Tips to Limit your Child’s Screen Time

Source: NIB

1. Implement non-negotiable time to be ‘unplugged’.
This goes for everyone in the family! The parental control “do as I say, not as I do” approach might be tempting, but it can easily spark a dispute and lead to conflict. Modelling healthy device use will encourage the same behaviour in your children. For example, you could set in place a two-hour device-free window around dinner time and make it a ritual to sit down together as a family.

2. Have some clever alternatives to keep them entertained.
We’re all guilty of using devices to keep kids occupied from time-to-time (and that’s okay!), but the more you can encourage your kids to engage in other activities, the less likely they’ll develop a reliance on the device.
Try organising a sports day with their friends or get in front of the camera and let their creative minds run wild as they develop their own content. Having other fun and exciting options on standby, and not having standard screen time as the default option will encourage healthier habits around device usage.

3. Bedrooms = device free zones
This includes TVs, computers, and any hand-held devices. Making their bedroom a screen-free zone means you can keep an eye on how much time they’re really spending on devices (and makes it a little easier to monitor what they’re doing on them). It also prevents children from using them late at night, which can have a huge negative impact on sleep patterns.

4. Give your child control.
This doesn’t mean letting them run loose with unlimited screen time – but getting kids to adhere to the rules can be a lot easier when they feel they’ve been able to have input. And in the process, you’ll have taught them something about compromise too. Once you’ve got agreement on some general rules, give kids the freedom to choose how and when to make use of their device time, and make them accountable for it.