Pop Culture: Raising a Screen Free Toddler Who's Still Culturally Relevant

"But what happens when they go to school and all their friends are into Paw Patrol or Frozen or [insert children's cartoon/show I have never heard of]?"


This might be one of the most interesting conundrums I've been asked about on multiple occasions. I don't want my child to be an outcast or feel left out because she doesn't know what her friends are talking about. I (me, the adult) have quietly wondered who Blippi was while other moms talked about how much their children loved him, and I had to google Doc McStuffins on Halloween after repeatedly being asked if that was who G was. For the record, she was a doctor. Not a cartoon one, a professional one, complete with her own real toddler-sized scrubs and personalized lab coat with her name embroidered on the pocket. But I get it. Characters are everywhere. They're basically the foundation of toddler pop culture. While this may seem like a problem for a screen-free kiddo, it actually offers the solution as well.

For every popular children's television program there is a marketing machine pumping out plush toys, shirts, light-up shoes, socks, bedding, backpacks, water bottles, bicycles, night lights, finger puppets, toilet seats, coloring books, stickers, and most importantly: Books.

G's first pop-culture introduction was Sesame Street. While she's never seen the show, we got her a Tickle Me Elmo for her second Christmas and she was instantly a fan. When she got into stickers, we got her Sesame Street stickers. Then came the books: It's Check-Up Time, Elmo, It's Potty Time with Elmo, and a slew of others that we have checked out from our local library and that have introduced G to all the other Sesame Street characters. Living in the greater Philadelphia area, we also have access to the toddler theme park Sesame Place, and were able to take G this summer to ride Sesame Street themed rides and see a live stage show starring Elmo and Cookie Monster. It's safe to say she could engage with any of her peers on the topic of Sesame Street. We've also more recently introduced her to Paw Patrol. G has a Paw Patrol coloring book and finger puppets we purchased based on her love of dogs, and she recently checked out a giant Paw Patrol lift-the-flap book from the library, so now we're learning the characters' names together.


In general, I feel the use of books is sufficient to provide adequate pop culture knowledge for a toddler. I've spoken with other screen-free parents who have done the same and found it to be a successful approach. However, I got a little nostalgic and struggled with our decision to be screen free during the holidays. I have fond memories of watching Christmas specials like the old animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Rudolph, and Frosty the Snowman. My husband and I discussed whether this year was the time to introduce any of these to G, but at two years old, we ultimately decided it was still too early. So I scoured Amazon and got book versions of The Grinch, Rudolph, as well as A Charlie Brown Christmas, and The Polar Express. During the holiday season we introduced one of these special new books each week. I also found the full audio of the animated version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer free to stream on Amazon Music, which we listened to while baking cookies. The books paired with the familiar music filled my need for holiday nostalgia this year.

There will always be trade-offs with any parenting decision. By being screen free, our children may not have all the traditional pop culture knowledge their peers may be getting from television, but a little extra attention to what's relevant and a trip to the library are all it takes to introduce some characters. I think it's also worth noting that the importance of shows and characters may be exaggerated by how heavily they are marketed. The Cat in the Hat, Maisy Mouse, Llama Llama and other books-based characters are equally recognizable and universally loved by children, they're just not being marketed like television show characters are.