Tot TV Watch

I hope everyone is having a great Memorial Day today. Many of us will be celebrating with our family and friends, but don’t forget to take a few moments out to remember those that are fighting for your country and those who have in the past.

For many of us Memorial Day marks the beginning of summer. The weather is getting warmer. The kids are finishing up the school year. Parents are trying to figure out what they are going to do with bored kids all summer. Raising4boys.com has an excellent entertainment solution for some of those long summer days.  Head over there and check out the list of theaters offering free or low cost kids’ movies available this summer.

summer, movies, kids, raising4boys.com, memorial day

I want to apologize for the irregular posting this week.  I have been dealing with a sick and whiny toddler all week and my computer time has been slightly limited.  Since I am so late posting today, I’m going to leave you with a couple of video clips.  These happen to be (in my opinion) two of the most annoying kids shows currently on TV.  I know they mesmerize some kids, but they just scare me and I can’t subject my child to that. Take a look at the clips below and then answer the following question in the comments for me.  What shows annoy you so much that you don’t let your kids watch them?

Don’t forget to comment!

kids TV, Boohbah, Teletubbies, annoying shows

Before I had a child of my own, the only kids songs I knew were the ones taught in church and school when I was a kid myself. Well, that and the annoying “I love you, you love me” song from Barney. I have my oldest nephew to thank for that one. When I was pregnant with my own child, I was determined to find a better alternative.

As I searched for the newest thing in children’s music, I quickly learned that it had come a long way since I was a kid. Asking other parents for suggestions led me in all kinds of different directions, but eventually I turned to the TV for my answers. I explored shows like The Wiggles and Barney and was sorely disappointed.

I couldn’t find anything that suited me until I discovered Noggin. After one listen to The Laurie Berkner Band’s “Monster Boogie” I couldn’t get the song out of my head. The video aired in between shows one morning and I was instantly hooked. By lunch time that day I was searching the internet for the lyrics and an idea of when I might be able to see the video again. From there, I discovered Jack’s Big Music Show and a whole new world of kids’ music. Bands like Milkshake, Music for Aardvarks, The Dirty Sock Funtime Band, Hot Peas ‘n’ Butter, and Dan Zanes make kid’s music very enjoyable. (For more information on Dan Zanes, check out the great interview he did with Erinn over at Parenting Our Children.)

The children’s music artists of today have a little more to offer than those that I knew as a kid. Instead of sugary sweet songs bound to drive parents crazy after a few listens, today’s kids’ music is filled with rock beats and entertaining lyrics. The songs are fun and tend to get kids and parents alike singing and dancing along.

music, kids, Laurie Berkner Band, Milkshake, Music for Aardvarks, The Dirty Sock Funtime Band, Dan Zanes, Jack’s Big Music Show, Barney, The Wiggles, Noggin, Parenting Our Children

Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund

April 16, 2007, will be remembered as one of the darkest days in the history of the Virginia Tech community and the world beyond.

To remember and honor the victims of those tragic events, the university has established the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund to aid in the healing process and generate financial support.

The fund will be used to cover expenses including but not limited to:

• Grief counseling
• Memorials
• Communication expenses
• Comfort expenses
• Incidental needs

If you plan to give, please click the link below:

The 20th Annual Kids Choice Awards pulled in the highest amount of viewers ever in the history of the show. It also had the most votes ever recorded with over 40 million. If you missed out on the show Saturday night, don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of the slime. Nickelodeon will be airing a 30-minute condensed version of the program highlights called “Kids’ Choice Awards: Best of the Mess”. It will air Tuesday, April 3rd at 5:00 p.m., Thursday, April 5th at 8:30 p.m., Saturday, April 7th at 12:00 p.m., and Sunday, April 8th, at 5:30 p.m. (all times ET/PT). TurboNick will also be offering the 30-minute episode all week long.

If you missed the show and just want to find out who won, here is the list of winners:

Wannabe Award
Ben Stiller

Favorite Movie
“The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest”

Favorite Female Movie Star
Dakota Fanning

Favorite Male Movie Star
Adam Sandler

Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie
Queen Latifah/Ice Age: The Meltdown

Favorite Animated Movie
“Happy Feet”

Favorite TV Show
“American Idol”

Favorite Television Actress
Miley Cyrus/”Hannah Montana”

Favorite Television Actor
Drake Bell/”Drake & Josh”

Favorite Cartoon
“SpongeBob SquarePants”

Favorite Music Group
Black Eyed Peas

Favorite Female Singer
Beyonce

Favorite Male Singer
Justin Timberlake

Favorite Song
“Irreplaceable” (Beyonce)

Favorite Athlete
Shaquille O’Neal

Favorite Video Game
“SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab”

Favorite Book
“Harry Potter” (series)

Kids’ Choice Awards, Best of Mess, results, awards

Nick Jr. is holding asking for photos of kids that love the Wonder Pets. Your child’s picture may be showcased either online or on TV. The picture must be of your child dressed as one of the Wonder Pets, showing off a Wonder Pets craft, or holding an original drawing of the Wonder Pets.

