38 THE QUEENS COURIER • HEALTH • SEPTEMBER 3, 2020 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
health
Helpful tools and tips on how parents
can best manage kids’ screen time
BY JANA BEAUCHAMP
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
With many, if not all, kids having part
or full time remote learning, parents
want to know some helpful tools and tips
on how we can limit and best manage
kids’ screen time. We spoke to Dr. Cori
Cross, pediatrician, spokesperson for the
AAP,and member of the AAP Council on
Communications and Media (and also a
mom!), for her insights and expertise on
this important and timely topic.
Be Proactive About Screen Time
When inside for extended periods,
knowing what kids are doing is important.
Talk about tech ahead of time and let
them know the things they can do when
parents are working. Make a list of what is
appropriate (maybe one episode of a certain
TV show or how long they can play
Roblox and then tell them to do some
reading or creating) so they know what
their options are and make good decisions.
Leave them a list and mix it up.Dr.
Cross said, “Talk it through and let them
know what you anticipate and what is
acceptable and you have a much better
chance that they make the choices you
hope they will make and then leave them
some fl exibility of what you ask them to
do so they not just have a list but have
autonomy.”
Parents Need to Check In
and Make Sure Kids Know
They Are Important
Parents need to be realistic that a kid
can entertain themselves for a couple
of hours but they also need a check-in.
Parents should schedule breaks to have a
snack, check in, and chit chat throughout
the day so kids know when they will be
together. Dr. Cross advised, “At a checkin
you can address concerns for the rest
of the day and set a timeframe so they
know when you can stop and chat. Let
kids know that they are important enough
that you will take a break for them. It is
very important. Jobs are very important
but make sure the kids feel that they are
important, too, and just saying it goes a
long way.”
Foster Togetherness and
Get Plenty of Rest
When done with school work, it’s really
important for parents to have children
in common areas of the home. We don’t
want our kids to feel isolated or alone in
their apartment in one room when they
can’t really go out. It’s important they get
out of the “work” room and have interaction
with other people in the home.
Make sure kids connect so they don’t get
depressed.
Dr. Cross reminded us that parents
need to know that kids need to get enough
sleep. When kids are constantly on screens
their sleep may not be great sleep. Turn off
the screen early. Plan to read and shower
and have downtime before bed so there
is no screen time right before bedtime.
If well rested, then kids are usually better
behaved.
Teach Kids to Give and Take
For kids having trouble with online
learning, Dr. Cross urged that “parents
should quickly reach out to the teacher
early. Maybe print some of the work
out so it’s not all online. Other kids may
need more of a break in between so there
might be some activities they skip online
to focus on others. Th ere should be a give
and take for them.” Without a teacher
present, children don’t know how to prioritize
and can get stuck, so parents need
to teach kids in the beginning that if you
get to this and can’t do this, move on and
do the rest. Let them know they can circle
what they don’t know and go back to
it with a teacher or parent later, but they
should keep going. Th at is a skill many
kids don’t developmentally have in elementary
and middle school yet. With
younger kids, give them a written list
with times next to it so they can cross
it out and accomplish it and know what
they have to look forward to. Th ey like
the schedules so they can look and see
where they are at and try to emulate that
school schedule in the home. And add
reading to your list every day. Dr. Cross
emphasized, “Even spending 10 minutes
a day reading with your child will make a
big diff erence in how their literacy develops
over the next year.”
Model How to Unplug
Kids need to think that they are the
priority. Defi nitely during dinner parents
shouldn’t take the phone to the table.
Dr. Cross recommends, “If you can disconnect
for an hour, put your phone
in a drawer so you don’t hear beeping.
Th ose little moments where you put it
away and look at them and talk, they
need that. If they are having a hard time
with a teacher or friend or learning, they
won’t divulge that if we are constantly
on our phone. If we want to know our
kids are emotionally okay during this
time, we need to give them the chance to
talk to us.” Schedule your children’s digital
detoxes like an hour before bed, dinnertime,
and/or aft er school from 2:30-4
pm. Allow no tech aft er school and make
that a house rule and kids will fi nd something
else to do. Leave out books, puzzles,
games, cards, LEGOs, art & craft s so
kids can fi gure it out on their own. You
need to have a little time of boredom so
kids can fi nd something to do and fi gure
out what they really like. Remember, this
is what childhood used to be like so kids
can fi gure it out.
AAP Screen Time Limits
and Recommendations
Dr. Cross reminds us that, “Th rowing
away the rules is ok if it is a short period
and you’re getting back to it, but with
some schools doing remote learning the
whole next year we worry it is a habit that
will be hard to walk back later. It’s really
important for parents to fi gure out where
their comfort is.” It’s okay to tell kids that
when we aren’t working and schooling
on Saturday and Sunday, we stick to the
traditional rules. Dr. Cross reminds us to
understand that eventually COVID will
be over and as soon as we can get back
outside, we will want to. It won’t be as
bad as we all think but making sure parents
are parenting and kids realize they
are allowed to still parent so we don’t lose
authority and have the hierarchy thrown
all out of whack.”
When Remote Learning, Try
Not to Make Downtime Screen-
Based Play. Get outside!
For kids who are remote learning, sedentary,
and on a screen, when they have
their downtime we should try not to
make it screen-based play. A pre-planned
FaceTime with friends is ok but there
has to be some sort of check-in and time
limit and understanding that this isn’t the
best use of their time and they need to be
physically active. Dr. Cross’s biggest recommendation
to parents would be “as
much as we are trying to limit our children’s
contact with large groups of other
children, at some point we have to let kids
get back to play (assuming the family is
not high risk) and play outside and play
physically since the health concerns of
emotionally and physically of not allowing
children appropriate time to play is
signifi cant and we want to address this
as a parent and society. It’s not normal
for kids to be inside looking at a screen
all day. Th is will aff ect their mental and
physical health.” For kids in communities
when they can go outside even if they
can’t hang with a bunch of kids, they can
still be physically active, so allow your kid
to go on a bike ride or scooter ride with
another child. With these activities, you
keep your six feet and allow them to do
things outside where they can be social
and active is our best bet. When they can’t
maintain their 6 feet of distance, the recommendation
is that they should wear
a mask. In a lot of communities where
numbers are low enough, you can get
kids together to socially interact and get
the physical activity that they need.
It Takes A Village
Parents must talk to who their children
are playing with and make sure you are
comfortable and it is similar to in your
approach to the new normal. Th ere must
be a real honesty there and if someone
develops symptoms, let each other know
and do not continue to go out and play,
if you could be exposed. If you and our
child are low risk, allow them to go outside
and play.Parents can also feel isolated
and should reach out to other parent
friends and see what others are doing.
Dr. Cross advised, “If they have groups
they are close to and can talk it through
it gives you more oomph to say I talked to
your friends’ parents and they are not ok
with this either.” We have our village and
need it now more than ever.
Additional resources
Recommendations concerning children
and media/digital devices:aap.org
For parents, AAP’s website
HealthyChildren.org off ers this family
media planning tool that can be
helpful:healthychildren.org
Outschool (teachers who are used
to teaching on Zoom and cover things
that are diff erent from what kids usually
learn)and Art Hub both are good
resources for families for fun classes to
round out electives or extracurriculars:
• outschool.com
• artforkidshub.com
/helpful:healthychildren.org
/WWW.QNS.COM
/devices:aap.org
/HealthyChildren.org
link
/outschool.com
/artforkidshub.com
link
