But mama was very serious. "What about the news?" protested Papa. "I won't know what's going on in the world if I don't watch the TV news!" "Here try this," said Mama. "It's called the newspaper." "and the weather!" continued Papa. "How will we know what the weather will be?"

Q&A: What to do when tv has taken over your homeschoolers!

"I need help! My son's daily tv watching has slowly turned from one hour a day into about six. I know it's my fault. I always feel guilty when he's watching it, but I can get SO much done while it keeps him occupied. Please don't think I'm a bad mom..."

Answer: Of course you aren't a bad mom, you're just a busy one! I know you feel like you've fallen from grace and that you're all alone with this problem. Start out by taking a deep breath because there are a lot of moms who know just how you feel! I was one of them! It's just So easy to turn on the tv! My son was living for cartoons too. Here's ways to win the tv battle from homeschoolers just like you...

Ideas from other tv battling moms!

• "Have them see recreational tv time as a privilege that should be earned. How they earn this privilege is up to you. You can have a points system set up based on behavior, which is what I do. Every point is 1 minute of free time. What my homeschoolers do with their free time is up to them. I'm not perfectly consistent on this but I try... which is the best that any of us can do. Good Luck" - Kim
  
  
  
• Make the t.v. work for you! Don't feel like you're limited to the latest Sponge Bob cartoon as a learning tool for your child. Believe it or not, there are a lot of quality television programs and educational movies out there that your entire family will love. Start by looking at your local library for some educational videos. The problem with this is, if your library is like mine, the most recent video is from 1983. I had to look for a good alternative spot for my videos and after a lot of trial and error I found out about the huge selection available at www.familypass.com/homeschoolers. Look for next month's resource article "Family Pass" where we take the time to outline all of the options available. Thanks! - Kristi HomeschoolViews.com
  
  
  

• "I know that too much of even the best tv isn't so great. During nice weather, I try to take away the whole temptation by taking them on a lot of park days and field trips. This means that we're scarcely home long enough for tv to be an issue. When the weather is bad and we've all had enough crafts to last the rest of the week... I admit it - the tv comes back on, but not as often!" - Sara
  
  
  

• "I battle tv with books, because it's the only thing that seems to work for us! I believe in having a huge supply of children's books, which is possible if you get them from yard sales and thrift shops. We participate in all of the library's reading programs and story times. To be honest, it's a fine line to walk with the kids. The problem with this method is that you have to be careful not to force them to read. To truly foster a love for reading you want them to read because they enjoy it, not because they have to in order to watch their favorite cartoon." - Heather
  
  
  

• "My son was living for cartoons too. Before any rules had to be put in place, if it was a school day the tv did not come on until school was done. This worked for awhile, but then I started to notice he was hurrying through his work so he could get to the tv. Obviously this was a problem, so a new rule was created. The tv doesn't come on before 6:30pm Monday through Friday. I know this may sound extreme to a lot of you, but I'm more flexible around vacations, holidays, and the weekends. I do make exceptions for good behavior. At first, you'll hear alot of complaining, but be strong and before you know it, it won't be an issue." - Cindy
  
  
  

• "I too have taken on the tv battle and won! One more point for the home team! The only problem I found was that if my daughter was watching tv when she had nothing else to do. This may be obvious to all of you, but my problem was that I kinda spaced out the fact that it was my job to give her an alternative. What I mean was that I said "No tv!" and she said "okay...what do you want me to do instead?" So when you decide to shut the tv off be sure to hsve a plan of action, or you too may be out witted by a seven year old homeschooler!" - Judy
  
  
  

  Share Your Ideas about next month's Ask A Mom.
  
  "I'm lucky to be able to work from home, but how do I balance homeschool-time, family-time, & work-time?"