Digital Age Parenting: Balancing Screen Time vs. Real-Life Experience
In today's digital era, technology is part of life, which obviously includes the lives of our children. While technology advancements brings so many benefits, it's part of our role as parent to help kids navigate the fine line between getting some screen time and ensuring they have meaningful real-life experiences. Here we want to explore some strategies we’ve heard of to help people strike that balance. Promoting healthy development and well-being for our kids.
Here goes …
Set Clear and Consistent Screen Time Guidelines: Clear rules and expectations regarding screen time usage in your household are so helpful. A schedule or routine that outlines designated times for screen time is great; things such as ‘after homework’, ‘not 30 minutes before bedtime’ or ‘only in the living room’. Consistency is key to helping children understand and accept these boundaries.
Prioritize Real-Life Experiences: Encourage and actively engage your children in real-life experiences that foster growth and development and that are fun too! Plan family outings, encourage movement, promote hobbies, and provide opportunities for socialising. These experiences contribute to their overall well-being and help them develop life and social skills.
Model Healthy Technology Usage: As parents, we are role models for our children. Be mindful of your own screen time habits and demonstrate a healthy balance between using technology for work, leisure and connecting with loved ones. When children observe responsible screen usage from their parents, they are more likely to adopt similar habits.
Engage in Screen Time Together: Rather than viewing screen time as purely isolating or unproductive, consider engaging in interactive or screen time activities together. Watch educational videos, play educational games, do some online fitness workouts or explore creative apps together. This way, you can bond with your child while also ensuring the screen time has a purpose.
Create Tech-Free Zones and Times: Try to keep certain areas or times in your home as tech-free zones. For example, the dining table during meals or bedrooms during bedtime should be technology-free areas. Encourage conversation and quality time without the distraction of screens, try fun games like ‘Would you rather?’ or ‘20 questions’ (if you can’t get the kids to talk about their day at school!)
Encourage Offline Hobbies and Activities: Help your child explore a variety of offline hobbies and activities that catch their interests. Reading books, art and craft, making music, sports and outdoor activities. These experiences foster creativity, imagination, and well-rounded development. This doesn’t have to cost money either, play date in the park with a football or a visit to the library can get kids out and about and off the screens.
Teach Digital Literacy and Responsible Online Behavior: In addition to managing screen time, it's important to educate children about digital literacy and responsible online behaviour. Talk to them about internet safety, and the fact that there are things that aren’t good for children to see on the web. Also visit the importance of privacy, and respectful communication online. Encourage them to ask for help or share any concerns they may have about their online experiences with you. When children are young it might be a good idea if they always let you know if they’ll be using the internet.
Parenting in the digital age can feel scary, but we think the important task is striking a good balance between screen time and real-life experiences. By setting clear guidelines, prioritizing real-life activities, modelling healthy technology usage, and fostering offline hobbies, we can help promote a well-rounded development for our children. Remember, technology is a valuable tool when used intentionally and purposefully. Let's help kids get the skills to navigate the digital world while making the most of real life!
God Bless.