Illustration by Aron Rook
How much screen time is too much screen time? And how is all this screen time affecting children’s learning, attention spans and social interactions?
These questions loom over many parents.
“We have pretty serious concerns in terms of screen time,” said Nate Chesky, a Mechanicsburg father of an 11-, 9- and 5-year-old. “We want our kids to be creative, helpful, friendly and social. We want our kids to be active, going and exploring the world, and we worry that screen time could interfere with that.”
Because of these worries, Chesky’s children have little exposure to screens, which includes some time on a Kindle and the older child borrowing a parent’s phone to listen to audio books.
Research backs Chesky’s fears, according to Deana Raymer, director of educational services at the Capital Area Intermediate Unit in Enola.
“There’s a lot of developmental concerns,” Raymer said. “As an educational institution, that’s one of the big concerns for us. Especially when you’re putting a child, a young child, on screen time. Research does see delays in language development, some emotional pieces, fine motor and even some cognitive delays.”
Those delays could be caused not necessarily by the presence of the screen but by the lack of important physical actions, like fine motor skills and play.
“When they’re on a screen, the cognitive connections aren’t made in the same way and very limited, because they don’t have the same motor component,” Raymer said.
Nina Butler, mother of two young sons in Steelton, has fears as well.
“At this stage, a lot of concerns come from just overexposure, inappropriate things, things they can’t understand or grasp right now,” she said. “But then the opposite of that is the concern that they’re learning to grow with the world that they’re in. So, to be able to utilize the things as tools around them.”
Butler’s children have access to screens through a tablet, talking on FaceTime with family and a Nintendo Switch game system.
“There’s always a challenge for me of balance. How much screen time do you get?” she said.
Quality vs. Quantity
In the past, the focus for parents has often been on the amount of screen time, but that has shifted to include concerns around the content.
“In the research, when you look at those sources, many times they are going to tell you it’s about quality and balance,” Raymer said.
Healthychildren.org writes about the “Five C’s” when considering a child’s media intake.
The first is “Child,” keeping in mind the individual child’s personality. Next is “Content,” making sure children are interacting with quality, educational material. The third “C” is “Calm.” Some media may cause strong emotions in children, and parents need to be available to mitigate, limit or totally remove access to that.
There’s also “Crowding out.” Instead of focusing on reducing screen time, talk about what they want to get back. That focus could include more connection at mealtime, more time outdoors, more time playing games, and even more time for boredom.
“There’s value in being a little bored and having them figure out something to entertain themselves,” Raymer said.
The final “C” is “Communication.” Talk with your children about the media that they are interacting with.
Chesky, also a librarian at a local elementary school, said that teaching digital citizenship has been a focus in schools. This involves plenty of communication about media. The students relate to this discussion and are very aware of the effect that screen time can have on their behavior, according to Chesky.
Butler talks with her children about what’s appropriate in the real world versus the digital world. She feels that they have a good balance. The boys love to play outside and will leave a screen to do other things. She also has boundaries around screen time.
“We have cut-off times before bed […] and times during the day when they can have it versus quiet time,” Butler said.
Parents can also communicate with their children by participating with their screen time. Showing an interest can also prompt discussions afterward.
“It’s important to either preview the material, and then the next step of sitting down with them while they are using it,” Raymer said.
Technology plays an important and ever-present role in our lives and can have positive educational benefits. Programs can even help with reading, math or other STEM skills.
Many parents want to allow their children to participate in the technology that’s available but are concerned about the Pandora’s box that it opens.
“The kids are a step ahead of us,” Raymer said. “How do you control the uncontrollable?”
Common Sense Media is one tool that provides information to assist parents in understanding and creating boundaries within popular games and phone usage, by educating them about available settings and filters to protect their children.
Parents are tasked with how to integrate current technology into their kids’ lives, and, at the same time, limiting how much time and the types of exposure they have. It’s not easy, but finding balance is possible.
“I think, for my kids personally, it’s just our everyday life,” Butler said. “It’s finding the balance, because that’s the world that we’re in now.”
Learn more about technology boundaries for families at www.commonsensemedia.org and www.healthychildren.org/English/Pages/default.aspx.
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