Entertainment Media for Children has decided to host a movie night for neighbor children. We
would like to have children from the neighborhood come over, sit on the lawn and watch a Christmas movie or cartoon and drink hot cocoa and eat gingerbread cookies. My responsibility as Activity Coordinator is to select a Christmas movie or cartoon that the children can sit and watch. I would like to choose a Christmas movie or cartoon that is appropriate for all ages. Our organization, Entertainment Media for Children, has decided to have movie night because it can help take our minds off holiday stress. I feel that this time of the year we all tend to have some kind of holiday stress and we tend to forget about what Christmas is really about. Christmas is a wonderful time of the year, one that is celebrated the most around the world. Christmas is about families, friends, presents, carolers, festivities, food, Christ, and many more. And at times we need to be reminded of that, so by watching Christmas movies or cartoons it will tend to remind us of all the good cheer and joy Christmas can bring. Our goal is to remind us that the holidays do not have to be so blue. Christmas is a time of happiness, joy and good cheer, especially when surrounded by family, friends and loved ones. But I have to admit the holidays can bring on a lot of stress and those holiday blues. I used to love Christmas as a young child, but now as an adult I have to say it’s not as exciting and fun as when I was growing up. There are many factors that lead to stress during the Christmas holidays such as time and finances. I am a single mother of two boys working full-time and going to school part-time, I myself tend to find it to very stressful for me during this time of the year. What I find most stressful during the holidays is trying to find time. Trying to find the time to study for finals, finding the time to go christmas shopping for my boys, finding the time to be with family and friends all at the same time. Time is a big stress factor for me. I get so stressed out because there just isn’t enough time to do everything. Another stress factor for me during Christmas is the financial burden of buying extra gifts, financial pressure from family, friends and children. I would love to buy for everyone on my list, but unfortunately that is not possible. Not having enough finances is a major stress factor for me during the Christmas holidays. I would love to buy for others, but the lack of money prevents that from happening. Knowing how to prevent those holiday blues will reduce the stress most of us feel during Christmas. One way I might be able to reduce my stress during Christmas is learning how to balance my time between my family, work and school. I feel that if I know how to find a way to balance my time and find time for myself I will be able to reduce my stress during the Christmas holidays. Another way to reduce the holiday stress due to finances is to figure out what is the purpose and meaning of giving. There might be a more meaningful way of giving that is less demanding on me. I can also set a budget and only spend what my budget will allow me to spend. I can start saving for Christmas in January and put aside a certain amount every month until December and then when December comes around I’ll have enough on my budget to spend. Christmas is supposed to be merry and jolly, but if we allow these stressors to affect us then Chirstmas will not be so merry. The holidays are for making memories and for bonding with family and friends, so make the best of your holidays and the memories you make will be priceless. Children love to watch cartoons, but as a parent, it’s our job to monitor what is appropriate for our children to watch on television. I’m a mother of two little boys ages four-years old and ten-months old. I don’t mind my children watching cartoons, but I like to limit them to only educational cartoons. Right now, my two boys are like sponges, and they tend to absorb everything they see or hear, so by limiting them to only watching educational shows verses other cartoons show, I get great relief knowing that they are watching learning educational material. As parents how do we go about finding the right television shows for our children? Well, you can see what other parents recommend or you can view our website “Entertainment Media for Children." Our mission is committed to providing informative sources of entertainment that promote education. Though research and partnerships with organizations within the community, we will gather relevant information that assists parents of the Kingsville area with age-appropriate entertainment for their children. Specifically, we will focus on television, music, and relating events within the campus and local community. By providing this service, parents can aid their children with material that engages positive morals and values such as good character and citizenship. As a parent there are several cartoon shows that I would recommend your children to watch. Shows that promote learning in language arts that I recommend are Super Why and Word World. Super Why helps children ages three through six-years old learn the alphabet, learn reading skills, and learn to spell, and learn rhyming through singing, dancing, and word building. Word World is a cartoon where animals interact with each other to build words. The words turn into the shape it represents. For example, if the word is house, then the letters from the word house form the shape of a house. Another cartoon TV show I would recommend as a parent that promotes learning in math is Team Umizoomi. Team Umizoomi is an animated cartoon that helps preschool aged children learn math. This cartoon focuses on learning and solving mathematical concepts by using patterns, shapes, and counting. Dora the Explorer is another great educational cartoon that teaches children Spanish. This cartoon gets its viewers involved during the show by getting them to repeat words or phrases in Spanish. I love for my son to watch this cartoon show because it teaches him multiculturalism. My son has learned how to say at least ten words in Spanish from watching this cartoon. Yo Gabba Gabba is another cartoon I love for my son to watch. The reason why I recommend this cartoon is not because it’s an educational cartoon, but because it teaches children manners.There is one episode that teaches children to use their manners by saying please, thank you, and how to greet different people by saying hello and goodbye. I feel that learning manners is just as important as learning educational material. All these cartoons that I have recommended can be seen on Nick Jr. or on DVD’s. My four-year old son and I have mommy and son time every Saturday morning. We sit and eat our pancakes, and after breakfast, we sit on the couch for two hours and watch all these educational cartoons together. I love that I can have alone time with my son , and at the same time make it an educational moment as well. My son has learned so much from watching these cartoons. He has learned how to count to one hundred in English and up to twenty in Spanish. He has learned his shapes, colors and has learned how to recognize and spell ten words and he is only four-years old. So if you have any children and want them to learn while watching television, I highly recommend these cartoons. |
Jessica MillerMy name is Jessica Miller. I am currently a Senior at Texas A&M University in Kingsville and majoring in Human Development and Family Studies. My career goal after graduation is to teach Pre-K or Kinder age children. |