Toddler always get close to the TV, might it point on bad eye sight?
My 2 years old daughter love to watch TV so we let her do that sometimes. We always ask her to sit on the couch which is ~2 meters away from the TV and she do that, however after few minutes she will always get up and go closer to the screen.
When we ask her to get back to the couch she obeys, but again - only for few minutes.
Should we take her for eyesight test, or is this normal behavior for this age?
Update - at the age of 3, she got glasses and since then all is good. Turned out to be eyesight issue indeed.
(6)6 Comments
Sorted by latest first Latest Oldest Best
I think the real issue here is that toddlers aren't designed to watch TV. If you want to watch TV, then have other things (coloring, blocks, trains, etc) for her to do with you while you watch. But better yet, wait until she goes to bed. At her age she has a lot of growing and learning to do, none of which is going to happen from watching TV. Babies learn from getting up close and personal!
Check out this TED Talk on the language acquisition of babies. If you watch it, you'll see her talk about the effects on baby's speech development from watching the a real person read a book vs watching that person on TV.
This issue was covered on Skeptics.SE, and the answer was, no, there is no effect.
Here is the link: skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/404/does-watching-television-damage-the-eyes
This is definitely normal, and not just at that age, although they do get better at following instructions as they get older (caveat- I don't have teenagers so this may all change...)
Just keep popping the child back on the couch, tell them not to get close to the TV and ideally sit on the couch with them for a cuddle. This will provide positive reinforcement that the couch is a comfy place.
If you're concerned then you could do your own eyesight check. Get some pictures of things she knows the names of, for instance a bird, car, etc. Make sure she's never seen them. Tell her you're going to play a game, and make sure someone's there to make sure she stays on the sofa while you stand TV distance away. Hold up the pictures one by one and see if she can see what they are. If she can't see them get an eyesight check.
Go for walks and point to things far away and ask her what she sees. Can she recognize her daddy from 30m away? 10m? Does she point to birds in the sky? If not, she may been glasses.
I would think that it's not an eyesight issue but simply that the story is so exciting that she wants to be closer to it. It's like when granny says, "It's story time, kids, come closer."
GdD offers great ideas for DIY eyesight tests, or visit a professional if you're concerned. But if it's not evident except for TV then it's probably not that. Rory suggests to join them on the couch, which is what I would do, too.
I also observed this thing with my 1 year and 8 month old son. He really tends to go near the TV and then, when I asked him to move over, after some time he is there again. Whenever he does this, its almost routinary that I have to pick him away from the TV, and then he goes back, again. Sometimes, what I do, is I put some barriers so he wont get too near the TV, or I will get his favorite chair, so he will be encourage to sit on his designated area.
Terms of Use Privacy policy Contact About Cancellation policy © freshhoot.com2025 All Rights reserved.