We’ve covered the topic of screen time from many angles on this blog already, so ...

Access to online resources
Our screens are the portal to so many incredible resources online that are just a few taps clicks or taps away. Kids can benefit from an ever-growing library of kid-centric educational content including games and videos, plus other content that parents can carefully curate for them to enjoy. Screen time can often be about learning, but doesn’t always have to be, and there are websites, apps, platforms, and games that complement the way kids grow up in 2022. Screen time shouldn’t necessarily replace reading time or time spent with other tools, but it’s still an essential part of growing up.

Balanced lifestyle
Much of modern youth culture is related to events online or emerging tech, and it’s important for kids to be able to relate to their peers and stay up to date with the culture. As long as kids have a healthy relationship with screens, they’ll be well equipped to process tech and internet culture, stay safe, and reap the benefits of a balanced lifestyle that takes place online and offline. 

School readiness
Screens are becoming more commonplace in schools and kids have to be familiar with these devices to make the most out of those educational experiences. The prevalence of remote learning from the past few years expedited the need for device and digital literacy among younger kids, and showed how screens can complement, but not replace in-person and analog learning.

Social connectivity
Staying connected to friends, family, and classmates may be the most important benefit of screen time. Video calling is one of the few examples of screen time that experts say is safe for even the youngest children, and it may help set the stage for healthy screen use in the future. Additionally, social media is becoming increasingly common for older kids and teens, and a thoughtful introduction to safe online engagement will pay dividends as kids grow older and become more involved in the digital world.

Improved developmental skills
We recently wrote a full article about the surprising benefits of video games, and many of the same benefits apply to screen time in general. When introduced and supervised thoughtfully, children can develop motor skills, critical thinking skills, problem solving skills, and more by engaging with their devices. Video games require direct interaction, and can actually encourage children to be more patient and resilient. 

Reliance and addiction
The potential for over-reliance on screens for entertainment and even screen addiction are probably the biggest fears when it comes to screen time. Children as young as 8 are already spending an average of 6 hours per day in front of a screen. It’s very easy for screens to become a default source of interaction in our homes, and we’re also guilty of spending too much time with our devices. It’s important to set healthy limits and try to make screen time a conscious part of everyday life. We went into this topic in more detail in this article.

Lack of physical activity
Let’s face it – we’re usually not moving our bodies that much when we’re enjoying our screen time. Those passive viewing hours can add up quickly and cause physical strain, and bad habits can take years to address. We recommend providing appropriate warming up and cooling down periods from screen time so kids know when it’s enough for the day.

Sleep problems
In addition to just the time spent in front of screens cutting into sleep, the blue light emitted by screens leads to poor sleep hygiene and difficulty sleeping. If possible, children should avoid screen time at least an hour before bed, and for bedrooms to be screen-free zones as well.

Asocial behavior
We mentioned the positive aspects of social connectivity and participating in contemporary tech culture, but it’s equally important to monitor asocial behavior as a result of screen time. There isn’t a direct causal relationship between the two in either direction. The content we curate for our kids and the guidelines we set for them make a big difference in achieving positive or negative social outcomes.

Impaired academic performance
Kids can struggle in school as a result of all the other possible negative effects we mentioned. When children become over-reliant on their screens, experience fatigue, have trouble sleeping, and experience asocial behavior as a result of their devices, their academic performance often suffers. Ultimately, it’s about establishing a healthy balance between time spent with and without screens.

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Access to information
One of the main forms of technology we use every day is consuming content on the internet through our devices. We have so much information available to us that it can be overwhelming, and it’s the same for our children. It’s our responsibility to curate and point towards the kind of high quality content our kids need to help them learn, widen their perspectives, and build their self-esteem. Processing information will also help them improve their critical thinking skills and equip them with knowledge that will complement their existing formal education.

Digital literacy
Digital literacy means more than just knowing how to work a computer or smartphone. It means being a digital native speaker who knows how devices work, understands internet culture, is adaptable to new technologies, and isn’t surprised by anything that happens in the digital world. Introducing kids to technology early ensures that they get the chance to build a relationship with tech that works for them. They’ll be prepared for both the challenges and opportunities that may come.

Independence and responsibility
Being introduced to devices and understanding the value of technology can foster a sense of independence and personal responsibility that can last a lifetime. When you trust children with looking after a device and set healthy boundaries around its use, you can assess their readiness and encourage them to correct mistakes as they happen. Sooner or later, kids will all have their own devices and will be free to use them as they please – it’s a matter of preparing them early on so they make responsible decisions unsupervised in the future.

