Skellig Gra
Member
Try not to be so judgmental of other parents. Most people are doing the best they can.
If it's one thing I've learned as a parent is that "everything in moderation" is a wise approach.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Kids under 9 spend more than 2 hours a day on mobile screens, report shows
- Thread starter ElectricBlanketFire
- Start date
Try not to be so judgmental of other parents. Most people are doing the best they can.
If it's one thing I've learned as a parent is that "everything in moderation" is a wise approach.
TheOnlyOneHeEverFeared
Member
My younger sister (she's just turned 13) is on her iPad basically 24/7, considering they use it for school too, textbooks are on there now.
ElectricBlanketFire
Member
You said 4-year-olds using a mobile device is "crazy."
sixteen-bit
Member
lol @ the poll
digitalrelic
Banned
No, I quoted your OP that was titled "Kids under 9 spend more than 2 hours a day on mobile screens, report shows", and said "Wow, that's crazy".
Quit trying to turn this into a personal attack against you.
ostrichKing
Member
There's nothing wrong with kids using electronic devices for playing and creativity too...kids don't need to be in "learning mode" all the time...I think many people tend to downplay the importance of "play" with children...as someone said...just be a damn parent and stay engaged with your child and their interests and keep them active and keep things in moderation...
Edit: The poll is amazing
Edit: The poll is amazing
digitalrelic
Banned
I'm not being judgmental towards other parents. I'm just saying that the statistic is alarming, hence the "Wow, that's crazy". I'm certainly not a perfect parent by any means.
ElectricBlanketFire
Member
I'm not taking it personally. I just think you should reconsider your opinion on letting your kid use a mobile device. If you still don't think it's a good idea, that's fine.
EndlessSky
Member
A phone screen could really only be the same or better than sitting and watching TV, so if you are letting your kid watch TV all the time, then you really should let them at least interact with a screen.
My 4 year old kids use:
Mobile Screens
Books
Toys
Bikes
Nintendo
Playstation
They got to football / dancing / swimming and are due to start martial arts training soon.
I would suggest that the mobile screens is as an essential part of the their lives as anything else and they love playing alphabet and maths apps along with their games they play.
Skellig Gra
Member
I don't think its that alarming. What's alarming is childhood obesity rates in the country. Watching some dumb youtube videos isn't any different than the cartoons I watched as a kid. What you fill the rest of their time with is more important.
TimeEffect
Member
There are tons of interactive learning games on iPads and phones.
Must be an improvement over the cartoons.
Must be an improvement over the cartoons.
ElectricBlanketFire
Member
I think that's what the poll is getting at.
Tal Shiar Agent
Banned
I'm not letting my kids use touchscreens until after they learn to use tactile controls and analog sticks.
I don't think it is completely fair to comparing educational books with educational apps on a (mobile) device.
Everyone (kids, young adults and adults) seem to be able to concentrate less and less on "static" media. As soon as there is no direct visual gratification, it is not interesting anymore. All the information we receive through media becomes more bite-size and less substance because most of us do not want to read a well written article that takes you 10 minutes, when you can have a video or flashy graph showing you the main gist.
As a result I would let my kid not get to much time on electronic devices (maybe a Kindle, as that is not really the same).
Everyone (kids, young adults and adults) seem to be able to concentrate less and less on "static" media. As soon as there is no direct visual gratification, it is not interesting anymore. All the information we receive through media becomes more bite-size and less substance because most of us do not want to read a well written article that takes you 10 minutes, when you can have a video or flashy graph showing you the main gist.
As a result I would let my kid not get to much time on electronic devices (maybe a Kindle, as that is not really the same).
I didn't have a smartphone until I got to college (as someone who is in his early 20's). I was annoyed at it when growing up, but now I really appreciate not having access to it like everyone else. It shaped my growth in a way I would like to think as positive.
If/when I have children, I'd like to raise them the same sort of way (obviously not exactly the same). I don't think a lot of what smart phones offer is particularly healthy for kids or teenagers or even young adults, and I'm not entirely comfortable framing reality of young people in that way.
