allowed to put it on (we set the timer) for 15-20 minutes before he goes to sleep. Just not past 9:15-9:30ish on school nights.

No tvs or computers in the bedrooms!

My 15 yr old daughter has had one for about 3 years. Its like 30 years old, my mother gave it to her when she retired and moved to FL. I refuse to hook it up to cable though, so she can only watch DVD's on it, which she rarely does. I honestly think if I took it without telling her she would only notice it's absence because of the things she has draped over it.

My kiddos never had TV in rooms...until THIS year...

The twins are 14...and til older son went off to college...he and 16 yo brother shared a room...and had extra TV for them...

Puters and TV's were always family room/living room items til just recently...

**except for me***

**sigh**

Have had BOTH in MY room for years...

"do as I say???"

LOL
michele/cat

No TV. No Computer. No Phone.
Nothing like that ever in a child's bedroom.
LBC

T.v's are not allowed in any of our children's rooms. We do have one in our bedroom, one in the living room and one in our basement.

I don't intend to ever put a tv in my kids' room. We have a 65 inch in the family room, a 13 inch in the kitchen near the breakfast table, and one in my room. We also allow them to watch Netflix on the laptop and my iPad...quite enough screens for them already. (My kids are 4, 2 and 5 mos)

I'm a Feng Shui consultant, and the extra energy that a TV or computer puts out makes it very difficult to wind down and just relax. A person's bedroom is supposed to be a place of refuge and retreat, not another place to bounce around like a crazy person. Also, think about some of the shows that are on these days. Would you REALLY want to invite those people/characters into your house? So why would you want them around while your kids are trying to go to sleep? I tell my clients that unless they want to invite all of the people on the evening news into their bed, they should keep the TV on the other side of the bedroom door. The same goes for kids. At least with computers you can program your router to disconnect the internet at a certain point in time. You don't have that control with a TV.

As far as where to put the extra TV, try to donate it or simply take it to a place that recycles electronics. Or hang it in your garage to do workout tapes. I know of several people who have done that for their PX90 pursuits!

I have a 4 and 5 yr old. They share a TV that stays in my girls room. We have control of it. We put it in there, because I was tired of arguing over the living room tv. Saturday morning and I want to watch the morning news and the kids want to watch cartoons. She wants to watch Dora and he wants to watch Mystery Hunters. A great NOVA is coming on the same time as the football game, etc. I would sit down to a movie with dad and the kids are jumping all over me trying to get my undivided attention. It just wasn't worth the fussing and arguing with the kids. They don't watch it at night because I take the power cord to bed with me. They only get maybe and hour on weekdays after school, while I cook or do laundry. Weekends we stay gone, so, they don't watch much. But it is great to be able to sit down to a movie with dad and put Wizard of Oz, Michael Jacksons, or Justin Beibers movie on for the kids and get some peace!

I can't ever remember having TV in the kids room until they left home for college or to get married. We had one in the den/livingroom. My wife and I had a small one, about 6", in our room. It was a clock radio/tv. But it was analog and the tv died when we went to digital.

When one of my kids moved back in when they couldn't afford the rent, then they brought TV with them.

I never had a TV in my room when I was growing up.
My mom and dad didn't have tv in their room when they were growing up either. ;~))

I don't feel a TV is necessary to be in the bedroom. I'm not fond of having a computer in the bedroom either.

Good luck to you and yours.

Every one of my kids has had a TV in their room at some point or another. At least in my world there are rules you must obey or it goes. So from time to time one is put on the shelf downstairs and when they prove they can handle it again they get it back when I have time to bring it up.

It is easy to make rules to counteract most of the negatives. The problem is so many parents are unwilling to remove the TV when the rules are violated.

At the moment my youngest child's TV is on the shelf. I think she has forgotten about it cause her room has been a mess for several months. O well.....

My son is 13 (only child) and he has a tv in his bedroom, but it is only used for video games. The satellite service is not hooked up. We set limits on the video game playing (sometimes more strict than others). We are not in favor of him watching tv in his room.

No televisions in our bedrooms..only in the main living space. We also don't allow computers in bedrooms either.