Learning and education
There’s an abundance of thoughtfully designed educational apps, games, and streaming content that’s all geared towards teaching kids age-appropriate skills in school subjects like math, spelling, reading, and art, and regular developmental subjects like motor skills and problem solving. In addition to those specific applications, all tech usage has some instructive value. Watching TV and playing video games responsibly can be educational as well. In fact, check out all 30 surprising benefits of playing video games in this article.

Social connectivity
The ability to stay in touch conveniently with people all around the world is one of the biggest benefits of technology that we can all agree on. Video calling and instant messaging make it possible to stay connected to family and friends on a daily basis. More specifically, it’s important to note that social media is the primary method for kids and teens to not only talk but participate in youth culture together. If you remove tech from the equation, you’re removing one of the main ways kids relate to each other.

Dependence and addiction
If you shudder at the sight of your phone’s screen time measurement, then you’re already familiar with the potential for tech dependence and addiction. We’re spending more time on our devices and in front of screens than ever before, and it’s important to stay aware of the tech usage and habits at home. Our children often mold their behavior after us, so it’s vital to set a good example. Check out our article about the relationship between kids and technology for more information about current usage rates and more.

Safety and privacy concerns
While the internet can be an enlightening and educational place, it can also be a hazardous area full of inappropriate ads, in-app purchases, harmful content, and dangerous online interactions like cyber bullying. We covered all the ways that kids are using the internet today in this article, and included some internet safety tips for both kids and teens. Stay up to date on what kind of platforms and content are available to kids and keep the safety and privacy conversation going with your kids on an ongoing basis.

Attention span problems
Being a regular smartphone and internet user doesn’t automatically lead to attention span problems. However, continual passive engagement with any device can cause problems in kids and teens if left unchecked.

Sedentary lifestyle
Spending an inordinate amount of time with tech, whether it’s consuming content in a sedentary position or playing video games, can add up to a sedentary lifestyle that causes physical and mental strain. Left unchecked, this can lead to musculoskeletal problems and greater risk of obesity and cardiovascular disease later in life.

Poor sleep hygiene
The blue light from screens suppresses the release of melatonin, the hormone that normally makes us feel drowsy and prepares us for sleep. Staring at a device right before bed is an impediment to healthy sleep. Practicing good sleep hygiene by avoiding devices an hour before bed or even putting them in a separate room from where your kids sleep can counteract this problem, which can lead to unpleasant sleep issues.

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Get all the information you need
The first step is to gather all the information about screen time that you need to inform your thinking. We created a guide that covers most of the basic facts in this article. The most important information is the recommended screen time for each age group. Kids under 18 months should avoid screen time other than video calls. Kids between 18 and 24 months can enjoy co-viewing of curated content up to one hour per day. Kids between 2 and 5 years old can enjoy co-viewing and independent viewing of curated content up to one hour per day, but with more flexibility. Kids between 6 and 12 years old can enjoy reasonable limits that are up to you to decide. Kids 12 and over don’t need strict limits but with practical rules.

Have a point of view
Once you have all the facts, it’s important to think critically about screen time on your own to form a personal point of view. The experts have their recommendations about screen time by age, and research is always being conducted about the advantages and disadvantages of screen time, but it’s up to us as parents to process this information and decide what to do with it. Write down your thoughts and try to arrive at a succinct set of ideas that will help govern screen time in your family.

Start the conversation
Screen time will be a hot topic for a long time as your kids get older and technology changes, so we recommend starting the conversation whenever they’re ready. Opening the dialogue and showing a willingness to talk about important subjects will help form healthy attitudes about screen time and technology at large. We’ve also found that there’s a lot to learn from our kids as well. They have their own points of view that will be crucial in creating sustainable best practices in your home.

Make a pros and cons list together
The logical followup to a conversation is to write down the findings. If you’re feeling up to it, make a list of pros and cons with your kids and be honest about their input. Having this list written formally in a document or even on a notepad will provide a material basis for the guidelines that you’ll set together.

Set guidelines that are unique to your household
The next step is to actually create guidelines based on the conversation you’ve been having with your kids and the formal list of pros and cons. This makes your guidelines unique to your household. There may be plenty of overlap with other families and with the best practices recommended by experts, but ultimately, only your family can decide what’s best for you.

