Answers From the Teacher

What are some good guidelines for television? I’d like to set some limits for my children before they fall into bad television habits.

The American Academy of Pedia-trics suggests the following: Limit television time to an hour or two. Al-though you may be tempted to allow more television viewing during the summer then you do throughout the school year, you may regret the inconsistency after a week or two because two hours can quickly become three hours and three hours four before you realize it.

Consider recording your kids’ fav-orite shows, fast-forwarding through the commercials that advertise toys you won’t buy them and cereal you don’t allow them to eat.

Watch shows with your children that may inspire them to learn more about topics that interest them. Although there are so many channels available, you may be sticking to the same old channels. Read the television guide in your newspaper before choosing which shows to watch together. Highlight the dates and times and view the programs with the idea that your children may want to learn more about the topics suggested by quality programs through research at your local library, the internet, by reading historical fiction.

Keep the television in a place in your home you can monitor what’s on. Don’t put a television in your child’s bedroom because you can’t monitor what your child is watching unless you are within earshot of the television. Children can be exposed to topics and visual images that you may not want them to be exposed to, but you will be unable to monitor the situation unless you are aware of everything they see on television.

You can check out more recommendations at the American Academy of Pediatrics at www.aap.org., including a timely article on Water Safety.

My daughter has a girl in her class that she doesn’t get along with. They can work and play together one min-ute and be arguing the next. I’ve seen the pattern when both girls are here at our home playing. How can I help her break this pattern of disagreement with her friend?

This is a good opportunity to teach your daughter some conflict resolution techniques. First, get the girls to calm down and describe the conflict, one at a time. Next, address the bad feelings raised when the conflict occurred. For instance, “It bothered me when you took the toy away from me.” Then have the girls brainstorm how to resolve the conflict. Your goal is the girls’ being able to resolve conflicts without your intervention; but for now, it will help if you coach them through the steps.

You may want to talk to the guidance counselor at their school to see if the guidance department offers any classes or student groups who address this sort of situation. Conflict resolution is a part of growing up. Learning how to peacefully resolve difficult situations will help your daughter for the rest of her life.

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