TIPS: Screen Time Versus Family Time

Being a parent is a challenge in itself. What more if you are a parent in this age of technology? As much as parents want their children to be tech-savvy, they also want the kids to stay away from too much screen time.

Well here are some tips for parents who have this dilemma.

Practice what you preach

 Oftentimes parents break their own rules for their kids and that makes it double the headache to explain why you're allowed to do it and they're not.

                When they say "no gadgets in bed" they might as well do it themselves. New studies found that having screen time in bed affects your sleep cycle and kids must understand that age is no factor. They can get cranky when they lack sleep after all.

 When they say "no phones on the dinner table" parents best follow it, too. It goes for everyone. So parents must set a good example by following their own rules.

Research

 Take time to try that video game or go to that website. Check for reviews and even news about it. Chances are there might be other parents who have had ratings, comments or even complaints about it. If there are none, it won't hurt ask around.

 While doing this, parents should try to put themselves into their kid's shoes. An example would be, "What would I do if I was a seven-year-old and someone is chatting with me on this online video game?" which leads us to the next tip...

Teach your kids about internet safety

 Both kids and parents must understand that the internet is a public place and anything and everything they upload is forever there. Even when deleted, files (photos, videos, etc.) are there on backup servers for most sites and a most popular example for that is Facebook.

 Parents are and should be the first line of defense for their kids' online safety. They should learn about it themselves so they can then teach their kids about it.

 Remember, setting up child-safety options does not filter out all the threats out there.

Embrace the good side of technology

 There are both advantages and disadvantages to all these gadgets available today. While parents think that screen time pose a threat in their children's overall wellness, there are also benefits that come from it. Among others, children can learn from and by gadgets and even playing video games help in eye hand coordination.

 Parents must accept that technology also offers good things for their kids. The secret is in setting limits for screen time.

Introduce other activities

 There are lots of things kids cannot learn from gadgets and parents should be the first to teach them this. Social media cannot teach actual social skills but family time can. Video games may simulate real ones but cannot teach sportsmanship values.

Technology has made life easier but it doesn't have to take over actual human interaction. Make sure family time gets prioritized over screen time.