Be realistic and forgiving
You may have noticed that we haven’t been using the word “rules” for limiting screen time. You can use that word if you want to, but using recommendations, guidelines, or best practices reminds us to be realistic and forgiving when things inevitably don’t go to plan sometimes. Good habits are hard to make and bad habits are even harder to break. Make sure you’re being realistic about your expectations and be quick to forgive mistakes that may occur, but follow up with a conversation about what happened whenever possible.

Be accountable
The guidelines you set in your house work best when you try to follow them as well. Your children will follow your lead and mimic you when given the opportunity. Try to set a good example and adhere to the best practices you set for yourself as well.

Warm up and cool down
Screen time should be a purposeful but regular event in a child’s day. Give your children an opportunity to think about the activity so it’s not just an automatic or idle event. They should do some kind of warm up activity before screen time and some kind of cool down activity afterwards whenever possible. 

Normalize screen time
Enjoying screen time should be an activity like any other that your kids plan for, participate in, and reflect on throughout the week like reading, homework, sports, or seeing friends. This means it’s not a reward for doing something good, but a normal part of life.

Normalize screen-free time
This may seem to contradict the last point, but it’s actually in the same spirit. Screen time should be a normal activity in the day, and so should screen-free time. If possible, kids should know that it’s normal not to have devices on around them at all times. Screens are an important part of our lives, but they’re something we can choose to have on or off.

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Our kids are also using devices and figuring out tech at a young age. If we wonder why kids need to learn about technology at all, the answer is as simple as it was in the situations above. This education will pay huge dividends in the future. Here are 5 reasons why kids need to learn about technology.

Support for different types of learning
Not every child learns the same way, and the devices and apps available today are well equipped to support many different types of learning. Kids get excited about learning differently, and they absorb information the best through various teaching methods. If your child is a visual learner, there are obviously benefits to learning through visually stimulating experiences on a screen. If your child is a kinesthetic learner, there are haptic technologies and device interactions that are touch-based. If your child is an auditory learner, there are interactive music and sound-based programs that keep kids engaged with their ears. The possibilities are greater with devices than with only traditional classroom facilities.

Socialization and collaboration
Being fluent in tech and social media gives kids the ability to stay connected with their peers, family, and friends, to collaborate and solve problems together online, and to choose which platforms or social activities to participate in. Beyond the obvious capacity to communicate and share content on social media and messaging apps, learning about technology gives kids the knowhow to decide how they fit best into the tech landscape throughout their lives. Do they know everyone who they talk to online? Do they want to participate in social media trends? Do they know how to use emerging technologies? Tech literacy from an early age helps them make informed decisions when answering these and other questions.

Digital preparedness and safety
Developing a healthy relationship with technology from an early age helps kids to hone skills unique to “digital natives.” They’ll speak the language of tech, stay on top of new opportunities, and practice device and Internet safety. When you think about how to teach kids about technology, consider the benefits of starting the conversation at an early age so kids develop an intuitive and personal understanding of tech in their lives. Internet safety becomes more complex as kids grow into their teen years, so it’s beneficial to build an understanding sooner than later. We went into detail about the best time to introduce kids to tech in this article.

Tech literacy and professional development
Jobs will increasingly require some device, app, or other tech literacy, even outside of the traditional STEM industries. The Bureau of Labor Statistics in the US has projected that STEM jobs will grow by 8.8% from 2017 to 2029. Software development jobs in particular are projected to grow by 22%. But we know that careers that have nothing to do with writing code will still require tech literacy. A healthy understanding of devices and programs will be beneficial in any number of industries moving forward. For example, we learned that quick and accurate typing is a useful skill in many professions, and we’ll see many more examples like this from our current tech usage in the future.

Greater interest in STEM
Learning about technology may help foster a long-term interest in science and technology that matures into a pursuit of computer science, engineering, or other related disciplines. If your child shows interest in any of the STEM fields, then there are many obvious next steps in both educational and career development. However, even if your child doesn’t decide on software engineering as a career, for example, there are still many benefits of a STEM education. The critical thinking and problem solving skills that are constantly reinforced in STEM education will find many useful applications in other careers as well.

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Start the conversation early
Open the dialogue about technology in general from a neutral perspective, and not just as something you’re trying to limit. In fact, we recommend framing the issue as a matter of boundaries rather than rules. Ultimately the goal is to create healthy habits and have your kids make good decisions on their own, rather than being forced to make decisions they disagree with. Good tech habits start early, so make this conversation a regular fixture of your home from an early age and help foster a healthy relationship with tech.

