It is a very reasonable fear for parents to be concerned about how much time their children are spending on the internet. New parents may be wondering at what ages they should become more flexible with the screen restrictions that they place on their kids.
The screen time guidelines for kids, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, are as follows:
- Children under age two: Keep the screen time very limited and only with adult guardians participating in ed activity with them.
- Children between ages two and five: Screen time needs to be no more than one hour per day of educational and positive content played with adult supervision.
- Children over age five: Established a personalized screen limit plan for your child with device-free times and zones, such as bedrooms, dinner tables, and during homework.
Remain aware of your child’s screen-related activities, set child-protection controls on their devices and social media accounts, and keep reminding your children that whatever they post online stays online, even if they delete it.
If you are looking for appropriate exceptions to the screen time rules that you have put in place, here are five times that make sense to break screen time limits.
1.) Gratitude Cards
One teachable moment for parents to offer their kids is teaching children how to be grateful. Gratitude isn’t something that kids can learn in one swift lesson, such as “1 + 1 = 2.” Learning how to be grateful requires observing this positive behavior being consistently shown over a long period of time.
To help children how to say “please” and “thank you” and call their family members who send them birthday gifts requires educational activities such as creating gratitude cards and having a mother or father of a child ask direct questions to assist children with figuring out how they think and feel about the things and people that they have gratitude for.
2.) Take a Motion Break
One way to allow your child to break their screen time limit is by having them give the technology a rest and have your kid take a break from screen time. Kids can hurt their necks while being hunched over their tablets and laptops, which can lead to reduced blood flow to the brain.
Giving your child some extra screen time by having them stand up and even exercise by walking in place can help them prevent reduced blood flow to the frontal lobes that cause poor focus and learning. Make physical activity breaks a part of your child’s online internet experience.
3.) Learn a Musical instrument
Children learn the English alphabet through a song often referred to as the “ABCs” Kids also learn songs through movies, television songs, car radio speakers, and nursery rhymes. It is clear from the smiles on their faces and their dancing legs that music brings joy to their little lives.
Imagine how excited they could become if your kids were able to place music themselves. Learning to play a musical instrument doesn’t mean that they have to join a band or pour all of their eggs in one basket and strive to become a composer as their career. On an instantly attainable level, music education has numerous benefits to increase their creativity, concentration, and their ability to think and reason.
Piano
Giving your child the chance to learn how to play the piano can help young players develop better concentration skills, improved self-esteem and motor skills, and decreased stress.
Violin
The violin can be considered a more complicated instrument to learn, which can help your kid become more disciplined and learn perseverance, coordination, pitch, and tone.
Guitar
If you want your child to pick up an instrument with a perceived fun factor and to be able to learn the fundamental basics of music, the guitar is the way to go.
4.) Doggie Dots
Doggie Dots is among games to play on Facetime that can help kids get better at math. With Doggie Dots, little math learners will be able to practice their numbers, match the number to the name of that number, and keep numbers in their proper sequential order.
After your child connects each number to a picture will be revealed to regard them for their successful effort.
Final Thoughts
When it is all said and done, monitoring your child’s online screen time is important in order for them to realize that it is a privilege and something to look forward to instead of a place to spend all of their time. The longer that their eyes are glued to a subject screen, the higher the chance they have to become more antisocial or wander into adult content or get harassed by a creepy stranger through social media. Use these five methods to break the limitations that you have placed on their screen time to show them positive ways to use the internet.