Go snap some photos, submit them to the Nick Jr. Fan Gallery, and then watch Nick Jr. to see if your child’s picture is shown. I bet your kids will love to see their picture on TV. Heck, I would like to see my own picture on TV.

Wonder Pets, Nick Jr., photos, fan gallery

One of the more entertaining aspects of writing on the web is watching the page’s stats. Occasionally I like to check and see where my visitors are coming from so that I know what to focus my writing on. The most common search string I get for this site is generally some variation of “Steve Burns on Jack’s Big Music Show” or “Steve Burns groundhog video”.

In order to appease my readers, I have been searching for the video online but haven’t been able to find a copy that I could post here. It was available on YouTube for a short while before Viacom insisted that all of their content be removed from the video sharing site. As of now, the only place online that the “I Hog The Ground” video can be seen is on the Noggin web site. Go on, you know you want to rock out with Steve one more time!

Steve Burns, Jack’s Big Music Show, I Hog The Ground, ground hog day, search strings, YouTube, Viacom, Noggin

As the posts accumulate around here it dawned on me that it may start getting a little difficult to find things. The posts are pretty well categorized, but if you are looking for a review of a particular TV show you still have to search through a pretty long list to find it. To make your search a little easier, I have created a “Tot TV Reviews” page that lists all of the shows previously reviewed in alphabetical order. This list does not include news items or other posts, only reviews of specific shows. You can get to the list by clicking on the link at the bottom of the “About Me” box in the sidebar. I hope that this makes things a little easier to find for everyone.

By the way, if you are looking for a review that isn’t listed, it just means that I haven’t gotten around to reviewing it yet. Please leave a comment or use the “Contact Me” link to to the right to send me an e-mail and I would be more than happy to review the show you are looking for.

Tot TV Reviews, children’s television, reviews

It has been one long busy weekend, so I’m going to leave you with a video today while I try to catch up.

TheBigDaddyD has created a series of 80’s cartoon intros on YouTube. Being a child of the 80’s I remember watching many of these cartoons, but there are some I’ve never even heard of. Take a look for yourself and see how many you remember.

If you want more, go check out Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5. Just make sure you have plenty of time to waste before you get started.

YouTube, cartoons, 80’s

It has been a big week of announcements for Nickelodeon and today I have yet another one. On Monday, March 12th, Nick Jr. will premiere a brand new episode of Dora The Explorer. The new episode, entitled “Star Mountain”, will teach viewers shapes and colors in Spanish. It will also introduce Dora’s new friends, the Tres Estrellas Exploradoras (Three Explorer Stars), that will travel along with her and Boots on their journey.

Here is the full description of the episode from Nick Jr.:

In “Star Mountain,” Dora’s grandmother makes her a necklace to match her favorite bracelet, but it isn’t long before Swiper flings it all the way to the top of Star Mountain. To get to the peak, Dora and Boots must race up 15 star steps and climb up a diamond to get to the giant star. Along their journey, Dora and Boots team up with the Tres Estrellas Exploradoras (Three Explorer Stars), made up of Glowy, the bright light star, Tool Star, the star with the cool gadgets, and Saltador, the jumping star. Together the group battle fog, ice, wind, snow and steer clear of the rising green goo. Dora and Boots ask the preschoolers at home to help them find Dora’s necklace by teaching them numbers and colors in Spanish.

Be sure to tune it on March 12th at 9:00 a.m. (ET/PT). If you miss the first showing, you can catch it again on Friday, March 16th at 9:00 a.m. (ET/PT). You can also catch a two-minute sneak peak at Nick Jr. Video online beginning on March 9th.

*Image Source: Nickelodeon
Provided by Newscom

Dora the Explorer, Nick Jr., premiere, Star Mountain, Tres Estrellas Exploradoras

Advertising during children’s television programming has always been up for debate. As a parent, I tend to avoid commercials all together when possible, choosing to either fast forward through them or watch networks like Noggin that don’t show commercials during kids’ shows. Regardless of how much I try to avoid those advertisements, I’m still very aware of the power characters like Elmo or Dora have when they are placed on a product.

In recent years, advertisers have started displaying web site addresses during commercials but recent restrictions from the FCC may stop some of that from happening, at least during children’s programming. Effective January 2nd, 2007, the FCC passed new federal rules stating that during shows geared toward children age 12 and under, cable and broadcast operators may not display addresses for Web sites that contain any links to commercial content.

Advertising during children’s television programming was previously limited by the Children’s Television Act. It limits every hour of children’s programming to 10.5 minutes of advertising during weekends and 12 minutes on weekdays.