I grew up with t.v.s in all bedrooms and almost every living space...even the kitchen! I loved it while growing up. Now looking back I am sad about all the wasted family time,good discussions, family togetherness,bonding,reading that did not happen...because of the crutch...constant entertainment.

we have 2 tvs in the entire house, one in the living room, the other in the bonus room. that's it. no kid needs a tv in their room.

The kids aren't allowed to have TV's in their bedrooms. They would keep them on and stay awake all night.

The thing is that TV light mimics daylight and it messes with the natural body clock, so it really is more than just kids wanting to stay awake to watch TV. It's the light of the TV signaling to the body that it's time to wake up and stay awake.

Our boys are 7 and 13, and they do not have TVs in their rooms. We don't plan on ever putting TVs in their rooms. Maybe we'll get them one for their dorms. ;)

They don't have computers in their rooms either.

my daughter has a TV in her room.... but it never gets used. It is not hooked up to cable though, and is only there for watching DVDs really (like if my husband and I want to watch a "grown up" movie we can, and set her up with a kid movie in her room!)

I think it is crazy when kids watch TV 24 hours a day. My nephew (4) falls asleep every night with his TV on! and so, it is still on when he wakes up in the morning! I think a TV should never be on unless someone is watching it.

We have TVs all over the house, I admit. In my husbands perfect dream house there would probably be a TV or computer in the bathroom, closet, kitchen, garage ETC. hehehe! He is a computer tech, and a huge gamer, and so I have a hard time banning his favorite things to "play with". I am more of a computer addict than a TV person.

Someday I am sure our kids will have computers in their room... but I think we'll remove the wireless cards from them and have no internet set up. If they need to use the net they can use the "family" computers in our den. I think that the web and time on it should be monitored with kids, and I had the same rules as a kid and I did just fine.

-M.

won't happen in my home........we have one in the family room & the basement......i want to monitor what they are watching although they are only 7, 6, & 4 right now, it will come in handy in the later years

Not in any bedroom in our house...No way.

I ditto Candice!

One TV and one only and it is in the living room and is not on when we are spending time as a family, eating dinner or playing games.

My kids share a room, they have a tv in their room, they have fore about 2 years, (their 2 and 3) and they've only had cable for 1 year, before just DVD's. They really dint watch it during the day, but they watch it at night. We either put it on a timer but the good thing about AT&T it goes off by itself when idle for so long. I don't see a problem with it.

I just wanted to add.. Not that I think my kids are better than any body else..(well kinda cause their mine :-)) but my kids by any means, don't sit alone and watch cartoons all day.. Sometimes the tv will Benin and sometimes it will be off.. But I can say that they are much more creative and adventurous then thenother kids we know (no tv kids) Nick Jr.bid a blessing within itself. They have learned so much, since Thats the only channel they watch, beside Barney dvd's. They get so many creative ideas and they come up with things that I could never imagin. We just came from a labor day picnic, and not to be rude, but some of those other children just lack.. In general, were crying, just wanted to sit and play in dirt, not potty trained, and it was more than one. My girls were pretending to be pirates, ( backyardigan pirates) and the other kids were just looking like.. What does walk the Plank mean??? I'm just saying, different strokes for different folks.

No TVs in any bedrooms in our house, including ours. It's just a bad habit and too tempting for the kids. We actually had only one TV in our house (family of 6) until a year ago. When we put a playroom in the basement, we put a small flat screen in the younger kids' clubhouse area and have an older TV in the big kid area that they can play video games or watch movies on. I really don't like having more than one TV - before, they had to take turns and if someone was using the TV, that meant that the others had to either watch together or find something non-TV to do, which is usually a good thing. Now if I lose track of time, they can all easily go for a long time staring at the tube. Our power has been out for 24 hours and it's pretty stark how much more they're playing now that they can't turn something on.

Anyway...do yourself a favor and take the TVs out of the bedrooms. It's much easier to limit TV watching when it's in a common area.

We have TV's in both kids bedrooms. They have been in there for some time now. I could not live with constant cartoons on in the living room. I enjoy being able to watch grown up TV like Gray's anatomy and not have to turn the tv off when a scene comes on that will require an explanation. I like the kids being able to ask for a DVD and watching it or turning on the TV and watching some Disney. They are pretty responsible about turning the shows off I don't like too.