For those of us yeshivish who let our kids watch YouTube

bigsis144

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 11:46 am

I agree with FranticFrummie, my biggest concern is the “related videos” sidebar and how easy it is to be taken way, way off course. (Also, I agree that MLP: FiM is amazing!! The songs are also super high quality, ranging from humorous - Weird Al has a cameo!!! - to dramatic and dark. “This Day Aria” from the changeling episode is sooooooo good.)

Also the ADS. Even in the first few seconds before you can click “skip ad”, there can be plenty of objectionable content.

There are plenty of kosher things on youtube, including old pbs episodes, documentaries, Jewish music videos, etc. so I try as much as possible to allow it only under supervision.

I tried for a while to get dvds at the thrift store and a DVD player so that my kids wouldn’t have anything that wasn’t pre-screened.

But I’m far from perfect and it’s definitely a struggle. My 7 year old is in public school and he got a chromebook that is much, much less filtered than I would prefer. He has schoolwork between zoom classes that uses resources like YouTube, and I can’t supervise every minute of the day, and I’ll often find him watching Minecraft tutorials or looking up his favorite ninjago LEGO sets... but sometimes he’ll crack up laughing at the thought of looking up “how to blow up your school” or “world’s biggest butt” without any thought as to the consequences of that search 🤦🏻‍♀️ BH I’m within earshot and can swoop in, but it’s so so hard

Last edited by bigsis144 on Fri, Jul 17 2020, 11:54 am; edited 2 times in total

amother

Goldenrod

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 11:51 am

Because of coronavirus I opened Netflix and prime video on Dd 15 yo computer. These sites have parental controls and I only allowed not even pg because tv-pg is pretty bad. I also have tag instal Techloq on the computer and didn’t allow entertainment on YouTube. I have a router at home that restricts the times and shutoff the computer at night.

Success10

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:06 pm

malki2 wrote:

This. I had vague fond memories of seeing Fantasia as a child (my mother took me to the movie theater to watch an anniversary showing, probably because she had fond memories herself). So I thought to show it to my kids. So I previewed it. Devils, Hell, Evolution, Greco-Roman mythology, Evil Spirits were only some of its benign themes.

I didn't even think of that. I was thinking more romance. But I could also do without Ariel's clamshell bra, Aladdin stealing everything and still being considered the hero, Mulan praying to her ancestors and the entire Hercules film.

amother

Silver

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:10 pm

Success10 wrote:

I didn't even think of that. I was thinking more romance. But I could also do without Ariel's clamshell bra, Aladdin stealing everything and still being considered the hero, and the entire Hercules film.

And in Aladdin doesn’t jasmine mainly wear a skimpy top with her midriff showing.
Personally I wouldn’t do you tube. As an adult I find I tremendously addictive. Once you start you always have more to watch. Their algorithm encourages you to keep watching.
I really have no screen time. During coronavirus I let my 5 yr old watch Jewish educational programming. Very little. I stopped once she went back to school. She had the hardest time stopping to watch.

FranticFrummie

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:13 pm

Success10 wrote:

Fantasia scared the heck out of me as a child, and gave me nightmares for years! I was seriously traumatized. I don't remember any of the cute stuff, just the really scary parts. I watched it again as an adult, and kept thinking "Who thought this was a good show for kids?"

I never allowed Disney "romance" type movies when DD was little. She's a feminist teenager now, and she hates Disney for all of the "zexism and stereotypes". She never liked Barbie, either. Very Happy

Even some of Netflix kids shows are pretty problematic, so make sure you watch some of them on your own before you let your kids watch. What Netflix thinks is OK for kids, and what frum parents think is OK, can be two very different things.

asmileaday

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:25 pm

It's a real problem.
My 10 and 12 yr old are still somewhat ok with Wild Kratts but my 14 year old is completely uninterested in kiddie shows.
It is super hard to find normal shows today. Very frustrating.
I can't see them being interested in documentaries after seeing exciting cartoons and action with real actors.
But if anyone has good suggestions for a 14 year old boy I'll take it.
As it is screen time for watching is extremely limited in my house and reserved for special occasions (vacation days etc...). But still, when I do want to allow them to watch I'm stuck for lack of content.
Also, boy interests are very different than girl interests. I feel like there's more for girls than boys.
Some clean(ish) shows my kids enjoyed
The magic school bus
Odd squad
Gortimor Gibbons
Lost in Oz
When they were younger - Give a mouse a cookie

I also let them watch both Frozens even though it's a more girly movie but we did it together as a family. (I don't mind some romance, I just hate new age ideas - gender issues etc... I don't want to introduce those concepts.)

Last edited by asmileaday on Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:26 pm; edited 1 time in total

asmileaday

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:26 pm

FranticFrummie wrote:

It's truly crazy what concepts they'll "innocently" throw into these kids shows. I'm so disgusted.

FranticFrummie

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:30 pm

asmileaday wrote:

It's truly crazy what concepts they'll "innocently" throw into these kids shows. I'm so disgusted.

