The disappearing family room
Growing up in the 1980s in rural Missouri, my family had three television stations to choose from: ABC; CBS; and NBC. ABC was the only one that came in clearly; the others had more static than image and required regular antenna adjustments. Our desperate reception was mainly because we had an antenna inside the roof of our restored farmhouse. My family prioritized keeping a 19th century aesthetic over FOX reception. As a result, years later I was left out of many high school lunch table conversations, having never watched Beverly Hills 90210 and only listening to snippets of MTV when my friends had sleepovers.
While we watched some TV, instead often working together on puzzles or making up stories, some of my best family memories revolved around our 24-inch wood-enclosed TV situated in the family room. We would run home every year to see the annual WIZARD OF OZ performance. My mom, younger sister, and I shared an annual weekend watching the two-night special of GONE WITH THE WIND, I held my breath in anticipation of the line “Frankly, dear~” that had surprised my grandmother Bloomer at the cinema when she and my mother first saw it together during my mother’s childhood. The family watched MOONLIGHTING, until Maddie and David’s “soft” kissing began in Season 3. Given our lack of viewing options, we didn’t debate much about what to watch, instead enjoying time together as a family.
In 1987, my parents bought our first VCR. The mom and pop rental store offered great incentives to my hesitant parents, including a free movie rental every week for the next year. At the time, owning movies was prohibitively expensive (retail prices only dropped dramatically with the mass adoption of DVD). Suddenly there was a deluge of content available for our home. The rental shop was kind enough to give us 5 rentals our first weekend. We each thought of a movie (I think mine was GREASE). After a lot of tinkering to connect the right wires, we launched into a marathon viewing weekend. By Sunday, we were hooked. With no commercials, I could take a bathroom break, and watching movies on VCR was much more affordable than going to the theater for a frugal family of five.
The controversy began to brew in the following weeks. Suddenly, television began to become a focus and turf battles ensued. They started at the video store, where the rental selection became an argument. For the first time, I was kicked out of the living room before bedtime and sent upstairs to do my long-finished homework. At first it was so my parents could watch THE BREAKFAST CLUB, rated R, clearly inappropriate for me and my siblings. I remember sneaking downstairs to take a look at the show. I later made the same mistake with INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, which resulted in years of nightmares.
Over the years, like many families, we began to spend more time watching television, but less time together. First my brother got a TV in his room, then my sister and I in our shared room. Today, this is commonplace, but the National Institute for Media and Family advises against it because it inhibits participation in family activities.
According to a 2006 study published in May by the Kaiser Family Foundation, almost half of children ages 4 to 6 have a television in their bedroom, and a 2005 Gallup poll showed that more than two-thirds of adolescents had televisions in their bedroom. room. More than half of parents indicated that the main reason they chose to put a TV in their child’s room is to free up other TVs in the house so parents or other family members can watch their own shows.
Hit movies like FINDING NEMO, which are largely driven by an experience that appeals to both parents and kids, tried to appeal to the family again. However, in a world where a child can watch FINDING NEMO over and over again in the comfort of her bedroom, the shared family experience often doesn’t make it into the living room.
So what is a family to do? Give up leading separate entertaining lives? Of course, no; Finding quality time to spend together between the parents’ work schedules and the children’s school and extracurricular schedules can be achieved both in front of the television and outside of it. Here are some ideas:
Movie Night – Kids’ Pick – Pick one night of the week when everyone can be home and declare it a kids’ movie night. Let the kids choose the movie (taking turns between siblings, of course) and enjoy it together as a family. This may seem incredibly simplistic, but instances where the family watches a show together during prime time are very few and far between these days.
Board Games – You can never go wrong with board games. You may not think you are a “board game” family, but give it a try. Games like The Game of LIFE and Monopoly are timeless favorites. If your kids are a bit older, consider a more advanced competition like Balderdash. Or, teach the kids a new card game like Canasta or Hearts (they’ll be surprised to discover that it can be played off the computer!).
Bowling – Bowling is always more fun than you think it’s going to be. Like board games, bowling is a fun, competitive, family-friendly, and affordable activity. Many bowling alleys have special family nights set aside specifically for this purpose.
Cooking Dinner/Dessert Together: Who’s going to teach the kids how to cook if mom and dad don’t? Pick a night and let the kids take turns choosing a recipe that they can help make. You’ll be helping to build an epicurean repertoire that your kids will be thankful for their freshman year in college!
Watch a Family Favorite Show Together: Although it seems like every other TV show after 8 pm is rated R (or PG-13), there are still some quality family programming options available. Don’t be afraid to venture outside of the “big four” networks to some of the smaller networks that offer family-friendly programming. Consider educational shows that air on The Learning Channel, Animal Planet, or The Discovery Channel. Commit as a family to watch together.
It is almost impossible to convey to children how much television has changed in the last 20 years. So, since they will never be able to appreciate that evolution, you can help the enjoyment of television and family time not become extinct.
Returning the living room to the “family room” instead of simply being the room everyone walks through when they leave the house can be challenging, but helping to preserve the “family room” concept is well worth the effort. time and effort.
