Baby Einstein exposed?

by Keith McDuffee (Subscribe to Keith McDuffee's posts) Feb 21st 2006 12:39PM

Categories: Money & Work, Development, That's Entertainment

I don't even know where to begin on this post; there are so many sides to the story. Should your babies watch TV? Are Baby Einstein videos essential to brain development? Are TV and videos just good babysitters? Is it bad that you think TV and videos are good babysitters?

The author of this web exclusive article on Mothering's site has done extensive research on Baby Einstein and their claims. Why? Because having a company tell her that her baby would develop better by watching these videos just didn't sit right with her. And she found out some pretty interesting things, like studies to debunk claims that Baby Einstein's Language Nursery can help teach your child another language.

So what is the author saying? That no video can ever take the place of human interaction in a child's development. Her answer to video as babysitter is to instead involve your kids in whatever task you are doing, as a helper. And I think this is a good suggestion once your child reaches a certain age.

Overall, the author's message is to tell moms they don't need to feel pressure from multi million dollar companies to be a different type of mom than their gut tells them to be. And any advice that tells you to listen to your gut as a parent is worth its weight in gold.

Source

Comments (22)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

kate 2-21-2006 @ 1:11PM

THANK YOU for posting this link - I'm totally behind this questioning of these "early learning" products that are really taking advantages of our insecurities. But beyond agreeing with the issue with educational videos, etc. - there was another interesting section to the article that focused on how to involve your child in your household work, and how to find patience to allow child to work along side of you, instead of being "entertained" in another room. I found this really inspiring.

Kate 2-21-2006 @ 1:11PM

Right on. We didn't have any of the Baby Einsteins until Morgan turned 1. Although I had friends who swore by them, I was always suspicious of the claim that they were anything other than a 20 minute break for mom. Morgan got two of the videos about animals for her first birthday and she really really enjoyed them, but I think any "learning" happened because we were reinforcing the same concepts (animal names and sounds) in other parts of her day as well. I don't think the Baby Einsteins or other "educational" videos are necessarily harmful (used sparingly) but they're not going to turn your baby into an Einstein, either. (And I won't even get into the new Disney channel show "Little Einsteins" which is the Baby Einstein upgrade. I have VERY mixed feelings about that one! :-))

Tara 2-21-2006 @ 1:22PM

I have 16 month old twins and we're following the TV guidelines from the American Acadamy of Pediatrics. NO TV UNTIL AGE 2. It works for us. They don't watch TV at all. They play with their toys. Imagine that! They are also book worms. Even at 16 months they have favorites and can pick a book out from the bookshelf when I ask them to get a certain title. I am a SAHM so I read to them a lot! Baby Einstein also makes flash cards. We got them as Christmas gifts. I really like the animal ones. They have photos of animals (not cartoons) and the cards are laminated (babyproofed!). It's really a glorified book that ends up in 24 pieces on the floor instead bound by a spine. But the kids enjoy them.

Mandie 2-21-2006 @ 1:25PM

Baby Einstein, and the rest, home videos may or may not have boosted my childs learning but I beleive it helped ME boost her learning. Twenty something no teaching degree suddenly facing a wee one, I did need guidance on where to start.

Kate 2-21-2006 @ 1:31PM

Oooh, Tara, we love the animal flashcards too! Morgan walks around with them like they are her pets. She's all "This is my lion! Say "rrraarrr" lion!".

Nancy Toby 2-21-2006 @ 1:51PM

I have some of the Baby Einstein DVDs and they're slightly better than just turning the TV on to PBS, but what I find REALLY REALLY annoying are the commercials they now include for their other products, which are difficult to get around when you load the DVD.

Sabrina 2-21-2006 @ 2:32PM

I used to be really anti-TV too, but I'm a SAHM, my husband works a lot, and I have very little support. My daughter naps for an hour or so a day, and if you do the math that leaves me with about eleven hours to fill. She'll play independently for ten minutes or so, but TV is really the only way I can get anything done around the house, take a shower, or get a break. I don't delude myself that Baby Einstein is beneficial, but I also refuse to feel guilty about it. She is developmentally on target for her age, she loves books and music, and we spend time outside almost every day.

Maureen 2-21-2006 @ 5:21PM

I never thought that these videos would boost my child's intelligence, but I do use such short videos almost every evening while I make dinner. My kids get about 20 minutes of tv time and I get to cook dinner in peace. My husband is gone from about 7:30 - 7:30 and I start going mad at about 5:30. The thought of allowing my 1 and 3 year old to help me make dinner when they are already getting tired and hungry makes me shudder. I feel no guilt about turning on baby newton, winnie the pooh or some other such short video while I prepare a meal. When the kids are a bit older, perhaps they will be put in charge of setting the table and washing up on their own while I prepare dinner.

Ms. Mama 2-21-2006 @ 5:27PM

I liked the sound of no TV till 2, till my daughter was born, and I realized sometimes mom just needs a break. I do not believe that Baby Einstein will make my baby smarter (who would!), but I do put it on a few times a week when I just need to breathe. My daughter is 9 months so having her help with the chores is a bit out of the question still, and since she naps very little I sometimes just need to have 20 minutes where she is not needing me with her or trying to get into everything. She loves the videos and I love the few minutes it gives me...

