Throughout the country spring break has just finally come to a close. But, summer vacation is coming up. What will that mean for screen time in your life? I have some rules to help my family manage screen time while on vacation. We set times that we are all going to check in otherwise we try to disconnect.
I was recently in remote areas of Mexico with my family and it was both healing and at times distressing to be without cell service or a computer connection most of the time. I managed by setting expectations with the people I work with about when I would be able to check in and when I would be totally unavailable.
Camps are a great opportunity for your kids to unplug. We highlight a study in Screenagers that showed that kids who unplugged and went to a nature camp for just 5 days showed a marked improvement in capacity for empathy.
Here's some questions to ask your family this week for Tech Talk Tuesday (#TTT):
Do you think we should completely unplug during vacations?
How would you feel about going to a camp that had no wifi or cell service?
Do you think parents should be able to work some during family vacations?
Are there some things you think you should be able to do on your phone or computer while on vacation? If so, what?
If there was an emergency and you didn't have a cell phone, do you have some ideas of how you might solve the problem?
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
Throughout the country spring break has just finally come to a close. But, summer vacation is coming up. What will that mean for screen time in your life? I have some rules to help my family manage screen time while on vacation. We set times that we are all going to check in otherwise we try to disconnect.
I was recently in remote areas of Mexico with my family and it was both healing and at times distressing to be without cell service or a computer connection most of the time. I managed by setting expectations with the people I work with about when I would be able to check in and when I would be totally unavailable.
Camps are a great opportunity for your kids to unplug. We highlight a study in Screenagers that showed that kids who unplugged and went to a nature camp for just 5 days showed a marked improvement in capacity for empathy.
Here's some questions to ask your family this week for Tech Talk Tuesday (#TTT):
Do you think we should completely unplug during vacations?
How would you feel about going to a camp that had no wifi or cell service?
Do you think parents should be able to work some during family vacations?
Are there some things you think you should be able to do on your phone or computer while on vacation? If so, what?
If there was an emergency and you didn't have a cell phone, do you have some ideas of how you might solve the problem?
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
Are you co-parenting kids? Do you find that one of you focuses more on establishing rules about screen time while the other is less concerned? You don’t need me to tell you that answering yes to that question is incredibly common, and it can be a major stressor in homes. I look at the challenge and seek solutions in today's blog.
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One phrase I’ve often used over the years is “fighting fire with fire,” and when it comes to managing screen time, this idea can really come in handy. Incorporating parental controls into your family’s screen time routine can make things run more smoothly at home. And summer is an ideal time to consider this approach.
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A topic I hear from parents regularly is regret—regret about saying yes to a tech device too soon. Maybe it was a smartphone, a smartwatch, a gaming console in the bedroom, or allowing social media. Today’s post is about how to reverse course on a tech decision for your child thoughtfully — and possibly prevent even deeper regret down the road.
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.
