SpongeBob, Caillou, and a Box of Crayons

Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. • Sep 14, 2011
I could have lived a happy life without knowing the influence that SpongeBob and Patrick have on 2- to 11- year olds.  Hot off the press, Angeline S. Lillard, PhD and her colleagues from the University of Virginia reported a study designed to assess the impact of a fast-paced TV program on the executive function of preschoolers.  Executive function is a fancy term used to describe how the brain chooses to do something, and it involves things like attention, memory, and self-control.  Kids with a lot of executive function do well in school and probably in life, too.

The researchers chose SpongeBob (where the complete scene changes an average of every 34 seconds) and Caillou, a slower paced PBS educational program with a control group of children skipping TV altogether in favor of crayons. The researchers were interested in how the preschoolers behaved, solved problems and could wait for a treat immediately following the activity.

 The study  is well written and easy to read (if you can skip the executive function lingo and the P= .05 statistics).  As you might expect, kids who watch nine minutes of SpongeBob behave an awful lot like he does immediately following the show. They have a tougher time solving problems, remembering things, and they can’t wait for the marshmallow treat.  Remember  the Marshmallow Test  ?

Ask any parent.  We know there’s a whole lot more jumping on the couch after an episode of SpongeBob and a whole lot more sword fighting after the Power Rangers and well…we probably shouldn’t discuss what happens after Mythbusters.  I won’t summarize all the results of the research, but I would encourage you to read it for yourself.

I am actually grateful for this study.  Often, it takes an ah-hah moment like reading the results to acknowledge what we know down deep.  Not all TV affects children in a positive way.  That ah-ha moment forces me to acknowledge that the TV can be my video babysitter, and I have to use it carefully.  If one episode offers thirty uninterrupted minutes to unload the dishwasher, get dinner on the table, and essentially focus on any task I need to accomplish without multitasking, it may come at a price I don’t really want to pay.

The realization that some programming is better for kids than others is not new.  If you have not watched Saturday morning cartoons with your child recently…or any TV for that matter, I’m handing you a prescription to do so.  It doesn’t take a PhD and this UVA study to listen to your “Mom-heart” and help your child choose good shows to watch.  Without help, there are an unlimited number of choices, and like cheese doodles and soda, kids do not always make the best choices.

In   Editorial Commentary  ,  Dimitri A. Christakis reminds us, “Eliminating media is neither feasible nor desirable; even reducing media is challenging and misses the point…”  The point might be to insist that parents watch TV with our children more often than we do.  It’s easy to say no to the SpongeBob Marathon Saturday if you have to watch, too!

One of my ‘go to’ resources for help in choosing wisely with my family is   CommonSenseMedia.org.    They rate every media format (from books to TV, movies and video games).  And they help me decide what’s fit for my children’s consumption.  They have taken on an advocacy role for children’s media issues and are front runners in topics like internet privacy and advertising to children.  Believe it or not, my teens introduced me to the website!

Last thought… Remember, the control group of kids had crayons.  I wonder if the iPad drawing app works the same as the real thing…

Creative Commons License

The DrDownload Blog

By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 30 Jan, 2024
It's not what you say... it's how you say it. But sometimes, it IS what you say, and knowing how the experts communicate with children, big and small can often help parents. The post What Mothers Say Matters To Our Kids appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 01 Dec, 2023
With an organized roadmap to offer checkups and flu vaccines this fall, I’m proud to say that our practice vaccinated more than seventy five percent of the patients and the parents who come to us. It wasn’t an easy task, and there were some families who probably thought our email reminders were annoying. To you, […] The post Flu, Vaccines & Chicken Noodle Soup appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 01 Dec, 2020
Five years later.  It’s official. Kids, I’ll no longer be asking you to take a teaspoon of medicine. I’m making the call to action for the pharmacists who prepare prescriptions for my patients to kick back any prescriptions if I forget to write in milliliters. The American Academy of Pediatrics came out with the wise advice (they […] The post How to Measure Medicine, Mary Poppins appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Smith 29 Nov, 2023
FDA Approves Goat's Milk Infant Formula & the AAP agrees it's an excellent option to nourish infants who are not breastfeeding.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 10 Jul, 2021
When we ordered a new electronic health record, we picked one build for kids in an effort to improve the quality of the care we provide. One of the things it prompts us to ask about is guns in the home. I’ve always been in the habit of asking about a child’s home setting to […] The post Guns? You Gotta Ask appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 18 Dec, 2020
The first shipment of COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Richmond this week.  I’m calling it a shot of hope, and I couldn’t be more hopeful and yes, excited to get my vaccine. As a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, I am always careful to say when I’m speaking on their behalf and when I’m […] The post A Shot of Hope appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 10 Oct, 2020
This week, it’s about our Children’s Hospital… DID YOU KNOW?? Did you know that I have written about and wished for a real Children’s Hospital for Richmond for more than twenty years?  We could split hairs on the definition of a ‘real’ Children’s Hospital, but I’ll wager that you know one when you see one. […] The post Did You Know We Need A Real Children’s Hospital? appeared first on the original DrDownload blog at PartnersInPediatrics.info
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 24 Sep, 2020
We call it Love and Liquids.  It’s what you do when your child is sick, and as the Fall unfolds, we’re pretty sure it’s going to be a very long winter of illness.  So let’s review the drill for how to get better. At first, you think it might be allergies, but really … you’re […] The post Get Better Faster With Love and Liquids appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 08 Sep, 2020
I just finished reading an excellent blog post by Emily Oster written to help parents make decisions in CoronaVirus times.  She blogs at CovidExplained.org I’ve grown fond of saying that we are living through history, and in some ways, it softens the daily blows that come with actually having to do that.  This Coronavirus has […] The post Coronavirus Decision Making appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 30 Jun, 2020
COVID-19 Testing. It’s a featured topic on 60 Minutes in late June, 2020 and their investigative journalism has some surprising discoveries about how the FDA allowed antibody tests of varied accuracy onto the market. “The wonderful, beautiful immunity.”  That’s how the President described antibody protection in folks who have recovered from COVID-19.  We know that […] The post COVID-19 Tests. We Must Proceed With Caution appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
More Posts
Share by: