Today, your kids have decidedly fewer limits when it involves controlling a screen. they will watch many TV shows directly, and carry TV shows wherever they are going .
As amazing as the technology is, your child can enjoy less time with it. Outside of homework, school-aged kids should spend not quite an hour or two with a screen a day , consistent with the American Academy of Pediatrics.
How to Make the Cut
With screens everywhere, it’s going to seem even harder to chop down on a child’s time with them. But limits are worthwhile. Try the following pointers to pry them off those devices — giving them a minimum of a hour a day, for a while.
1. Don’t give your kids their own tablet or smartphone let them use yours. “Interact together with your children while on your smartphone. Do this rather than handing them a device ,” says Steven Gortmaker, PhD, professor of the practice of health sociology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
2. Make computers and TVs stay within the shared spaces of your home. When your kids use screens within the kitchen or front room , it’s easier to keep an eye fixed on the shows they watch, the games they play, and therefore the websites they’re on.
3. Add tech-free time to your family’s schedule. “At any age, kids should know there are specific times when screens keep off , like at meals and before bed,” Hill says. Even better, put aside time when the family does something fun together — no devices allowed. ie: No, screen time or electronics at this time.
4. Watch how often you employ your own devices. If you retain your face buried in your phone, your kids won’t see an honest reason why they ought to get off their screens. Plus, those devices affect the time you spend together with your children. Researchers who studied families at fast-food restaurants noticed parents were often more focused on their smartphones than on the youngsters at the table. When my family goes out to eat we only take my phone for pictures them David puts it inside his pocket and we don’t get it out until we get home. If it isn’t a work dinner then the phones remain in the car.
5. Make limits a daily part of screen use. When the principles are clear and consistent, you’ll avoid daily battles once you tell the youngsters it’s time to shut off the TV, computer, or phone.
6. Be able to explain different screen-time limits. After your kids have watched hours of TV at a friend’s house, they’ll wonder why your rules are different. “These are opportunities to possess conversations together with your kids about what your family’s values are,” Anderson says. We have talked yo our neighbors and we all have the same rules and if the kids are on electronics at each others houses it counts as there time on at there house.
7. Help your kids find other ways to possess fun. “If a toddler has nothing to do but stare at a screen, then we should always not be surprised when that’s what he or she does,” Hill says. Keep other options around — art supplies, books, Frisbee, and bikes — and remind them of these items when your kids claim there’s nothing else to try to do .
Kids who spend an excessive amount of time ahead of a screen can produce other problems, too, like insufficient sleep or an excessive amount of weight gain, says David Hill, MD, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Communications and Media.
So do your family a favor and put a plan into action that will represent lesser screen time for everyone involved.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
