What's Up, Doc?
Doctors will tell you that television and kids are not the best combination. They say children subjected to excessive screen time will hurt their eyes, brains and waistlines. In our house, however, we find that TV is cheaper than college and, quite possibly, more educational. Our 3-year-old daughter Petunia is allowed to watch when we require a little adult-only stimulation (namely: coffee and cocktail hour) and the lessons she learns during those times have been spectacular. Take a look.
'Dora the Explorer'
All hail Dora. Was there ever a braver, more adventurous bilingual little girl? Were it not for Dora our little Petunia wouldn’t know that carrying a map and being accompanied by a monkey named after winter footwear is necessary in order to teach daily morality lessons to a greedy, bandit-mask-wearing fox. Nor would she know how to escape gooey geysers that always seem precariously on the verge of erupting the moment she's within spitting distance. Some girls have all the luck; Dora is not among those girls. It’s a dark but essential lesson that Petunia needed to learn sooner rather than later.
'Yo Gabba Gabba'
The other morning Petunia went into the kitchen, carefully selected a spoon and promptly affixed it to the tip of her nose. “Yo Gabba Gabba,” she beamed when asked where she learned the trick. Yes, Yo Gabba Gabba is not a cartoon, and no, balancing a spoon on her nose doesn’t exactly mean she’s the heir apparent to the Pulitzer Peace Prize or a future Mensa chapter president. But she’s 3</em>; we’re quite proud.
RELATED: French Kids Eat Everything
'Barney'
There is a reason dinosaurs have endured for as long as they have. It’s because they teach lessons, people. Barney is saving lives, one episode at a time. And in case you ever miss anything that’s happened, there’s always a voiceover at the end of each show explaining in painstaking detail every little thing that transpired over the previous 28 minutes, as well as what kids were supposed to take away from it and how parents can continue to teach their children in real life. You know, in case the real message in the “Look Both Ways When You Cross the Street” song was lost on anyone.
RELATED: Training Kids to Be Good Campers
'Caillou'
Petunia loves Caillou. Correction: She loved Caillou. He’s no longer allowed in our house. We initially figured a cartoon born from public television had to do more good than harm, but we finally made the connection between my daughter’s incessant whining and Caillou. As in, he literally taught her to whine. And fear nonexistent monsters with names like Scratchy. And dislike medicine (I’m sure she would have learned to dislike medicine on her own, but she certainly didn’t need a mentor in that arena). It’s not as if she’s ceased whining now that Caillou has taken a permanent vacation from our TV—she’s 3 after all—but on the bright side, she’s no longer showing signs of adopting a Canadian accent.
MORE: Kid-Approved iPad Apps
'The Berenstain Bears'
Petunia adores the Berenstain Bears. Loves them. And she recently learned they are not the same as the three little bears. She figured that out on her own when Goldilocks kept failing to appear. So there’s that.
RELATED: 8 Books Every New Mom Should Read
'The Simpsons'
We’re not big Simpsons watchers in our house. However, it has happened on occasion that the channel rests on the infamous show during its time slot. When it happens, Petunia is eager to learn more about the lady with the tall blue hair and about the intriguing, saxophone-playing, pearl-necklace-wearing little girl. And she can keep wondering. Just because it’s animated doesn’t mean she gets to watch it. That, and the reason she can’t drink the pretty red liquid in mommy’s glass are lessons she’ll carry with her for years to come.
RELATED: How to Parent Boys
'Super Why'
Petunia is only 3 but she knows the letters in her name and can spell most other words by sounding them out. In fact, she thinks spelling is up there on the cool-meter with ruby red slippers and Minnie Mouse panties. Thanks, Super Why! No, really. Thank you!
'Angelina Ballerina'
Petunia doesn’t know she was introduced to this because it’s the perfect length—14 minutes—for when we need to bribe her with a TV show before she’ll allow us to bathe her or put her down for a nap. All she knows is there are tutus and funny accents. But the bonus is she’s learning all about mouse ballet culture in England. So she’s got that going for her.
RELATED: Letting Dad Take Over
'Mickey Mouse Clubhouse'
Petunia has joined in on the age-old quest to figure out what species Goofy actually belongs to. She’s honing her powers of observation and has narrowed it down to mouse, whale, yellow or bathtub. Again, she’s only 3</em>; give her a little time before you judge. Besides, it’s not like you know what Goofy is, either. Sheesh.
MORE: 9 Cookbooks for Kids
'Curious George'
He might be a monkey and she’s a little girl, but it’s always nice for devilish—er, spirited—kids like Petunia to know others get in trouble more than they do. Even if they are different in every other way, including how one came to the United States with a man in a yellow hat and the other arrived via an unplanned C-section two weeks before her due date.