I don't think that's being particularly hypocritical, as I'll limit the amount of time my kids spend on the TV and computers as well. Kids should mostly be outside, not indoors staring at a screen. They'll have plenty of time to do that later in life.
If/when I have children, I'd like to raise them the same sort of way (obviously not exactly the same). I don't think a lot of what smart phones offer is particularly healthy for kids or teenagers or even young adults, and I'm not entirely comfortable framing reality of young people in that way.
I don't think that's being particularly hypocritical, as I'll limit the amount of time my kids spend on the TV and computers as well. Kids should mostly be outside, not indoors staring at a screen. They'll have plenty of time to do that later in life.
ElectricBlanketFire
Member
Now THIS is good parenting.
digitalrelic
Banned
Obviously there's a solid argument that part of the reason for the obesity rates in our country ties into television/mobile devices/screen time/sedentary lives.
And of course I don't think that mobile devices are inherently negative, but moreso what children are using them for. The more alarming statistic is in the Atlantic article I linked above. Social media, and our children's reliance on it as their main source of communication and social interaction, is having a real impact on happiness levels, suicide rates, independence, loneliness levels, and healthy sleep schedules.
Which I agree with. I'll say this... If your kid is a natural with electronics then I don't see a problem with encouraging them to get better with them considering when they grow up their jobs may very well be centered around them.
Galactic Specter
Member
Good, it's preparing them to be hunched over a computer for several hours straight at their office job.
disagree.
There are tons of educational shit on mobile devices.
The other day we were letting my kid watch on his ipad and my wife goes, hey, he's watching the show in Spanish. I'm like fuck yea, his nanny used to speak Spanish to him all the time, now he doesnt get that anymore cause she quit.
now both kids spend all day school and get no screen time at school. Acting like them getting screen time is the worst thing in the world is unhealthy imo.
My son loves to read books, do puzzles, play outside, ride his tricycle, chalk on the driveway. And yet we let him watch the ipad for an hour or so before night time.
Skellig Gra
Member
Well GAF has long since established that social media was a mistake.
That whole trend in general is bizarre. Had someone on my Facebook feed recently post a picture from the YouTube Kids app on their iPad that had a bunch of Peppa Pig cartoons with the characters brutally murdering each other in the thumbnail. They said along with it "watch what your kids are watching because of stuff like this", and I told them about the "Spiderman vs Elsa" thing.
ostrichKing
Member
Why are Saturday morning cartoons an exception?
Haha
Kaiser Swayze
Member
Max 30 minutes screen time a day, son. I'm off to play Dark Souls for the next 3 hours.
I meant no TV at all until 5, and then when he's 4, on Saturday's my wife and I would watch an hour of cartoons with him, just as fun family time. As it stands though, we might not even do that, and just forgo all screens until 5.
ostrichKing
Member
Could always have family fun time with some type of learning app on the tablet...
also quit judging other parents, good fucking god this gets on my nerves.
I love my children to death, but sometimes i just need a break, so my son will stop talking to me about EVERYTHING.
are your kids alive? healthy? do they eat? and you dont beat them? ok great, your doing a great job.
I used to play counter-strike and WoW hours on end, but i still played baseball year round in highschool, till i quit. Then i got a job, and in college i played WoW but still joined a volunteer service fraternity, and played ultimate Frisbee on the weekends. IMO letting your kids have screen time isn't going to harm them.
I love my children to death, but sometimes i just need a break, so my son will stop talking to me about EVERYTHING.
are your kids alive? healthy? do they eat? and you dont beat them? ok great, your doing a great job.
I used to play counter-strike and WoW hours on end, but i still played baseball year round in highschool, till i quit. Then i got a job, and in college i played WoW but still joined a volunteer service fraternity, and played ultimate Frisbee on the weekends. IMO letting your kids have screen time isn't going to harm them.
