Recent articles have passed through my social media feeds about young children and technology. Two years ago, I spent a lot of time researching screen time and its effects on children. Back when I did that research, almost all of the data was on passive watching: sitting in front of a TV. This new generation is often engaged when they are using technology, completing puzzles, practicing vocabulary, coding, and creating movies.
The article that first restarted this current focus on kids and technology: 10 Reasons Why Handheld Devices Should Be Banned. While many of the research findings I have talked about during my Screen Time posts, the author paints a picture that technology can only do harm.
This well-written article more closely aligns with my own point of view: 10 Reasons Why I Will Continue to Give my Children Handheld Devices, by Megan Egbert, the Hipmombrarian. When I wrote this post, she had 400 comments. My favorite part of the post may be the responses to the replies at the end.
In my life, I have two very active, bright, and creative children. We do not keep them away from technology. Yet, we balance tech time with reading, outside play, building (my floor is currently over run by Duplos), creating (especially Rainbow Loom band items).
Here are some examples of my children and tech use this week:
- My son was waiting for a doctor’s appointment with a 101 degree fever. While he mostly wanted to cuddle, we were told our wait would be longer than we thought. We distracted ourselves by working through some levels in Kodable. We were starting over since I have a new iPad, yet he confidently built the first few lines of code. (Ironically, he picked up my profile later in the weekend and ran through a pattern much, much harder than he’s done before. First time.)
- Later in the day, after a positive Strep test, my son was quite lethargic. We laid on the rocker together, watching cartoons. We were watching UmiZoomi. The show that teaches patterns, math skills, and for my children to recognize a dodecahedron. He didn’t have the energy to play, but his brain was still taking in a foundation for future learning.
- My daughter would watch Rainbow Loom YouTube videos all day. Or, Rainbow loom to crafty videos and more. Today she ended up watching one on creating Koolaid playdoh. She doesn’t sit and watch, though. She pulls out her loom. She creates alongside these demonstrations, creating some amazing patterns and styles. Better yet, she can demonstrate her own creations using vocabulary for a demonstration speech beyond what I’ve heard come from some seventh graders.
- This weekend, I am fighting some severe back pain and my husband had a cold that sapped his energy. The kids were both coughing pretty severely, so I didn’t want to take them to run around in a park- or to make the cough worse or spread it to others. The kids spent some time watching Netflix. Note, they didn’t get bombarded with commercials like on traditional TV. They also colored. And built garages and racetracks. Created new bracelets and art projects.
I know that this was more of a tech-heavy weekend for our family, with sickness limited our energy. But, last weekend was the opposite, with very little time plugged in at all. As with many time consuming items in our lives, moderation is the key.
Are your kids “plugged in” regularly? How do they use tech tools to play? How do they use them to learn? To create?
If they are not plugged in, I respect your decision to choose what is best for your child. My question is: on a day when you can barely move from sickness or pain, how can you keep your children engaged when all they may want to do is include you in their play? This is one of my personal biggest challenges.