Do you have Netflix? For a 14yo boy, "Magic for Humans" is a fantastic series. The magic tricks are truly amazing, and it's just all around good clean fun. There is nothing "supernatural", and it's clear that the tricks are all done with skill and practice, nothing more.

thatworn

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:33 pm

We stopped with youtube somewhat suddenly (they had only watched "is it shabbos yet type videos on it) when I realised what was popping up on the sides and how bothersome it was to me to see such images. My eldest was about 6 or 7. I told them that I didn't to see what was popping on the sides, or popping up after the video we were watching came to an end. I told them that when I see people dressed r acting inappropriately or using bad words, I feel really uncomfortable. I didn't say "this is forbidden, you must not do it" - just that I didn't want to take part in it. Eldest is 10 now and still respects this ... I wonder what's going to happen in the teenage years. There's so much shtuss out there and so many parents don't give a hoot if their children are watching whatever they want, so I feel that if they are so eager to watch certain things they will find a way.

At present you can see alot of jewish videos on Oorah schmorg and unclepinchey for free, so we make use of that when they really need to be babysat by the screen.

giselle

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:33 pm

asmileaday wrote:

I watched Lemony Snicket with my son when he was around that age. Totally weird show, but we enjoyed it.

amother

Gold

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:35 pm

I let my kids watch paw patrol, bernstein bears, bananas in pajamas ect. I feel it is good for them to activate their imagination or learn lessons. My oldest dd is 10 and she has no clue that disney movies exist. I do rent kosher dvds once in a while. In the jewish world there is much less for kids than adults/teens. Older kids can fuel their imagination and keep themselves busy with reading so I dont want them to watch that much.

asmileaday

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 12:39 pm

amother [ Gold ] wrote:

Right so my 14 yr old ends up reading a ton. So maybe it's good that I haven't found shows that interest him LOL

.
He's begging to watch Harry Potter as he read all the books. But I'm not too excited to allow it. I haven't really read the reviews on the show so I'm not sure why. Has anyone watched the Harry Potter shows and can tell me if it's worse than the books?

amother

Plum

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 2:11 pm

Just FYI you can set your account on YouTube to "Restricted Mode" and it mostly monitors what is showing up on the sidebars. My kids are only allowed to watch at the kitchen table.
My DS loves Dude Perfect and he'll also watch reruns of MLB and NFL games.
Otherwise I let them watch PBS shows and they have Amazon Prime but I need to enter a password for any show they watch.

amother

Maroon

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 2:21 pm

amother [ Plum ] wrote:

Restricted mode also gets rid of the comments, which are often the worst part.

There are also a number of filters that can block within YouTube. None of them are perfect, and sometimes one video in a series will get blocked and the others not for no discernible reason. But it's worth it, and you can set it really strict so that you need to give permission.

asmileaday

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 2:35 pm

amother [ Maroon ] wrote:

I never let my kids be on YouTube just for entertainment. I don't trust restricted mode.
If there's specific youtube videos I allow them to watch they do so on our Amazon fire tablet in kids freetime mode. It's great. It has an option to add YouTube videos. I select which ones I allow. Then they can go into it on their own. You can only see that video. It doesn't allow you to go into any other videos and there are no comments.
I used this when I wanted them to access painting and craft tutorials, on their own, during quarantine time.

amother

Tan

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 3:39 pm

I let my older kids 9, 10, 11 watch arthur and other similar things on youtube or PBS kids..

Some are on nickjr but you need to watch it first to make sure its okay. There are shows that are interesting where kids are in the show and create inventions...I forgot the name and theres a show "oddsquad"...etc

But, no! I would not let my older kids watch Disney shows or...because the non jewish view of what's appropriate for 13 yr old is very different from what we yeshivish/jpf think...

So, as my son got older, he got more into games like roblox(I only allow the ones with no guns...etc) he also plays games like racing...etc..there aren't too many videos on YouTube he's allowed to watch...but too bad, I wont allow Disney or
..

So, guess what he does? He reads a lot. He also got interested in coding on khan academy. My son also got into learning about science(he knows not to do about evolution..) on YouTube like seeing them dig into the bottom of ocean.., And, if someone is yeshivish, I'm assuming their sons at 13 would be doing more learning. My son's rebbe influenced him to spend a lot of time learning.

If it's an older girl, well, my dd watches cooking /baking videos to see what she can cook/bake. And, she got into looking up arts/crafts and knitting videos on youtube. She also looks up how to do her hair on youtube...etc.

If your kids get older, and they insist that they want to watch videos on YouTube, I wouldnt allow it. But, it's all about what the goal is. Some parents let their kids go on YouTube etc to entertain themselves. But, in my opinion, I would rather my kids be busy with other things which means I sometimes have to stop my tasks..etc. to entertain them, but it's worth it.

Also, I personally find it's easier for my older kids to be okay doing other things like reading, or playing games on computer...while a 7 year old is not as easily entertained. So, as your children get older, you may want to limit their YouTube time to gradually have them learn to do other things.

Mama Bear

Fri, Jul 17 2020, 3:43 pm

I have this issue. my 7 yr old got obsessed with Ryan's Toys Reviews. It was fine when he was 4 or 5. When he was 6 he finally outgrew it and I was so happy. now with the pandemic with so much free time he fell back in and is more addicted than ever. I took a cold hard look at myself and realized that now is the time to nip it in the bud, bc it's an endless slope. We live in a different era. Sad

The one thing you can do is limit it to Youtube Kids. it's an app that only allows age appropriate videos.

But weaning kids off watching videos as they get older is really really hard. Schooling gets harder & more intense and kids who have a lot of screen time have a really hard time focusing on boring schoolwork. It's a really tough issue.