Counselor’s Corner

         Ah! Television, Ipods, Ipads, phones, video games…fun and entertaining. It’s great to relax and enjoy these devices. But too much “screen-time” is not good for kids, I think most parents would agree. So what do we do? Set limits on it.

        Kids usually will not set limits, so it’s good parenting to be aware of how long your child has been on a screen, and tell them to “get off.” If they resist, take the device from them for a period of time. Tell them, “it’s not good to be on it too much” (they know this too), and then make suggestions for other things they could do. And taking a device away for a day is a great, safe consequence you can give for misbehavior.

        Help your child have experiences other than “screen-time.” Invite friends over, go to a swimming pool or other favorite place to recreate, set up and play a board game with them, or go outside and take them with you. Keep trying to help them have some time in their days that is not on screen. I think this is the way it is for many of us parents today, limiting screen time is now a common parental responsibility. Just say “stop” and make sure that our children put down their devices for a part of their days/week.