While there is much resistance from the advertising community, there seems to be compliance so far. However, there have already been several loopholes pointed out and several child advocacy groups are already pushing for even more restrictions.

What do you think about these new restrictions? Have you noticed the lack of web addresses?

Source: Kids’ TV faces new Net restrictions

web, net restrictions, kids’ tv, television, children, Children’s Television Act, FCC, advertising

Sunday night is the Super Bowl and most of the TVs in America will be tuned in to the big game. So, what do you do when your toddler starts screaming for some cartoons? Jennifer at Parenting Toddlers has some great ideas on how to include the kids in the game time festivities. Or, if your child couldn’t care less about those guys throwing a ball around on TV, I have a couple of other Super Bowl alternatives you might want to try. Of course they do require access to a second TV and possibly a DVD player or VCR.

The animated movie Open Season was released on DVD Tuesday and might be a fun treat for your kids while you enjoy the game. Boog and Elliot’s adventures are sure to keep little ones entertained. Plus, if any of the adults get tired of watching the big game they might enjoy a bit of the movie too.

Cartoon Network is running a Scooby Doo marathon through the afternoon and evening on Super Bowl Sunday (check local listings for times). Among the episodes airing will be “Aloha, Scooby Doo”, “Scooby Doo and the Cyber Chase”, “Scooby Doo and the Legend of the Vampire”, “Scooby Doo and the Alien Invaders”, “Scooby Doo in Where’s My Mummy?”, and “Scooby Doo: Pirates Ahoy”. If your kids love Scooby and his pals this might just help keep them calm while the adults go crazy in the other room.

If neither of those alternatives fit your child’s taste, you can always run up to your local video store and rent some Dora the Explorer, Blue’s Clues, or a myriad of other cartoons on DVD or VHS for your child to enjoy while you enjoy the game. Just be sure to make it a special time for them too. If they have something special to watch, you’ll have a better chance of actually watching the game.

Super Bowl, Super Bowl Alternatives, Scooby Doo, Open Season

Recently I’ve been re-evaluating the amount of TV that my son watches on a daily basis. Not only does he watch some of his favorite shows at home, he also has access to a TV at day care. If I had to guess, I would say that he watches 1-2 hours a day at home plus what he watches at day care when I’m not with him. During the weekends we generally have the TV on all day rotating through various episodes of Jack’s Big Music Show, Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go, Blue’s Clues, The Upside Down Show, and Backyardigans. He isn’t totally focused on the TV the whole time it is on, but it is there when he chooses to watch it.

I have read many articles on the affects of TV viewing in toddlers and the general consensus is that TV is bad for children but that there can be some educational benefits. Kidshealth.org has a great article on their site entitled, “How TV Affects Your Child.” The experts seem to have mixed opinions on whether television should be banned completely or whether a moderate amount of educational programming is actually good for kids. The American Association of Pediatrics recommends no TV at all for children under two years of age and a limit of one to two hours of total media time for children two and up.

I’m not really sure where I stand on this. I’m definitely not for banning all TV, but I do wonder if setting some limits would be beneficial. While I know that my son has learned a lot from the shows he watches, he also can’t walk into the family room without begging for a “show” and pointing to the TV.

I’m curious to find out where you all stand on this issue. I’m guessing that if you read this site you are a fan of television but how much is too much? Do you set limits or let your children watch whenever they want?

TV, television, kids health, American Association of Pediatrics, parenting, education

Remember when I wrote about Steve Burns having a video on Jack’s Big Music Show? Well, the time has almost arrived. Along with The Laurie Berkner Band’s song “Sneaks”, the Steve Burns and Steven Drozd video, “Hog the Ground,” will air on the February 2nd episode, Ground Hog Day. This episode may also be of special interest to parents because Jon Stewart from The Daily Show will be guest starring.

I have been pretty impressed with the new season so far. If nothing else, it has been really nice to hear some new songs. This episode looks like it will be a fun one for kids and will also teach them a little about the tradition of Ground Hog Day. If your kids won’t be home to watch, it is definitely one to set the TiVo or DVR for.

Jack’s Big Music Show, Noggin, Steve Burns, Blue’s Clues, Steven Drozd, Flaming Lips, Laurie Berkner, Jon Stewart, Daily Show, Hog the Ground, Ground Hog Day

I’m back in town after a week long vacation in beautiful Hawaii. I would like to apologize for the lack of posting over the last week, but I just couldn’t manage to find the time to sit down and write about TV when there was so much sun to soak up. I do have to say that after this week I am very thankful that someone had the bright idea to start putting TV shows on dvds. I’m not sure how we would have made it through the week without my son’s Blue’s Clues dvds.

I’ll be back to regular posting this week, so be sure to stop back by for more news and reviews of your kids’ favorite shows. Also, don’t forget about the comment contest. You still have until January 31st to leave your comments and win some cash!