Screens Away, Time to Play!

Are we all (yes, adults too) settling these days because screens entertain us well enough and there is no motivation to try new things?  There is not nearly as much empty time to fill with exploration of new hobbies.  What opportunities are kids missing out on?

Screen time is now deeply entwined in public school education and teachers are dealing with a lot!  So how do you go about talking to the teacher about this topic?  Here's my advice as a former teacher and a parent who approaches the topic every year.

Have your children become screen zombies that want nothing else? Or do they whine or become irritable after screen time? Or do you just want to reel in how much they are spending on screens?  Then it’s time for a reset so you can get back in control of your tech!  

This doesn’t mean giving up screens forever.  That is unrealistic.  But it is a period of about 3-7 days (or longer) where you go screen-free to reset your children’s brains and bodies – like a detox.  Then you can reintroduce screens where YOU are in control again and you can establish your routine.

In her book Reset Your Child's Brain, Dr. Victoria Dunckley has coined the term Electronic Screen Syndrome (ESS) to help conceptualize how the repeated stress of screen time can affect our bodies.  Learn about the symptoms and what you can do if they are present.

Parents this is BIG!  This study just came out from the Journal of American Medical Association of Pediatrics (JAMA), and is "the FIRST to provide evidence of a directional association between screen time and poor performance on development screening tests among very young children".