Jen 2-21-2006 @ 6:07PM

We use the Baby Einsteins as the 'before nap' video (daughter is 3.) The music is soothing on most, and they're nice and short. However, I am hard pressed to think of a damn thing she may have learned from any of them. Not to mention the creator's kids plastered all the hell all over the place.
And the Language Nursery? We've been trying to figure out how the hell that one makes any sense. Native speakers are great and all, but there is absolutely no rhyme or reason to it.

rebecca 2-21-2006 @ 7:41PM

I'm currently reading a book titled, "Einstein never used Flashcards" (Sorry, I didn't know how to underline the title using the comment box.) The main point the authors seem to be making is how unnecesary it is for us to "schedule" learning time using "artificial" learning tools. Kids are learning all the time and they do not need a video to make that happen. The authors do not vilify parents for using learning videos as entertainment, but rather warn parents against thinking the videos are acceptable substitutes for what parents naturally teach their kids on a daily basis.

Meredith 2-21-2006 @ 8:03PM

Just by reading several of the comments above, I wonder how many parents who purchased these really so think that their child is gaining some sort of educational edge if they watch them. It sounds to me as if everyone who has them and uses them just does so because they have the ability to catch the eye of an infant/toddler.

I do not delude myself that these made my child a smarter baby. But I will say that she had been known to hum the tunes from Little Einsteins over and over and I don't know many other 2 yr olds that know what a wombat is.

Although she isn't going to be winning any awards for super intelligence from watching these, I pick these over SpongeBob anyday. Since it isn't realistic for me to have a no-TV household until she goes to college, I would rather opt for these.

tom 2-21-2006 @ 9:35PM

Have you people tried Classical Baby from HBO (you can find the DVD's on Amazon)?

It's 1,000,000 times better than Baby Einstein. Cute cartoons and great selections of music. Highly Recommended! I can watch them for hours :-)

Stacie 2-21-2006 @ 9:56PM

I prefer Classical Baby on HBO, too (and if you have Tivo you don't have to buy, buy, buy - those Baby Einsteins are expensive. Also, I bought one when my baby was itty bitty - personally, I thought the quality was not so good - I could make the same video and play my own music in the background.)

Sometimes I think things like Baby Einstein are just a status quo kind of thing - if that's the case then I'm must not be up to par.

Jan Siplon 2-22-2006 @ 11:28AM

I hope I'm not double posting but I didn't see my comments...
I, by no means, think that Baby Einstein will make my kids smarter. However, I do think that having 20 minutes or so to just "be" is perfectly fine. What is wrong with some pretty pictures, cute animation and nice music? I have a 5 year old that happens to think that the new Little Einstein cartoon is pretty cool. Here is a preschooler surrounded by kids who pretend to shoot guns, "kill" their opponents whatever and he likes to watch these little kids have adventures into Art and Music History! And when he tells me that the music we are listening to in the car is Allegro...well that is pretty nifty as well. Having said that, he has been read to since he could sit up and loves books like nobody's business. Everything in moderation is my mantra.

Carrie 2-22-2006 @ 1:00PM

I don't believe any television watching is educational. Course, I don't think everything a child does should be "education". Sitting and staring into space is good for a kid's brain. ;)

But, Tv takes the place of activities that are far superior- time spent with family, reading, talking, games, etc.

I have 4 kids and a hubby who is gone from 6 am to 8 pm 5 days a week, sometimes more so I understand needing a break. Sometimes I load everyone in the car so noone is pulling on me. Or I shoo them outside to play in the yard while I have a cup of tea.

As far as the dinner hour, my kids either help or they play while I cook. They watch little TV. Since there are 4 of them, they entertain each other an awful lot!

Karen 2-24-2006 @ 1:16PM

I agree with those who are writing that they don't expect any great educational benefit from Baby Einstein. There's nothing wrong with something just being entertaining. And it's great if that something is not annoying to Mommy.

Since a few others have listed other favorites, here is my son's: Jack the Cuddly Dog. Mostly actual nature footage (no puppets!), nice soothing music, lots of dogs, and an animated puppy that pops in and out. There's a clip at http://www.jackthecuddlydog.com.

I do try to involve my son with chores, but sometimes I just want to make dinner (or go potty) all by myself, and if a video makes it easier, I'll turn on the vcr!

Wynne 2-26-2006 @ 10:20AM

Hi~I'm just reading everyone's comments about baby DVDs, and have some opinions as well. I think that companies shouldn't tout themselves as making a baby smarter, because it preys upon people's fears that their child will be left behind.I think that moderation is the key to everything in life.I created a baby dvd entitled "The Baby Society", and would never presume or try to persuade people that it will make their baby smarter. That's why I stayed away from using a title that would imply anything related to intelligence. I think that babies should be stimulated through a variety of means, including books, toys,baby games,videos, one on one interaction, and environmental stimulation (taking your baby out while shopping,etc.) There are so many valuable methods for stimulating and encouraging language development all around us. My feeling, for what it's worth is that babies do get bored, and being able to explore their world through a variety of means,(including well-chosen videos) seems perfectly fine! They can be just as interactive for parents and babies as a book, or flashcards. When you market a product, you definitely have to highlight what you feel are the beneficial aspects of that product whether it's educational value, entertainment value or whatever. So..in defense of baby video companies I think they should be able to mention what their value is, but as a society we should stop placing so much emphasis on "making babies smarter", and spend more time making them well-rounded and happy!!

Pamster 2-27-2006 @ 4:02PM

I wasn't crazy about Baby Einstein videos since there really aren't any stories to them for kids to follow and nothing much to learn from except to just pass the time while sitting there staring at the screen.

To me the videos just seem like video mobiles. However I do like the flash cards.

Vered 3-11-2006 @ 11:14PM

My son is almost 12months & he has been watching the Baby Einstein DVD's since he was three weeks old.

As a mum who suffered severe PND I found (& still do) the break a blessing. I know he will be entertained & happy while I have a break/rest.

Are they educational? I don't know. But, I don't think they're bad for him. I only allow him to watch one DVD per day, if that...his favourites are Baby Van Gogh & Baby Beethoven!