To allow screen time or not

There is a lot of debate over the topic of screen time for the younger generation. This includes toddlers and children alike. I use to be the parent that would say, “when I have a kid I am never letting them use a phone or screen.” How pretentious and naive of me! The number of things I didn’t know I didn’t know could fill a book. Screen time has allowed me some sort of semblance of normalcy in this crazy time and now I going to explain why you shouldn’t feel guilty letting your children have some screen time.

Technology has only been getting more interactive and more educational. If you find the apps that allow your child a chance to offer feedback and learn, then you can’t go wrong. My little is three years old, so I allow her to play games such as ABD Mouse and Kidoppia almost as much as she wants. These games help her with her ABCs, she can color and she can even play with figures that simulate a playhouse. She is able to interact with the app and it provides games that make learning fun, and I don’t think she realizes she is learning. While I love when she colors in real life, when she colors on the screen it will repeat the letter and offer words that begin with that letter. This interaction is much more intense than what we could hope from a coloring book, and that’s great. Plus now she isn’t coloring on my walls...

I’ve noticed when I put timers on the games to remind her she’s been playing for 15 minutes she will put the phone down and go play. I don’t have to regulate too much because I set up the timer ahead of time and explained the rules. Now she does fight me sometimes, but most of the time it’s a fairly easy process. Kids work better with you when they know expectations and have some say in what they want. These games give the children a chance to relax and maybe collect themselves, just like us scrolling on Instagram would do.

She also likes to watch videos on Youtube. Now, I can’t regulate this as much, but because I have the timer on the app she has to come to me to access the app again every 15 minutes. This gives me a chance to check what she is watching and regulate the amount of time on YouTube. I don’t tend to like having her on this app as much as I can’t control what she sees as easily. However, I haven’t seen anything that warrants concern yet, and as long as your checking what they are doing every so often, you can’t go wrong.

The phones allow you a chance to see how long you’ve used an app in a day and can compare it to the usage during the week. I like to keep track of it and make sure she isn’t using it too frequently. I think this is the key, to have conscientious usage of the device. As long as you are aware of how often they use it and regulate it then you have nothing to worry about. Now your time you want your kids to use it a day is obviously going to be different than mine. That’s okay!

My dad allows his younger kids to have access to the devices at any time in the day, I put my child’s device up every so often and tell her it’s sleeping. We handle things differently in our lives, but we have to. My dad works at home with three kids under the age of 7 there, devices are absolutely necessary; to pretend otherwise is just blasphemy. I sometimes just need a minute to write or to breathe, and giving my child an educational app to do that? An amazing way to find some time to yourself if needed. So the next time you want to feel bad about giving your kid the device, don’t. As long as you are giving access to good apps that can teach them or even just making sure they aren’t watching actual crap on YouTube, I think you’re doing great. Throughout all the generations, there will always be naysayers to whatever the new technology is. I’m embracing the technology, and the educational benefits it brings to my child’s life. I hope you drop the guilt around allowing devices in your kid’s life, and instead realize that it’s okay to let kids, be kids.