I often talk about using tech (laptops, phones, etc.) as a tool, treat, or talking device. An effective way to model screen-time choices is to say out loud in front of your kids when you are using a device as a tool, treat, or talking device.
As we enter summertime, I have been reflecting on the creation of family memories and that when we shake up things, we stack the cards in favor of lasting memories. Using tech in clever ways can help make memories. It is from this viewpoint that the following ideas came to be 😀
Propose making a family movie together. Maybe you have a child who wants to create a script for a Saturday Night Live-type sketch video.
Maybe you think of a little documentary you could make as a family. For example, you could commit to going to three farmers' markets and interviewing three people at each one about their favorite vegetables or what they like best about farmers' markets.
Pro tip: Your child might initially feel embarrassed, but don't worry. When you ask someone a question for your family project (make sure to mention it’s for a mini-documentary and won’t be posted online), your child will notice that most people — about 90% — are happy to talk. People often light up when they’re being interviewed, and your child will see that it can be a lot of fun!!
Or maybe you just all shoot videos of what is happening during the week this summer. Then, after a month, you all sit down and use an easy editing system to piece it together with music. Here are a couple of examples of tools to do that: VSDC or iMovie.
When I say tech as a talking device — I speak about it as a treat or tool. Sometimes we talk with friends, this is a treat. Of course, it is an essential treat, but like any treat, we need to have limits. Talk can also be in the tool camp, i.e., work calls, calls with the bank, etc.
My suggestion is to commit to talking (or via Zoom, Facetime, etc.) to one family member or past friend each week of the summer. But put it on the calendar now at the start of the summer. Perhaps plan to talk with past neighbors that your child knew years ago. Or plan a call with cousins that you won't get to see in person this summer.
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Learn more about showing our movies in your school or community!
Tech supplies endless treats: YouTube videos, movies, games, and so on. These entertain us, we consume them, and we play with them. The question is, can you think of a treat that would be out of the ordinary and thus more likely to create a memory or even a tradition?
Perhaps you surprise your child by creating a Kahoot! game filled with quiz questions about past family memories (e.g., how old Jake was when he started to crawl, what his parents' first job was, and so on).
How about having a summer tournament playing a video game? But make it more interesting by choosing a popular game from when we, parents, were kids. I’m talking about classic games like Space Invaders, Pong, or Pac-Man. Here’s one site where you can find these games, along with others.
Learn more about showing our movies in your school or community!
Join Screenagers filmmaker Delaney Ruston MD for our latest Podcast
Learn more about our Screen-Free Sleep campaign at the website!
Our movie made for parents and educators of younger kids
Join Screenagers filmmaker Delaney Ruston MD for our latest Podcast
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I often talk about using tech (laptops, phones, etc.) as a tool, treat, or talking device. An effective way to model screen-time choices is to say out loud in front of your kids when you are using a device as a tool, treat, or talking device.
As we enter summertime, I have been reflecting on the creation of family memories and that when we shake up things, we stack the cards in favor of lasting memories. Using tech in clever ways can help make memories. It is from this viewpoint that the following ideas came to be 😀
Propose making a family movie together. Maybe you have a child who wants to create a script for a Saturday Night Live-type sketch video.
Maybe you think of a little documentary you could make as a family. For example, you could commit to going to three farmers' markets and interviewing three people at each one about their favorite vegetables or what they like best about farmers' markets.
Pro tip: Your child might initially feel embarrassed, but don't worry. When you ask someone a question for your family project (make sure to mention it’s for a mini-documentary and won’t be posted online), your child will notice that most people — about 90% — are happy to talk. People often light up when they’re being interviewed, and your child will see that it can be a lot of fun!!
Or maybe you just all shoot videos of what is happening during the week this summer. Then, after a month, you all sit down and use an easy editing system to piece it together with music. Here are a couple of examples of tools to do that: VSDC or iMovie.
