Experiments conducted at Vanderbilt University, described in the May/June issue of Child Development, offer some hints about toddlers. They showed that 24-month-olds are more apt to use information relayed by video if they consider the person on the screen to be someone they can talk to. Without that, the children seemed unable to act on what they had seen and heard. The experiments compared two video experiences: One was based on a videotape. Watching it was similar to watching “Blue’s Clues”; the actor onscreen paused to simulate a conversation, but back-and-forth interaction with the viewer was impossible. A different group of children experienced two-way live video. It worked like a Web cam, with each side responding in real time.
Yelling at the television used to be the domain of adults watching "Jeopardy!" But young children have become the real pros. Sit down with a 3-year-old to watch "Blue's Clues" or "Dora the Explorer," and see the shouting erupt. Whenever a character faces the camera and asks a question, children out there in TV land are usually answering it. This create an antidote to the zombie effect television used to have on children
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