Is Ms Rachel ok for baby's under two to watch or not

Ms Rachel is great, but should still be in limited doses at this age. Screentime specifically is defined as time where you hand a child a tablet/phone and you are not interacting with them. If you want to do 5-10 minutes of Ms Rachel and you are watching it with her (and talking with your child about what she sees, singing along with the songs, etc) it’s still an interactive/educational experience. For reference, I’m a speech language pathologist and we recently had a professional development about screentime

I think it's still too young. They aren't supposed to have screen time until at least 18 months old. I know Ms Rachel is great, I've watched her with my older kids but it's still too young to start. Even " good" screen time is not good for that young! My baby will watch for a second if she's in her bouncer thing but I try to turn her away so she can't watch.

Ngl ms Rachel is always on tv in the background but my 9 month old doesn’t really pay much attention until the songs come on, then it’s a dance party

This may be weird, but I sometimes watch/listen to Ms Rachel when I walk my dogs and then sing those songs and talk the “parentese” Ms Rachel voice to my daughter. 😂 That way I’m being intentional using words and phrases that will help her learn, but it’s me she interacting with and not the screen. The main reason I do this is because I also heard great things about Ms Rachel but we are choosing to be screen free until at least two and then want to limit it. Like many things though, if done in moderation, I don’t think it’s some horrible thing. I think you gotta do what aligns with your style and works for you/your child!

I’m a stay at home mom and have a degree in child development and while it’s not recommended to do screens before 2 it’s also important to have a well regulated parent. It’s not everyday but if I’m feeling overwhelmed I’ll have her watch like 15mins so I can drink a cup of coffee without being climbed on. The rest of the day I’m baby wearing and attachment parenting my face off and just hoping it all balances out. 🤷🏻‍♀️ The only time she did much more than that was about a month ago my husband and I got COVID and were both super wiped out. At that point it was about survival.

@Michelle Hi, can I ask what's not good about it?

@Hollie hi! well not only has every pediatrician for my children (they've had several due to moving) very strongly advised not to, I've done my own research and it is not good for their development. It can be so addicting, why start something like that so young ? Here is a snipit of the main reasons that I think are good! screen viewing before age 18 months has lasting negative effects on children's language development, reading skills, and short term memory. It also contributes to problems with sleep and attention.Oct 21, 2016 hope this helps!

Before I had my boy I always said, no screen time. However, being a FTM I have allowed screen time. Only Ms Rachel. I put alot of pressure on myself for giving my boy the best of food, toys, interaction, non toxic bath products, non toxic creams, nappy creams. I research constantly on giving my boy the best in what i can causing issues with partner and family. So yes I allow screen time because I can physically give 100% all of the time. Some days he just isn't in the fettle to interact or play, if he's unwell or teething, or going through a development stage the only thing to give me a break is Ms Rachel. Maximum he has had is around 1 hour 30, not often, but yes I beat myself up with guilt if it has been one of those occasions! Too much pressure on mams to be and do the best! Do what you want with you child is what I say. X

@Michelle Hi. Thanks for that. I understand what you are saying, this is something that I believed in before I had my boy, however studies have been done on the way Ms Rachel does her shows and have been shown to be beneficial. I completely disagree with TV of no benefit educationally to children even after 18months. I think moderation is always key. I just think sometimes to much pressure on mams on the NOT TO DO.

@Hollie of course! Yes I know she's good and when I allow screen time for my smallest I'll definitely have it be ms Rachel, she really is great! I agree pressure is hard and you gotta do what works best for you! I'm not perfect either, with two older kids it's hard for her not to get a little screen time, I just don't give it intentionally, but yes do what you gotta do to survive for sure!

My girl likes her, coming on here you’ll get a lot of opinions with this question. Do what works for you and your family.

It works great for my baby. She is saying words already ( star, ball, hi, bye, clapping, arms up, she sings ) she actually can answer questions for ms Racheal. This week she is answering the questions without Ms Racheal being on. Example if you say what does the cow say my baby says moo . I love it

Optimally, no screens. Every authority is clear on that including the AAP. There are a lot of reasons. Screen time is shown to decrease attention span and is associated with behavioral issues in kids. It's almost like a drug; they get addicted to the stimulation/changing scenes/lights so they need more of that to get their attention. It also makes baby passive because they're only watching it as opposed to Montessori and simple toys that require interaction and help make them active in exploring their world. There's a great book on it called "The Big Disconnect." That said, it can be a privilege not to use screens and some people need it for entertainment/sanity and screen time is better than stressed out parents. Ideally, skip it if you have the option. Face to face time with you and playing with simple toys are infinitely more valuable than screen time. It totally makes sense to watch Ms. Rachel for ideas, though. My SIL pretty much memorized her videos and she is "Ms Rachel" to her baby.