List out the pros and cons of technology together
Let’s face it – there are clear pros and cons of using devices and consuming content, and the list is different for everyone. Think about what makes sense for your family, make this process a concrete activity with a pen and paper if necessary, and do it together. Be fair in your qualification of pros like access to quality content and connecting with friends, and cons like distraction from homework and fatigue.

Make an honest assessment of current tech usage
It can be hard to know for sure how much time we’re actually spending on our devices until we check. The same applies for our children. For any normal week, keep track of how much time your child spends using technology, whether it’s with a computer, smartphone, or TV. Try to assess time spent with tech outside of the house too, but within reason. Do this for yourself as well to show that this is an effort you’re all making in the family.

Create reasonable limits and guidelines
Based on the assessment and on your family’s unique needs, decide on healthy limits that your children can live with. Again, the key is to remind them that this isn’t about punishing excessive use or bad behavior, but a shared goal to make the most of our devices and content. If possible, provide them some decision-making capacity like choosing which device or app to limit the time of.

Enforce reasonable consequences
When these limits are exceeded or guidelines are violated, enforce reasonable consequences. We’ve seen success with a few different approaches. There’s the “negative” approach like confiscating the device for a certain period of time or a “positive” approach like having your child complete a certain number of extra household chores while keeping the device. Guidelines work best when there are repercussions, but it’s not about punishment. These consequences are only reminders to rationally shape your child’s views about tech, rather than cause an emotional reaction.

Keep devices out of the bedroom and away from mealtime
The clearest boundaries we can set for tech-addicted kids are literal boundaries in the house. Choose your tech-free areas and times in your home so there are obvious opportunities to cool off or do other things. The bedroom may be designated as a place only to relax without devices, and family mealtimes may only be for eating and talking. Remember to adhere to these rules yourselves as well!

Practice internet safety
Go over the ins and outs of internet safety with your kids early on, and revisit the information periodically to refresh everyone’s memory. Like most of our recommendations, this topic is also centered around facilitating open communication and asking informed questions. For example, you should be able to ask your kids what their favorite content is these days, who they love talking to the most online, and what games they’re enjoying the most. Internet and device safety tips change for different ages so check out our full guide that has tips for kids and teens.

Make conscious buying decisions
Avoid the trap of buying electronics for your kids out of convenience – make every purchase a conscious choice in introducing a new device, gadget, or toy into your kids’ lives. We recommend creating an environment of conscious consumption where just having a device and consuming content isn’t the default mode in the house. Consider the impact each object will have in the home, and buy objects that are purposely made for kids if possible.

Prepare to adapt over time
Check in on everything above periodically! The agreements you made with a 3 year old may no longer apply to a 4 year old. You can help regulate a child’s use of technology at every age by being proactive and staying up to date on the ever-changing tech landscape. Your earnest interest in new technology and content will contribute to the open and honest dialogue with your child.

Be a role model
Arguably the most effective form of moderating tech use in the house is to set the example yourself. After all, our kids love to mimic what we do. How can we teach our kids to use technology responsibly if we’re not doing it ourselves? Everything we discussed in this article works best when you’re participating in this process with your child, rather than exempting yourself from it.

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There are no simple answers for these questions, but we’ve dug into the research and our own experiences to arrive at a few concrete recommendations. Technology has become an indispensable feature of our children’s home and school lives, and something we’ve learned to use consciously to help our kids participate in the digital world in a healthy, constructive way.

The number of children with access to the internet and to electronic devices has been steadily increasing. The percentage of households with internet access in the EU rose from 55% in 2007 to 87% in 2017, and households with dependent children were more likely to have internet access than those that did not at 96% to 82%. Research from the UK revealed that 50% of children in sampled households had access to 4-10 devices, 32% had access to 11-20 devices, and 9% had access to 20+ devices.

The age at which children first experience technology is also getting lower, with some research suggesting that this happens before the age of two. In the UK, 52% of 3-4 year olds and 82% of 5-7 year olds were already online. Similar studies in the UK found that 73% of parents of 0-4 year olds said their child had been online on a tablet within the past month, 41% had used a smartphone, and 24% had used a laptop or desktop computer.

Finally, some statistics about how competent children have become at using devices. A study in the UK of 0-5 year olds revealed that 65% were able to swipe a touchscreen unassisted and 60% were able to trace shapes and drag items on the screen. However, only 14% were able to purchase items and 61% were unable or unaware of how to do so.

These statistics published by the OECD in 2019 demonstrate the range of activities and the sheer ubiquity of online activity in the world of technology and young children.

