Deep Ocean

My kids do not live in a television vacuum, and I have mixed feelings about this. Depending on the day I catch myself muttering "screen time... attention span..." or, conversely, "digital age... media literacy..." Today I suppose I was feeling especially ambivalent about the ol' boob tube. Geneva and Lavender were clamoring to watch something-- anything-- about the ocean, and would not be dissuaded, even with the offer of a walk to the park. I gave in with a few conditions: I would choose the program, we'd watch it together, and afterward we would talk about what we learned. That wouldn't be nearly as bad as putting on Finding Nemo (again), right?

I anticipated that this would go over with a small to medium amount of whining and some reluctant regurgitation of ocean facts. What actually happened was kind of amazing, at least to me. They were engaged in the video, excited about our discussion, and eloquent in their description of deep sea life-- at least, by two- and four-year-old standards. I guess that makes the score kids one, mom zero. Or maybe TV one, mom zero. Heck, let's call it awesomeness one, boredom zero.

Geneva:

Down in the deep ocean there's a vent that is pretty cool, because it's kind of like a trap down in the ocean. This bubbly venty stuff comes up from it and then it traps fish because this aroma comes and makes them sick and they fall down, and so the fish that live up higher get sick and the other creatures that live down in the deep, deep ocean eat the fish that are caught.

Lavender:

Divers wear suits and swim. They see clouds under the ocean. There are volcanoes. Crabs, a whale, and a little shrimp live under the deep ocean. They eat fish.

Geneva again:

We also saw crabs down in the ocean. They are the ones who eat the other ones who live on the top. The flatfish go way down in the ocean. They live down in the deep sea because they are adapted. The deep ocean is full of creatures. They like it dark because it's very dark down in the deep ocean. People can't live there because the pressure pushes them down too much.