Picture this. Cocomelon is playing in the background. Toys are scattered all over the floor. A toddler is throwing a tantrum. Cars are honking outside. Sounds a bit overwhelming right? This is what I heard on a daily basis and boy was it overstimulating.
I hate to be that crunchy mom but sadly I am… or rather I was her. From the moment my son woke up, the only thing that would be running on our tv was his cartoons. This continued until the moment he would fall asleep. And to be quite honest, he wouldn’t even be watching it- it would mostly just be background noise. It was quite irritating and overwhelming.
Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t think there is anything wrong with a little bit of screen time. But, there is an issue with too much screen time. That was Azlan.
Now, before he was born, I had planned not to give him screentime. I wanted to let him actually enjoy playing with toys and other activities. But after a couple of months after his birth, that kinda changed.
It got to the point where he couldn’t even food unless there was. Specific cartoon or song playing. I finally decided enough was enough and put my foot down.No more screen time.
Okay, I will admit he does watch some shows here and there. He watches only a limited amount and only certain shows. But, I will say this no screen or limited screen time has made a world of a difference.
I took the Montessori approach.Our day begins around 9-10 am after breakfast and bath time. This is when the TV gets turned off officially. I sit down with Azlan to read to him and learn new words followed by an “activity of the day”. I do some sort of activity with him daily. It be coloring something or building blocks. It also be something as simple as blowing bubbles. Anything that keeps him entertained, sparks interest and avoids screen time!
The best part is Azlan Loves our little learning time. In fact, he is the one who grabs the books for us to read. I’ve been implementing this method for about 2 weeks and this is what I have noticed so far :
- Improved appetite – He is eating more and is focusing on what he eats rather than just stuffing his mouth while he is fixated on what he is watching
- Improved listening skills : listening and obeying directions better. Understanding the directions I give and follows through ( majority of the time)
- Expanding Vocabulary: He is learning more words each day and can understand and recognize pictures and words.
- Better sleep pattern: This one was one of the biggest differences I noticed. Before, putting Azlan to bed was a huge hassle. It would be a war zone during every nap time and bedtime. Now, he can fall asleep much more smoothly and more quickly.
- Less over stimulation: Azlan has been a pretty active baby since day 1. Nevertheless, after cutting down his screen time, I have noticed he has calmed down a bit. He isn’t running or causing much chaos. It’s like… he calmed down.
- Regulated emotion: definitely a-lot less tantrums. He is in a better mood overall. He can express his needs and wants verbally. He’s a little gibberish but gets the job done. He also expresses his needs and wants physically.
- Improved cognitive skills: i have screen a huge difference in his skill set. I feel like since his screen time got cut he is more involved with his toys and other activities. I have noticed that he is developing cause and effect understanding, problem solving, and hand eye coordination.
Here is a little reel of some of the different activities I have done with him:
Additionally, I have created a list of amazon finds I use for daily learning activities : https://amzn.to/3Mz1oY7
Kainaat&CO 