I have had the honour of presenting to several parent communities this week. One of the most prevalent questions and concerns by parents and teachers in the audience is one that has been made more intensified by Covid19 and restrictions that are still in place in many locations around the world.
The screen time worry is constant. Kids are online for school, for homework, to connect with friends and family, and for entertainment. The American Academy of Pediatrics once had hard limits for screen time and now, the advice is that when it comes to screen time, quality is more important than quantity and that we need to be mindful that screen time does not prevent a child from getting adequate rest and physical activity.
A study posted in Scientific America points to the fact that, “panic over screen time is likely overstated” and that the association between digital technologies and well-being are “not sufficient or measurable enough to warrant the current levels of panic and fear around this issue.” The article’s title is, The Kids (Who Use Tech) Seem to Be All Right
An important thing to think about is how a child is using technology and to consider balance over time. In my upcoming book, Raising Digital Leaders, I share some of the ideas from this podcast,
Dr. Henry Jenkins speaks of balance not as a day-to-day thing but something to consider over time. That is, if your child is spending hours creating and curating for their channel because it’s their latest interest, that is completely normal—just as they might be into Pokémon or Harry Potter or go through an obsession with magic.
We all know that currently we are all consuming way too much screen time, but as school goes back to face to face and restrictions lessen, the rhythms within your house or classroom will change and some balance may be restored. I have included a few ideas to address screen time below:
In the Classroom
Yes, we have lots of curriculum to cover, but it is important to include explicit and intentional opportunities for students to get off the screen during the school day. Many teachers offer brain breaks using Go Noodle, or use the Move It Extension. This is a great opportunity for a think aloud, “We have spent lots of time with our eyes staring at a screen, let’s get up and move now.” I have asked kids to run around their house or do 10 jumping jacks. Here’s a great list of Brain Breaks for your classroom from We are Teachers (some may need to be adapted for remote learning)
We also need to help students with self-regulation when it comes to their devices. Asking kids to share when they seem to feel the most fatigued, how they are managing notifications, and what they are doing to stay active and well rested, as a regular part of checking in with kids is a great strategy because kids benefit from hearing one another share.
When parents ask you because they are worried about screen time, share some of the ideas below.
At Home
When school is over, kids now want to watch their favourite show, or video connect with friends, play games, and it’s all online. Although encouraging everyone in the family to spend some quiet time reading or working on a puzzle, or baking, the reality is (at least for our family) our books and games and recipes are also online.
Family/School Connections
Go Noodle may be something your child’s teacher is using and the great thing about it is they also have fun family activities to get your kids moving at home. Check out the family link here. It would be worthwhile to ask your child to show you what movement or physical activities they engaged in at school. When your child teaches you something, they feel valued and their esteem improves.
Name it
Instead of using screen time as a blanket term for everything, try to name what you are doing with technology. So call the screen time, “hanging out with friends,” “entertainment or watching a movie”, “playing a game”, “dancing,” “working out” etc… In this way, when life does return to a semblance of “normal” some of our activities will also change back to face to face.
Device Free Time and Zones
Decide on device free times and zones. I recommend the car, the dinner table, and the bedroom.
The Car
Why the car? There is something magical about having conversations with your child when they are not looking directly at you (they don’t feel like they are being interrogated). They seem to speak more freely and it’s also a great time to sing along with them or listen to a podcast or audio book together (Good Job Brain is a wonderful trivia podcast we listen to as a family), but here is Common Sense Media’s list of other kids podcasts you might enjoy.
The Dinner Table
There is lots of research around the importance of dinner conversations (even just one parent and even a couple of times a week). Use this time to bring up current events and talk about some of the things happening in your world. It’s also an especially great time to ask, “Any digital drama going on with your friends?” In our family, that question seemed to trigger lots of stories.
The Bedroom
The research is abundant around the importance of sleep and the fact is, technology interferes with REM sleep. As well, every time a parent stays behind to speak to me about a negative incident involving their child and their device, it is often revealed that the incident happened in the middle of the night. These are two compelling reasons to deep devices out of bedrooms at night. This rule, by the way applies to the whole family; we have only been able to keep this rule because my husband and I also do not bring our devices into our rooms. At one point, both daughters argued that they needed their phones as alarms.
Who knows what “normal” will look like, but with everything else there is to worry about, don’t let screen time be a cause of too much anxiety or stress.
