Oh - and I really like lederstol's approach - reward the good behaviour! However - does that include online books : )
I agree that there isn't a firm answer, in that during this pandemic it's better to encourage proactive type screentime where kids can learn something and engage, rather than passive watching. Obviously, gaming contains interaction and stimulation and is definitely not a good idea if you can steer your child away from it entirely. Once they get bitten by that bug - which seems kind of inevitable these days - it's hard but necessary work to keep tight limits on that. Most importantly, it's vital that enough hours of the day are spent interacting with the real world, family and outdoors. My kids are allowed a few hours of screentime as long as they play outside, engage with us in the home and put all devices away for meals, and of course do all their schoolwork. The time they have online is very often the only social life they can have with their peers, so at this time I wouldn't veto it.In my opinion, there isn't a true valid answer, it all depends on lifestyle and your kids and also the type of screentime! My kids are really getting onto educational apps and learning through play! Instead of watching Peppa Pig, or playing random games, I let them have educational screentime. Our family favourite app right now is Eduka's World! It's an English learning app and they LOVE IT and it's FREE! Here is the link in case you want to try it: https://bit.ly/3l5hB8v
I'd add that I'd love to know what other people suggest as their favourite way of limiting screentime, especially for adolescents. Any ideas?I agree that there isn't a firm answer, in that during this pandemic it's better to encourage proactive type screentime where kids can learn something and engage, rather than passive watching. Obviously, gaming contains interaction and stimulation and is definitely not a good idea if you can steer your child away from it entirely. Once they get bitten by that bug - which seems kind of inevitable these days - it's hard but necessary work to keep tight limits on that. Most importantly, it's vital that enough hours of the day are spent interacting with the real world, family and outdoors. My kids are allowed a few hours of screentime as long as they play outside, engage with us in the home and put all devices away for meals, and of course do all their schoolwork. The time they have online is very often the only social life they can have with their peers, so at this time I wouldn't veto it.
Thanks for the tips. Anything to maintain a healthy balance.Here are some suggestions on limiting screen time: https://graciousparent.com/2020/06/08/how-much-screen-time-is-too-much/
My favorite approach to determining whether or not children should be using screen time is to ask yourself "what is this taking away from?". If it is taking away from play outdoors, social interaction or independent play I would pass. However, if you need 20mins or so to make dinner or phone call then there's no harm in a short duration of screetime.
Hope you find this helpful