21st to 27 April is TV TURN OFF WEEK, an international, annual campaign that has been running since 1995, encouraging parents to switch of the TV at home and spend time with the children doing other things.

 

 

TV time cuts into family time and is a leading cause of obesity for both adults and children. Excessive use of screen for recreational purpose leads to a more sedentary and solitary lifestyle and that is unhealthy for all of us both mentally and physically.

 

TURN OFF WEEK helps to raise awareness that screen time should be limited to less than two hours per day.  In many countries children and young people spend 4 to 6 hours per day watching television, playing video games, or using the computer for recreation.

 

Turning off the television gives us a chance to think, to read, to create and to do.  To connect with our families and engage in our communities.

 

 

Anyone and everyone.  Millions of people around the world participate in Turnoff week.  Children and adults, rich and poor – people from every background and all walks of life – take part through schools, religious institutions, community groups, families and individuals.

 

Turnoff Week Works!

 

According to the hundreds of responses to the Turnoff Week Secretariat follow up Surveys, 90% of responding participants reduce their screen as a result of participating in the Campaign.

 

 

1.    Volunteer in a school to teach reading, math, computer skills.
2.    Learn to play the guitar or other musical instrument.
3.    Organize a community clean-up.
4.    Put together a puzzle.
5.    Visit the library. Borrow a book. Attend library activities.
6.    Listen to the radio.
7.    Visit the zoo.
8.    Paint a picture, a mural or a room.
9.    Find out about your area's community center or park's activities.
10.    Go swimming.
11.    Plan a picnic or barbecue.
12.    Go bird watching.
13.    Volunteer for a community organization or charity.
14.    Play with your pet.
15.    Write a letter to a friend or relative.
16.    Learn to cook.
17.    Plant a flower, vegetable or herb garden.
18.    Read magazines or newspapers.
19.    Start a neighborhood basketball, soccer, or netball game.
20.    Go camping (even if it's just in the backyard!).
21.    Go through your closets and clothes. Donate surplus items to the Poor.
22.    Start a diary/journal.
23.    Go to a museum.
24.    Take a nature hike. Collect seeds and leaves. Make a collage with the materials you collected and post it on the refrigerator.
25.    Play cards.
26.    Start a community exercise group that power walks, runs, or bikes.
27.    Read a story to your younger brother or sister.
28.    Get out the family photo album. Research your family history.
29.    Make crafts to give as gifts.
30.    Make up a story and write it down.
31.    Learn to say simple phrases in a few different languages.
32.    Ask an older family member to tell you a story about his or her childhood. Write about it.
33.    Learn some new riddles or jokes.
34.    Bake two batches of cookies; one for your family and one for a neighbor.
35.    Watch the night sky through binoculars; identify the different constellations. Observe the moon.
36.    Visit a local bookstore.
37.    Go to a movie with your family or friends.
38.    Walk to work or school.
39.    Train for a half marathon race.
40.    Teach a neighbor about a computer program.
41.    Go fishing.
42.    Begin a family project.