When I say tech as a talking device — I speak about it as a treat or tool. Sometimes we talk with friends, this is a treat. Of course, it is an essential treat, but like any treat, we need to have limits. Talk can also be in the tool camp, i.e., work calls, calls with the bank, etc.
My suggestion is to commit to talking (or via Zoom, Facetime, etc.) to one family member or past friend each week of the summer. But put it on the calendar now at the start of the summer. Perhaps plan to talk with past neighbors that your child knew years ago. Or plan a call with cousins that you won't get to see in person this summer.
Tech supplies endless treats: YouTube videos, movies, games, and so on. These entertain us, we consume them, and we play with them. The question is, can you think of a treat that would be out of the ordinary and thus more likely to create a memory or even a tradition?
Perhaps you surprise your child by creating a Kahoot! game filled with quiz questions about past family memories (e.g., how old Jake was when he started to crawl, what his parents' first job was, and so on).
How about having a summer tournament playing a video game? But make it more interesting by choosing a popular game from when we, parents, were kids. I’m talking about classic games like Space Invaders, Pong, or Pac-Man. Here’s one site where you can find these games, along with others.
Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel! With new ones added regularly, you'll find over 100 videos covering parenting advice, guidance, podcasts, movie clips and more. Here's our latest!
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I often talk about using tech (laptops, phones, etc.) as a tool, treat, or talking device. An effective way to model screen-time choices is to say out loud in front of your kids when you are using a device as a tool, treat, or talking device.
As we enter summertime, I have been reflecting on the creation of family memories and that when we shake up things, we stack the cards in favor of lasting memories. Using tech in clever ways can help make memories. It is from this viewpoint that the following ideas came to be 😀
Propose making a family movie together. Maybe you have a child who wants to create a script for a Saturday Night Live-type sketch video.
Maybe you think of a little documentary you could make as a family. For example, you could commit to going to three farmers' markets and interviewing three people at each one about their favorite vegetables or what they like best about farmers' markets.
Pro tip: Your child might initially feel embarrassed, but don't worry. When you ask someone a question for your family project (make sure to mention it’s for a mini-documentary and won’t be posted online), your child will notice that most people — about 90% — are happy to talk. People often light up when they’re being interviewed, and your child will see that it can be a lot of fun!!
Or maybe you just all shoot videos of what is happening during the week this summer. Then, after a month, you all sit down and use an easy editing system to piece it together with music. Here are a couple of examples of tools to do that: VSDC or iMovie.
When I say tech as a talking device — I speak about it as a treat or tool. Sometimes we talk with friends, this is a treat. Of course, it is an essential treat, but like any treat, we need to have limits. Talk can also be in the tool camp, i.e., work calls, calls with the bank, etc.
My suggestion is to commit to talking (or via Zoom, Facetime, etc.) to one family member or past friend each week of the summer. But put it on the calendar now at the start of the summer. Perhaps plan to talk with past neighbors that your child knew years ago. Or plan a call with cousins that you won't get to see in person this summer.
This year, millions of students are experiencing a major shift: school days without phones, smartwatches, or other personal devices. Today we explore the wins, hurdles, and solutions helping schools succeed. We also share our resources that you can use to support technology policy changes in your schools.
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I recently sat down with middle school principal Zach at his school in Washington State. We talked about the challenges Zach and his team faced in his early years as principal when students used phones during school, and how he brought about a powerful transformation by having phones and smartwatches put away in locked pouches for the whole school day. In today’s blog, to raise awareness of the challenges, I share five real examples from Zach of the troubling ways students use phones at school to be unkind.
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It is with great pleasure that I share with you today a piece that Lisa Tabb and I did for Jonathan Haidt's (Author of The Anxious Generation) and researcher Zack Rausch's Substack blog — After Babel. In it, we discuss the rise in use of smartwatches in elementary schools and the problems they pose. There is a real cost to arming (pun intended) our kids with these devices and sending them to school. Now is the time to stop and fully address this topic and ensure that schools become smartwatch and phone-free.
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.
