Friday, April 7, 2017

Helping Parents Help Kids Negotiate Our Digital World

From 2010 to 2014 the average daily use of mobile devices for adults went from just over an hour to over 5 hours per day, in addition to the three and a half hours spent online and over 4 hours watching TV.  That brings the combined screen time for adults to over 12 hours a day not accounting for the dual screen situation where people watch TV while they surf the internet or communicate on their mobile devices.
That’s the average screen time for adults and then we wonder why our children are so attracted to screens and the potential damage they may be causing themselves. I read an article where a parent was discussing the mock dinner their young children were preparing and before pretending to serve anything they both checked pretend phones for texts and emails. Children have always wanted to be more grown up and the best example they have of that is watching their parents.
If you really want to limit your children’s screen time the first thing that you need to do is limit your screen time in front of them. It will be more difficult than you think but is extremely important if you are trying to show your kids that there is more to life than staring into a screen or mobile device. Babies learn by mimic
Official recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics for children’s screen time has remained largely unchanged since 1998:
·      No time for kids under 2
·      No more than 2 hours a day for older children
·      Even with more and more education on computers they still suggest no more than 2 hours of recreational screen time per day

A report by common sense media reported that in 2013 75% of kids under age 8 had access to mobile devices and 38% of children under the age of 2 had access.
Organizations that support educational media technologies for kids call most of the content created for them “dopey activities” or the “empty calories” of the digital media world.
Parents need to be intentional about the amount of time their kids spend on screens and especially as to exactly what type of content they are watching and interacting with. It is equally important for parents to take the opportunity to spend time with their kids online instead of making a battle out of it make it an opportunity for learning and bonding.
Reports show that somewhere between 15% and 33% of teenagers have been cyber bullied over text messaging or social media. That is only one of the potential dangers when looking at the ever expanding digital world. In addition, there are plenty of other hazards that are not fully understood:
·      The rewiring of the brain from too much screen interaction
·      The interference with natural light and sleep cycles
·      What activities are being replaced by the time kids are spending on screens
·      The long term effects from lack of social interaction
·      And many other, physical, social and psychological

Ask your kids to teach you their favorite games, as well as any educational games along with any rewards or bonuses they have achieved.
Some sites and games have listed or suggested age limits take a look and follow the recommended limits.
Have periodic discussions with your kids about their online activity and what to be careful as they grow older and spend more and more time on the different social networks and websites.
If you are going to monitor your child’s screen or online activity have a conversation with them first so they know you are monitoring them and that you are doing it to keep them safe. If you do it without them knowing, you risk damaging the trust they have with you.

Every type of device has parental controls and screen sharing capabilities so you can easily keep an eye on your child’s screen time and keep them safe.

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