Television's window of cognitive engagement. While popular notions of TV viewing portray children as staring zoombie-like at the screen, reality is much different. When alternative activities are available, children generally look at and away from the TV between one and two hundred times an hour (Anderson & Field, 1983). Visual attention increases from very low levels during infancy to a maximum during the late elementary school years, declining somewhat during adulthood (Anderson, et al., 1986). Although the median look duration is usually only several seconds, extended episodes as long as a minute are not rare. Looks as long as ten minutes are exceptional. This discontinuous, periodic attention to a medium whose information streams by ceaselessly has important implications for comprehension and learning.