Does your child feel the need to use its smartphone very often?
Then maybe your child is addicted! Screen time in pandemic has witnessed an exponential rise. May it be adults or kids, everyone is hooked to digital gadgets. But it is not anyone’s mistake. With social distancing and COVID-19 safety measures, people have found new ways of interacting, knowledge sharing, and communicating with their friends and family.
And this mode includes endless usage of smartphones, laptops, PCs, gaming gadgets and whatnot! Everything is online! Infact, even education at this time is dependent on these digital gadgets. For this reason, screen time in Pandemic is touching the sky.
This new mode might be gratifying and filling in the void but at the same time, it comes with its own merits and demerits. Some of the merits may include uninterrupted education of your kids and your kids becoming friends with technology but the demerits will shake you to the core. Continue reading to know all about balancing your child’s screen time in Pandemic.
What is Screen Time?
In simplest form, time spent on any digital gadget is screen time. The person while using the screen generally is physically inactive and is focussed on using the screen for work, leisure, or entertainment. This can include watching TV or using mobile or playing games or even attending online classes through smartphones or PCs.
What Are The Ill Effects Of High Screen Time In Pandemic?
As per some of the vital researches, it is noticed that kids these days, especially the teenagers are facing a lot of mental as well as physical health issues. Elongated screen time in pandemic has affected children with issues in their behavior, their temperament, and even their memory is being affected in a negative way. Read the points below to know more about impacts of the increased screen time in Pandemic.
- Behavioral problems can take a toll on your child’s growth and development.
- Extra usage of digital devices reduces the brain’s efficiency to retain information for long.
- It can adversely alter their sleep patterns and sleep cycle.
- Family values can get affected if the child is busy exploring digital devices rather than sitting with the family members.
- A child who is hooked to a smartphone or a PC or TV or tablet may not be able to handle social atmosphere and may feel uneasy in social arrangements.
- Excessive screen time in Pandemic has made a lot of children become carefree and irresponsible. They are not even taking personal responsibilities. This can affect a child handling the challenges of life in the future.
How Can I Balance My Child’s Screen Time In Pandemic?
To build healthy tech habits in your child, follow the steps given below.
Extend your support
As a parent, you first need to understand that screen time in Pandemic is much more different than it was before this pandemic. Earlier, kids used digital devices mainly for entertainment purposes. But now, they are not left with many outdoor or physical activities and choices. You need to find out if your child is using these or misusing them. If your child is building the screen time in playing games or talking to their friends, then you must set a time bar. However, if they are utilizing screen time this Pandemic in learning new things or exploring their creative instincts, show them your support and appreciate them.
Discuss and set limits
The best way to avoid getting on nerves is to discuss and set limits for your child. To balance the screen time this Pandemic, do not force anything on your kids. Introduce them to the disadvantages of continuous usage of the digital devices. Then you can discuss the number of hours your child wishes to use its smartphone or laptop or PC. After this, using a parental control app, you can bound the usage and set limits for your child’s smartphone usage.
Suggests them the alternatives
If you wish to reduce or minimize your child’s screen time in Pandemic, suggest them some alternatives or some other alluring options that can productively exhaust their time. Suggest them some fun activities that are off screen. These may include brainstorming games or activities or crafts or creating a collage or developing writing habits and other such activities. These activities will not only bound extra screen time but also will develop the brain and imaginative instincts of your child.
Reward your child
If your child is getting indulged in productive activities, you can think of rewarding them with something extra. It can be some extra fries or some extra fun or some extra screen time! Yes, a little bit of extra screen time won’t hurt and it will in a way motivate your child to reach targets that are actually beneficial for its overall development. The best way to follow this is to set weekly goals and weekly rewards. This can indeed be a fun way to manage your child’s screen time in this Pandemic.
The Bottom Line
Kids learn a lot of things in their childhood. If they denote most of their time on these screens, they will not be able to face real life challenges. It is true that one cannot eliminate screen time in Pandemic but one can definitely control and manage the hours their child spends in front of the screens. Hope that these tips will help you handle this issue. For any suggestions and feedback, feel free to hit up in the comments section.
1 Comment