We have been weening our 7 year old off Netflix, and now severely limit screen time. It has had an awesome impact.
Our daughter is now asking us when its time to take the dog for a walk, what can she do to help out around the house, and loves to hang out with us while we exercise.
Some of the shit I see out in public disgusts me. A few weeks back while we were out at a restaurant the family next to us had the kids order then immediately plunked phones in front of them for the duration of the meal [they even watched cartoons while eating].
I actually got a look when I asked them to turn the volume down.
Our daughter is now asking us when its time to take the dog for a walk, what can she do to help out around the house, and loves to hang out with us while we exercise.
Some of the shit I see out in public disgusts me. A few weeks back while we were out at a restaurant the family next to us had the kids order then immediately plunked phones in front of them for the duration of the meal [they even watched cartoons while eating].
I actually got a look when I asked them to turn the volume down.
Out of curiosity, if you don't feel it's too private, what would an average breakdown of your kid's day look like, in terms of hours spent per activity?
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
My 1 1/2 year old gets no mobile device time if I can help it (we skype with her father on it when he's on business trips, though), same with the ipad. My husband did use the ipad for "Sarah and Duck" when we were flying 20+ hrs and shows her pictures/videos sometimes, but I make him put it away if I see it out. TV is limited, but I'm 8 months pregnant (i.e. exhausted) and when my husband's away and I need to prep her dinner, Sarah and Duck goes on to keep octopus hands out from under the knife and/or hot pans. Other than that, nada. Like others, we also have no family help to speak of, and I try to limit it, but in the end moderation is the best you can hope for. I don't think it's all bad, but I do fear leaning on it too hard for a bit of a break.
Yup, yup. We all try to do the best we can. And tie ourselves in knots no matter what we do.
Yup, yup. We all try to do the best we can. And tie ourselves in knots no matter what we do.
The problem with this comparison is that you couldn't take CS or WoW with you anywhere you went.
Social media is a different story. It definitely has negative effects and I can sympathize with children nowadays. When I was younger I could escape my bullies every night and weekend. They cant. But not allowing them on social media isnt really the answer either. Youd be not allowing them the crucial tool to social constructs. They could be a pariah, lose friends, not make connections, etc. Im not really sure the answer besides really pressuring platforms to push back and stamp out bullying and other negative experiences on it.
Seems like they were judging you just as you judged them.
Yep, we keep screen usage to a minimum in our house, kids should be outside or partaking in physical activities, iPad comes out if they earn it.
Absolutely no Facebook/Twitter.
Tal Shiar Agent
Banned
Game Boy.
Parents don't let kids go outside = kids don't socialize and turn to the internet. Go figure.
NintendosBooger
Member
How do you deal with their peers who're engrossed with social media influencing your kids and perpetuating in your children the need to be in step with them? How do you communicate to your offspring to not worry about what best-friend Billy at school has or does with his free time?
Curious as a soon-to-be parent.
This is one of the issues in general. It's not even just "Parents don't let kids go outside", it's "Society now thinks that it's inappropriate for children younger than 12 to be out of sight of a supervising adult".
Our generation's kids definitely get too much screen time, but no past generation of parents has every been expected to spend so much time watching their children. Stuff still needs to get done around the house, and it isn't the 50s-80s anymore where you can kick your elementary school kids out of the house until dinner/dark. To make it worse, many households are single child households, so many kids lack siblings to keep them entertained.
You can definitely parent your kids without the screen crutch, but it's hard and I can understand why many can't.
Older kids and teenagers are a completely different discussion. Their level of independence, and their capacity to self entertain is quite different.
Bounceounce
Member
That doesn't seem to be more then I would spend on a handheld game system/tv/console, though not every day, and sometimes with friends.
I'm 20, I didn't have a phone until I was like a sophomore or junior and still didn't actively use it.
I can remmeber being out with friends and bein irritated when I'm trying to walk and talk and they're just showing each other memes off of facebook.
