Friday, July 20, 2007

Thoughts for Thursday (posted on Fri.)

  • My thoughts on Thursday is going to be about the about violence and sex in t.v. shows, movies, songs, etc. I was thinking of this the other day because of what some of my students are listening to and watching. It disturbs me so much! Kids these days are growing up way to quick and don't even understand the importance or effects that these negative behaviors can have on them. In the recent Parents magazine, there is an article about how even movies that are rated G or PG can be risky for kids. Just some of the information from this article was about how Spiderman 3 and his black suit make him even more violent and he even hurts Mary Jane. There are fight scenes with daggers, disfigured faces and fatal explosions. The article said that even G movies like The Polar Express can be terrifying for young kids. The themes of "cute" films-parents can be killed and children getting lost, hurt or abandoned-tap into the children's deepest fears.

  • As parents (as most of you are) I was wondering what you do to ensure that your kiddos don't see all the "bad" things the media portrays in movies, television and songs. What are some rules or rituals you do to talk to your kids, especially as they get to grade school age? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

  • ***Just a reminder, we'd love to have more Thoughts for Thursdays! Give us your own thoughts... pick something and start a conversation on it!! Leave me a comment letting us know you have a thought on your own blog... it's fun to hear so many different thoughts on so many different things!

4 comments:

heather said...

Oooh, this is a good topic Kase! It's something I've been thinking about a lot as Savannah gets older. I wish it wasn't something we had to think about so much!

Just about a year ago I went through a weird over analyzing with "kids" movies too. We watched the movie Cars, and I was really irritated with all the references to sex and drugs and the like. I mean, no direct references of course, but implied in jokes that were of course over my three-year-old's head, but I certainly wouldn't feel completely comfortable with an 8 year old watching it and either wondering what that was all about, or just repeating those things. KWIM? And it is a total little kids movie... Disney and everything. I just find it so disappointing.

It's amazing what kids absorb, and it blows me away when kids are exposed to the violence and disrespect that is so prevelant in our movies and music these days. How can parents be okay with that, really?

I remember even when Savannah was an infant, realizing how things like that can affect kids when we don't even realize. Here was a six week old baby, hanging out on the couch with us while mommy and daddy watch a movie, and she most definitely (without even watching, just being in the room and hearing it) reacted to gunfire, or fighting, or yelling or things like that. I know kids that young don't remember things, but we made it a point to not expose her to that kind of thing when she was that young. It hurt my heart to watch her react to that stuff as such a tiny baby. It's like they know that stuff is bad, deep down, even though they don't understand it.

We were on vacation with friends this past year and another dad was flipping through the channels and decided to watch a little Die Hard. The kids were all up and playing around the room, and granted, they weren't actually watching it, but it most definitely caught their attention here and there. Now I know a one year old has no comprehension of what is actually going on and during all this shoot-em-up stuff he has no idea people are "dying" or anything. But I still can't imagine it's a good reaction. I took my kids out of the room. They just don't need to see that stuff. And frankly, sometimes, why do we? I mean I'm not opposed to sex or drugs or violence in movies... I think there are situations where they all have their place in telling certain stories. It's the pointless sex and drugs and violence, the stuff just to draw an "audience", the shock value. That's the stuff that makes me wonder what this world (the entertainment world) is coming to. Okay, I'm getting off on a whole nother subject here.

Anyway, thanks for the links to the movie websites, Kasey. This is all stuff that Ryan and I want to sit down and discuss as our kids get older. Because I'm sure it's only going to get worse! I think we can all use all the thoughts and advice we can get!

Nicole said...

Great topic!! Its definitely something that I haven't really put much thought into, but I know I (or my husband, the guilty sucker from Heather's post), needs to think more into. I don't watch much tv, and if its on when I'm home, its usually Noggin or Sesame Street or a kids movie. However, if the tables were turned and Ryan were home with Porter all day, I'm sure my kid would turn out a cereal killer with shoot-em-up tendencies HAHA! (ok, not so haha, really).

Since Porter is still young, but really quite on the verge of "understanding" whats on tv (so, your post comes with great timing!), I haven't been too picky about what is on the tv when he's up. However, as Porter gets a little older I know Ryan and I (or more less.... Ryan) is going to have to save those adult tv shows/movies/pro-wrestling (((GAAAG))) for after-bedtime.

As far as movies... we just rented Disney's "The Wild" for Porter, and while he loved it (there are "RAAARARRRRR's in the movie... Lions, if you didn't understand Porterese), I found a lot of the battle/fighting scenes quite... violent. And while there were really heartwarming scenes and thought provoking "feeling" scenes, some of them almost brought me to tears (like when the little lion, Ryan, gets taken in the Green Box and he's screaming for his dad and the dad is shaking the zoo gate).

I know Heather mentioned sex/drug references in Cars before (when she first watched it), but I think I'm either too naive or just didn't pay attention HAHA! (I'm not calling you a liar). I guess I need to get up to snuff on that stuff if I'm going to someday have a teenage boy... yikes!!

Nicole said...

OH MY WORD did I seriously write CEREAL killer? Uh, I meant serial killer... BWAHAHAHAHAH!

Katie said...

Oh boy! Another thought provoking Fri...I mean Thursday conversation. And I think Heather pretty much summed it up for the idea of guns/violence/sex/ect. on T.V & media...and what our society as a whole has come too. When it comes to T.V. watching, to be completely honest Donnie really does not care for T.V. at ALL right now, not that he never watches it, but it's for a max...10min (sometimes it drives me nuts). But, even then I make sure it's age appropriate, and his main interest is in "The Animal Planet"...not much negative I can say about that channel.

Your right, it is so sad to see kids at school eveyday, and what their exposed too....not only at home, but in the media as well.

I don't forsee it getting any better either, so as a parent you just have to be very cautious of what they are viewing and listening too. I'm also BIG proponent on open communication with kids....don't hide them and isolate them, but rather be vey open and talk about scary topics... such as sex, drugs, violence....see what they're thinking, what they're feelings are, even at a young age, that is when they are the most impressionable!!