96% watch TV (for 14 hours a week, on average)

52% go online (for nearly 9 hours a week)

97% watch TV (for 13.5 hours a week, on average)

67% go online (for nearly 9.5 hours a week)

94% watch TV (for 13 hours a week, on average)

93% go online (for nearly 13.5 hours a week)

40% who own a mobile device are allowed to take it to bed

90% watch TV (for 13.5 hours a week, on average)

99% go online (for nearly 20.5 hours a week)

71% who own a mobile device are allowed to take it to bed

We went into the role of screen time in depth in another article, outlining recommendations for each age and helpful dos and don’ts. Both children’s education and entertainment are increasingly screen-based, so screen time can play an essential and beneficial role in our children’s lives as long as we encourage a healthy relationship with our devices from an early age. The key point to keep in mind is to make screen time an intentional and purposeful event in a child’s day and avoid having it idly in the background.

We may not know what every new trend is on social media, but we do know that consuming content and engaging with social media is the main thing young kids are doing online. In our screen time recommendations by age, we suggested that co-viewing and curating content is essential for younger children. However we know that as kids get older, it’s more difficult to supervise exactly what content they’re viewing. That’s why it’s more effective to provide reasonable guidelines that make sense for your household, rather than trying to control everything kids view online. We wrote a separate article that dives deeper into how children are using the internet today, including safety tips for kids and teens.

Kids experience the benefits of technology when they have a healthy relationship with their devices. Some benefits include:

Access to information
High quality content can widen a child’s perspective with information that’s delivered more immediately than from other mediums. The right information can help children improve their critical thinking skills and learn more about the world.

Digital preparedness 
We live in an increasingly digital world, and early exposure to tech means children can mature alongside their devices over time and stay prepared for whatever comes next.

Educational value
Educational apps, games, and content are popular and have instructive value, but all age-appropriate tech usage can help kids develop their fine motor skills, improve problem solving and critical thinking, and learn any number of topics like math, spelling, reading, and art in lockstep with their formal education.

Career and school opportunities 
Tech literacy and familiarity with devices is useful in school and in STEM jobs, which are projected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to grow by 8.8% from 2017 to 2029, and specifically software development projected to grow 22%..

Social engagement and participation 
Technology helps keep kids connected to their family and friends on a daily basis.

However we can’t forget the risks, which are most common when screen time and device usage exceed healthy limits. Some risks include:

Dependence and addiction 
The OECD statistics from above show how much time our children are spending with their devices, so there’s clearly some addiction potential there.

Attention span 
Passive engagement with devices and content can cause attention problems in kids and teens.

Sedentary activity 
The hours of watching content on devices in a sedentary position can add up, causing physical and mental strain.

Safety and privacy 
Inappropriate ads, in-app purchases, content recommendations, and online interactions can be questionable or even hazardous.

Open the conversation about technology with your kids early

Have a long term plan about the role of technology in your children’s lives

Don’t forget to make conscious usage of technology a priority

Don’t rely on technology as an idle time filler or babysitter

Don’t ignore warning signs of overuse or dependence

The benefits, risks, and statistics

Everything you need to know about children and technology

Learn more about the risks and benefits, and see technology usage rate statistics by age.

Yes – here are our 5 reasons why children's tech is essential in 2022

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It’s clear that engagement with technology has notable pros and cons for children, but the positives ultimately outweigh the negatives. The key is for parents and kids to use technology consciously, and not just passively, and to watch high quality content. Here are five notable benefits to keep in mind when answering this question in your family.

The first benefit has to do with a child’s cognitive abilities. Using devices and especially playing games have been shown to aid some aspects of cognitive development.

Multiple studies have shown that gaming helps with attention, working memory, and processing speed, and has also shown to enhance reading outcomes for dyslexic children. In fact, children who played games before adolescence and stopped still performed better with working memory tasks, which require mentally holding and manipulating information to get a result. Games also enhanced children’s creativity in a way that using a device for other purposes did not achieve.

A University of Rochester study demonstrated that playing action video games in particular trains people to make the right decisions faster due to a heightened sensitivity to what’s going on around them. This benefit extends beyond the actual activity of playing video games to everyday activities like multitasking, keeping track of people in a crowd, and navigating around town.

Playing a video game on a device is an active task, regardless of whether the game is about solving puzzles, moving a character in space, or some other free expression. It’s certainly not an idle activity.

