I raised two boys without television. They’re now old enough that adults are no longer are impressed with their ability to maintain eye contact, speak in complete sentences, and attend to a task to its completion. Their peers caught up, but not before Nathan and Dylan had gotten used to being singled out for plum assignments. I’m convinced the difference throughout their teens years was a simple recipe of limited television, regular read-alouds, adult dinner conversations, and enforced “sit and listen” Sunday mornings. They still mostly resent these strictures I placed on them as they grew up, but I hope they will one day see that they benefitted, and that the parenting style I chose with my wife was not easy or popular. It is more so today. Next week is TV-Turnoff Week, when it becomes very popular to do without the daily diet. Maybe it’s a start, and maybe it’s a sop. It’s not for me to say. I did what I thought was right. Now, that’s enough. I wish it had been back then.
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