Overheard a mom at the park talking about her kid's screen time rules

I was pushing my daughter on the swings yesterday and heard another parent say she gives her 5-year-old exactly 30 minutes of tablet time after dinner, no exceptions. She mentioned using a simple kitchen timer to make it clear. It made me realize we don't have any set limit at our house, and my son just kind of plays on his until I tell him to stop. I'm thinking maybe a clear rule like that would cause less arguing. How do you all handle screen time for little kids?

3 comments

3 Comments

eva4681mo ago

We switched to a timer and it really cut down on the daily begging and whining.

ericprice1mo ago

Read a study supporting timers, @eva468.

the_mila1mo ago

But what about teaching them patience instead of just shutting them down? Eva468, a timer feels like training a dog, not raising a kid. It just teaches them to watch the clock, not understand why they have to wait. You're trading whining for a kid who might just get sneaky about what they want. Real life doesn't have a timer for everything, so how do they learn to handle a no? It seems like a quick fix that misses the bigger point.