Screen time is thru the roof. With Covid, all our screen time rules went down the drain. We went from allowing 2 hours per weekday to getting them off for 3 hours. We adjusted our rules, came up with new ones, and adjusted them. Keep in mind, my youngest is 11 and my oldest is 17, so we needed to find a solution that worked for all and was manageable.
Here’s what we did. Schooldays, screens are on for distance learning and can be on till 4:30 pm, as long as homework is done. Then it’s screen break time, including exercise/outdoors, dinner and when chores are complete, around 7:30, they may get on till 1/2 hour till bedtime. Saturdays anything goes, and then screen-free Sundays. It’s been working well for our family and according to the following. Childmind.org lists these questions to ask, to assess whether your child is spending too much on screens.
Is my child sleeping enough and eating a somewhat balanced diet?
Are they getting some form of exercise every day?
Are they getting some quality time with family?
Do they use some screen time to keep in touch with friends?
Are they invested in schoolwork and keeping up with homework?
We set target bedtimes too based on how much sleep they need at what age. Since the kids are not going to campus, we are more lenient. They exercise almost daily, and my husband exercises with them. We eat dinner together most nights, and try to have an outdoor activity once a weekend. I’ve also started learning Minecraft, so I can try to connect with my children. I’m not into gaming, so it is a challenge even to move around. They sometimes use screen time socially. All three kids are getting great grades and keeping up with homework. YES! is the answer to all five questions.
My kids complain about screen-free Sundays, but it’s easier to manage and forces them to find something else to do, like read, draw, or take the dog for a walk. The sucky part is that I feel compelled to participate and get off screens too. It’s hard, but use screens before they wake up and quickly shut it off when the first kid awakes. Shhhh…