WHAT I LEARNED FROM SCREEN TIME RULES I INSTITUTED FOR MY KIDS
LIKE most kids, mine crave screen time. So, like most families, we instituted rules to limit screen time for our children. Naturally, I think the rules are reasonable and for the benefit of my children – to make sure they don’t get sucked into an electronic void for hours on end, to give them time to pursue other activities, and to ensure they interact with friends and family.
As an adult, I obviously have more leeway with my own screen time, but I find myself in front of screens more often than I would like.
I wanted to see what would happen if I followed the rules I had put in place for my children.
NO DEVICES IN THE BEDROOM
My kids are not allowed to have any devices in their room in large part because I don’t want them staying up too late, like I often do. Most nights I had at least two devices in my room – my phone and my tablet. Sometimes I also brought my computer with me.
Once I stopped bringing devices into my room I found a huge improvement in the flow of my own evenings. I stayed focused on any work I had to do online before heading upstairs, which made me much more efficient. I had more chats with my husband before going to sleep. I also got through the stack of magazines piled by my bedside and started a new book. – all of which were much better reading material than the random links from Facebook I had found myself clicking on.
NO SCREEN TIME IN THE MORNING
Screen time in the morning would undoubtedly make my children late for school so it’s not allowed. So, it’s no surprise that the screen time I tried to fit in each morning was putting me behind schedule. Not looking at any screens in the morning has been the most beneficial to me.
I used to justify checking e-mail in the morning as an opportunity to quickly take care of a few things before the day began. I soon realised that not only was my morning check-in not so quick, but that it added an enormous amount of stress to the start of the day.
NO SCREEN TIME IN THE CAR
We decided not to allow our kids to use phones or tablets in the car (with the exception of long trips) to encourage conversation or other activities like reading. Although I never texted while driving, I will admit to keeping my phone within arm’s reach for a quick look at e-mail or to check how many people liked my latest Facebook post at red lights. Once I stopped, I found that I interacted with the kids more in the car and wasn’t as distracted.
NO SCREEN TIME ON PLAYDATES
I decided a long time ago that no matter what the rules were in other people’s houses, when my kids had friends over there would not be any screen time to ensure they engaged with their friends. Nevertheless, I often found myself sneaking a quick look at my phone when I was with my friends or kids. It was only after I stopped keeping my phone within reach when spending time with others that I realised how much my quick check-ins were distracting me – and how rude I was being.
LIMITED TIME
I ’ve become an avid TV binge watcher and have had more than one night where I’ve been so totally engrossed in Don Draper’s fate that I didn’t notice how many hours had passed. This has given me a new appreciation for why it’s so important to keep track of the time children spend in front of screens and made me realise that I needed to set limits for myself too.
Since setting a limit for nonwork-related screen time, I’ve become more responsible with my decisions about how I spend my time online and in front of the TV. I’ve been making more thoughtful decisions about what to watch, post, and follow.
I’m not perfect and never will be. Since starting my experiment I have backslid on more than one occasion. Nevertheless, every time I violate my self-imposed rules I regret it since I wind up stressed in the morning or realised I wasn’t engaged with my children all afternoon.
I recognise that there will be times when I really do need to check on a work e-mail or just decide that finding out what happens next on whatever show I’m watching is warranted.
There are also times when my kids are driving me crazy and I need a break to check what my Facebook friends are up to. But overall, I think that the screen time rules I put into place for my children are good for me, too, and I’m doing my best to follow them. – The Washington Post