With summer here and school out, many children have more free time and more screen time. Without structure to the school day, tablets, TVs, and phones can quickly become the default activities.
“I think it’s really easy to rely solely on screens,” says Martha Deiros-Corrado, a UK-based clinical psychologist and author of “The Smartphone Solution: When and How to Give Your Child a Mobile Phone.”
But the more time children spend on screens, she says, the less time they spend developing the skills they need to interact with the world. Experts like Collard and Nir Eyal, author of Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life, share how they suggest parents tackle their kids’ summer screen intake.
First, ask how you would like to spend your time.
It’s a matter of balance.
When thinking about your child’s summer days, consider what the different activities will be and how screens fit into the context.
“I don’t want my 7-year-old son to be looking at a screen for five hours, because that would distract him from going out in the garden, playing with his sister, helping him make lunch or bake a cake,” Corrado says.
If you have teenagers who are likely to make their own schedules, help them make plans at the beginning of summer.
Ask, “How much time do you want to spend with your friends?” Eyal suggests. “How much time do you want to spend with us? How much time do you want to spend camping, building something, starting a business, writing something, making a video?”
“Three hours would be too much for anything.”
Research has shown that early screen exposure is associated with poorer cognitive abilities and academic performance.
Find out about screen time recommendations based on your child’s age. Beyond that, aim for less than three hours a day, Eyal says. “Three hours would be too much for anything.
When helping your child create a weekly schedule, Corrado says, make sure to visualize their day on a whiteboard and make it clear when they’ll have screen time for the TV or tablet.
“I think it really helps when you have something visual,” she says.
Not all screen time is created equal
“Passive screen time is not the same as watching a movie with mom or dad or playing video games with friends,” Corrado says. They are shared experiences. Similarly, using a tablet to create artwork or write a story is different from mindlessly scrolling or watching a video alone.
When it comes to internet consumption, “social media companies themselves are saying not to let children under 13 use their devices,” Eyal said. It’s easier to set boundaries that way. Talk to your teens about the effects of endless scrolling, then let them make their own decisions, he advises.
“I try to limit my time online because when I spend too much time online, I end up sitting down. I’m not moving. I feel bad,” says Eyal.
Create a no-phone zone in your home
“Not having screens in the bedroom is a big dividing line for me,” Corrado says. “It should be used in communal spaces, whether it’s on the couch or in the dining room.”
One of Eyal’s family rules is no phones on the dining room table. “There is a lot of evidence that children who eat and talk with their families have lower rates of mental health problems,” he says.
No matter what your home phone-free zone policy is, make sure you and the caregivers who help watch your kids over the summer are following the same rules.
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