Each age has its own rules for the use of devices.
Photo: Shutterstock
Why not entertain your baby with cartoons on a tablet? How not to fall into categorical prohibitions when negotiating with a teenager? How much screen time is acceptable? Alexander Fomichenko, specialist in educational gamification at the Skysmart online school, author of training programs, tells.
UP TO 2 YEARS: BEST MANAGED
Up to a year and a half, it is better if children do not give them any gadgets: babies have not yet developed cognitive abilities to understand what they see on the screen and how it connects with the outside world. To your brain, it’s just an irritant. It is more useful to listen to songs, touch various objects and solve simple puzzles. And also – to communicate: with parents, siblings, grandparents. Even by video call, if family members are far away, it will be easier to establish contact during meetings. Closer to two years, children can perceive educational games on the tablet only if their parents are engaged in them.
Rules:
Choose educational apps and high-quality cartoons.
Let your child play with a tablet or smartphone only in your presence. Play with him, talk, teach.
Limit your screen time to no more than 1 hour a day.
2 TO 5 YEARS: LET’S TOGETHER
Children are beginning to be interested in animated images – this is the right time to captivate them with educational cartoons.
For starters, “Baby”, “Nuki and friends”, “Dragon Tosha”, and about 3-4 years old “Papers”, “Friendship is a miracle”, “Cats, go!”, “Dasha the traveler” are suitable Of the games, you can advise The Galaxy, Toca Boca and Sago Mini, and from 4-5 years you can try Minecraft. All these games and cartoons will help children learn language and social skills, develop mindfulness, logic and empathy.
Rules:
Don’t use gadgets to calm a crying baby or distract him while he does his thing.
Offer alternatives to the tablet with outdoor games, books, walks in the park, creative activities, board games and role-playing games.
Choose interactive content and apps that not only entertain but also educate.
Do not completely avoid games and cartoons – this is an important experience necessary for the development of the child.
Discuss what you see with your children, so they learn to be aware of their emotions and experiences.
Screen time is a maximum of 1 hour per day. If you spend more time on the tablet, you may have motivation problems at school, study will seem boring to you.
5 TO 12 YEARS: DO LIKE ME
For this age, a personal smartphone is the norm. And during the school years, digital media becomes a means of socialization: almost all communication takes place online, and children can hardly see their friends offline. Parental prohibitions and restrictions do not work, they also harm the relationship and the child’s psyche.
Rules:
Make sure that the use of gadgets does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, communication with the family.
It doesn’t matter how much screen time a child spends as long as the first rule is followed.
Set the rules for using your smartphone. For example, at the table, in bed, while working on homework, at a party, any device is prohibited. But keep them yourself. The child needs the right example.
Set parental controls to prevent a child from downloading inappropriate content on their own.
Understand the age rating system of video games, series and applications. But don’t trust them completely, check it out yourself, try playing a game your child is passionate about, or watch a couple of episodes of their favorite animated series.
12 YEARS AND UP: FOCUS ON SAFETY
Teens demand some independence in the way they use devices. Parental supervision needs to be relaxed while helping children build secure relationships with digital technologies.
Rules:
Educate children about digital safety, major risks, and online scams. If you are not very good at this, enroll your children in cybersecurity courses.
Take an interest in what the child is doing online, what games they play, what series they watch, who they follow on social networks and why. But not in the form of an interrogation: he talks, discusses, shares his personal experience and his emotions.
Do not criticize or scold, otherwise the children will begin to hide their life on the network from you. At this age, prohibitions no longer work.
