Toons

When I was a kid I watched cartoons like Smurfs, Snorkles, Bugs Bunny and Rainbow Brite. The closest thing to a teeny bopper show was Punky Brewster, or Alf. Now, my kids watch Phinneus and Pherb,6teen, Sponge Bob and their idea of teenage shows are Wizards of Wavery Place and iCarley. Now they have several channels that are dedicated to kids shows, when I was a kid it was all about getting up early on Saturday morning and praying mom didn't wake up and have "cleaning day" so we could watch the toons. Up until today I've had some serious reservations about the shows my kids are watching, and the things they are learning from those shows. I've seen a lot of kissing, language that I don't approve of in this house and subject matter I haven't discussed with them yet. Don't get me wrong, I still have those reservations and I've set up some parental blocking on particular shows, but I've also realized a couple of things today that I didn't think about before. From what I remember, when we were kids and watching smurfs and Alf, they didn't talk about or show things about places around the world, speak in other languages, or have much of a cultural flair. Now, between Phinneus and Pherb traveling to Paris and iCarly going to Japan, my kids are asking questions about those places. They don't think twice about doing a report on Mexico because as they've grown up they've heard Dora talking Spanish and learned about cultural differences and customs of Mexico. They ask where Paris is and what language they speak there, they talk about trying foods that they serve in Japan and how long it would take to fly to another country. All of these conversations and activities aren't things that I experienced watching cartoons of my generation. It is a fine line that as parents we need to watch closely, making sure our kids aren't learning ahead of their emotional and maturity level, but are still able to benefit from the new and interesting information the toons of their generation provide. Now, the goal is to be able to stomach more than one episode of Wizards of Waverly Place or Hannah Montana to make sure the shows are appropriate. What I'd really go for is a retro channel that showed old shows 24/7.