http://www.parenting.org/precious/e_current.asp
Marketing to Your Toddler
The following article contains excerpts from the just-published book, Who's Raising Your Child? Battling the Marketers for Your Child's Heart and Soul .
If today's marketers and advertisers have their way, your toddler will dictate what toys fill the game room, what food is served at the breakfast table, which designer labels hang in the closet and what entertainment flashes across the plasma-screen TV.
Sophisticated marketing messages that celebrate consumption and consumerism are streaming into children's lives every day. And they've been spectacularly successful.
In one poll of parents, 20 percent said their kids by age 3 - before they could read - began asking for brand-name products. Almost half of the parents said that kids were asking for branded products by age 5.
Advertisers' unrelenting pursuit of our young people through mass media, the Internet, even in school and on the street, can seem overwhelming. However, there are things you can do now that will help your toddler grow up to care more about people and less about things.
- Set limits on your toddler's television time . Many experts recommend that preschoolers watch no more than one hour of TV daily.
- Watch TV with your child . Be a filter for your child by helping him or her understand what's happening on screen.
- Teach your child to take "No" for an answer . Nagging or whining for something comes naturally to children. You must teach your child that there will be times when he or she wants something, but you will have to say "No."
- Reward your child with time and attention rather than with things . Give your child "people" rewards (hugs, kisses, time spent with Mom and Dad) when he or she has earned it for good behavior.
- Encourage play activities that promote creativity, problem-solving and concentration . TV entertains kids, but it doesn't engage the part of the brain that thinks critically or solves problems.
- Find ways to involve your child in volunteer or service activities . When you donate your time and energy to a cause, look for opportunities to explain to your child why you do this or have your child assist you.
Using these strategies successfully when your child is young will help him or her develop a sound system of values that puts people first. He or she may still get enticed by the latest toy or snack food on the market, but you will have given your child a larger framework from which to understand personal desires and choices.