I only started to use my phone as an escape like that when I was in a deep depression and couldn't talk to people anyhow, after I got over it my need to be on it was evaporated, and I can be away from it for large portions of time and if I'm out with friends I don't feel the need to touch it for hours and hours on end.
Luckily I still we kids playing all of the time, and only once in a while will I see something like a family sitting at a table at the coffee shop all on their phones not talking to each other.
And when my little brothers came to visit the other day I made sure to take them some of the areas outside my friends and I used to hang out/explore, and luckily their parents haven't given them phones yet and keep them active.
Hopefully things are well rounded for the majority of kids.
I'm 20, I didn't have a phone until I was like a sophomore or junior and still didn't actively use it.
I can remmeber being out with friends and bein irritated when I'm trying to walk and talk and they're just showing each other memes off of facebook.
I only started to use my phone as an escape like that when I was in a deep depression and couldn't talk to people anyhow, after I got over it my need to be on it was evaporated, and I can be away from it for large portions of time and if I'm out with friends I don't feel the need to touch it for hours and hours on end.
Luckily I still we kids playing all of the time, and only once in a while will I see something like a family sitting at a table at the coffee shop all on their phones not talking to each other.
And when my little brothers came to visit the other day I made sure to take them some of the areas outside my friends and I used to hang out/explore, and luckily their parents haven't given them phones yet and keep them active.
Hopefully things are well rounded for the majority of kids.
Hippopuncher12
Member
Yeah, no. My 3 year old gets an hour a day on his iPad, and it is limited to activities to help him learn different things. Honestly if it wasn't for that I doubt he would be able to read as well as he can at his age. My wife and I obviously try to do as much hands on teaching as we can but when you both work, this shit helps immensely. Just like anything else in life moderation is the key, and making sure it's being used for something productive not to play fucking Minecraft. Saying it doesn't teach them anything is asinine.
Edit: Actually even Minecraft would be okay as it is a creative tool, but you know what I mean.
Mr Fahrenheit
Member
Casuals. Rick Fox is never going to buy their souls at this rate.
digitalrelic
Banned
I suppose I won't be opposed to sharing. I of course understand that this makes me ripe for judgement, but whatever. Obviously things vary every day, but if I had to kind of encapsulate an average, it would look something like this:
7AM - 8:30AM - Get dressed/brush teeth/help make breakfast/eat breakfast
8:30AM - 10AM - Indoor play time. Toys/coloring/playdough/legos/puzzles/activity books/worksheets/etc..
10AM - 12PM - Outdoor activities. Parks/swimming/walks/playing in the yard/etc..
12PM - 1PM - Help make lunch/eat lunch
1PM - 3PM - Social time. Hang out with cousins/neighbors/friends/visit grandparents/etc.. Either indoors or outdoors
3PM - 5PM - Errands. Laundry, picking up house, doing dishes, grocery shopping/etc..
5PM - 6PM - Help make supper/eat supper
6PM - 6:30PM - TV time. Sesame Street/Magic School Bus/whatever
6:30PM - 7:30PM - Bath, story time, and finally bed time.
This would be an average day that my child doesn't have school, of course.
7AM - 8:30AM - Get dressed/brush teeth/help make breakfast/eat breakfast
8:30AM - 10AM - Indoor play time. Toys/coloring/playdough/legos/puzzles/activity books/worksheets/etc..
10AM - 12PM - Outdoor activities. Parks/swimming/walks/playing in the yard/etc..
12PM - 1PM - Help make lunch/eat lunch
1PM - 3PM - Social time. Hang out with cousins/neighbors/friends/visit grandparents/etc.. Either indoors or outdoors
3PM - 5PM - Errands. Laundry, picking up house, doing dishes, grocery shopping/etc..
5PM - 6PM - Help make supper/eat supper
6PM - 6:30PM - TV time. Sesame Street/Magic School Bus/whatever
6:30PM - 7:30PM - Bath, story time, and finally bed time.
This would be an average day that my child doesn't have school, of course.