2. Builds healthy relationship with tech early

Our kids will experience technology at some point, so it’s better to do it on our own terms at our own pace. Early exposure can help build a healthy relationship with technology and create healthy habits during a time of high neuroplasticity, when the brain is most adaptable.

When kids learn about tech directly from their parents, they share your vocabulary about it so important points don’t get lost in translation. They’ll be better equipped to explain their ideas and problems as they arise. This also opens the dialogue with parents early so that when an incident occurs, it won’t be the first time parents are talking to their kids about technology and its complexities.

It’s the same with any major topic you want to create a psychologically safe space for – when you have a healthy relationship with tech and share it with your kids, they’ll follow.

One of the biggest questions we get asked is whether tech is good for learning. What we know for sure is that tech and learning will continue to go hand in hand in the future. The conscious use of technology and a healthy relationship with it can foster a curiosity that improves academic development, career development, and professional competencies.

Tech literacy and firsthand experiences with many forms of technology are useful in school and in STEM jobs, which are projected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to grow by 8.8% from 2017 to 2029, and specifically software development projected to grow 22%. STEM is not only one of the fastest growing job sectors, but also one of the most financially rewarding. The variety of jobs will also continue to expand as new technology gets developed every year.

An additional benefit of getting to know technology early is to truly understand it and develop critical thinking skills around it. When kids learn how their devices, games, and shows work, or even start coding, they come to understand that it’s science, not magic.

The pandemic revealed how quickly the world can change, and tech literacy went a long way in helping us adapt to the changes we had to make. When we were forced to stay inside, we relied heavily on our devices to keep us connected and sane. Our older children participated in remote learning at a scale we had never seen before.

Engaging with emerging tech will prepare our kids for whatever happens next. Things we’re only being introduced to now like VR, the blockchain, and the Metaverse may become commonplace in the coming years, and these technologies may change the world in meaningful ways. Our children will benefit from not only being prepared to live with these technologies, but to thrive with them.

High quality content delivered through devices can widen a child’s world with information and stimulation that can’t be experienced as easily through any other medium. The right content can provide a myriad of perspectives that help a child’s ability to reason and think critically, empathize with others, and widen their world views. When we ask “is technology bad for kids’ social skills,” the answer is that it depends on the usage.

Children are malleable and will start seeing things and following along with whatever we show on our devices. It’s our responsibility as parents to be mindful of the content we show our kids, the level of engagement with the games or content, and the conversations we have with them afterwards. Technology isn’t necessarily good or bad for kids in isolation. It’s the cumulative impact of technology that comes from fostering a healthy relationship with it from an early age.

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Is technology good for kids?

Learn more about the role of children’s tech in 2022 and the unexpected benefits of technology for kids.

How much is enough, what the experts recommend, and how it can benefit kids

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First, here are some important facts to stimulate our thinking about screen time. The American Academy of Pediatrics actually recommends that kids under 18 months avoid all screen time except for video calls. They also recommend that kids older than 2 should only consume 1 hour or less per day of high quality programming. The EU’s Klicksafe initiative provides even stricter screen time rules for kids, advising only 5 minutes for children up to 3 years old, 20 minutes for children 4 to 6, and up to 30-45 minutes for children 7 to 10.

These are important guidelines, but as parents and caregivers, we know that the reality of the day and the need to finally make that chicken nuggets dinner without being interrupted, mean that kids spend more time in front of the screen than we’d like. Accepting reality while finding a better path is what Totoli’s all about and that’s why we’re building a tablet designed for kids to develop a healthier relationship to screen time.

Let’s go over our own recommendations for average screen time for kids by age.

Avoid screen time other than video calls     

Co-viewing of curated content up to one hour per day   

Co-viewing and independent viewing of curated content up to one hour per day, but with more flexibility   

Reasonable limits based on your particular situation   

No strict time limits but with practical rules about content types, and screen time usage based on the context   

Learning and play through apps and games
Age-appropriate apps and games can help young children develop their fine motor skills, improve problem solving and critical thinking, and learn any number of topics like math, spelling, reading, and art in lockstep with their formal education.

Early exposure to technology to build a healthy relationship
The intentional and gradual introduction of screen time in children’s lives helps them mature alongside their devices and build healthy habits during a time of high neuroplasticity. Good habits and disciplined device usage from a young age may have greater benefits than trying to fix bad habits at a later age.

Engaging opportunity between parents and kids
Screen time can be a topic of open dialogue between parents and children as we reflect on the amount of time we spend on our devices, and the kind of content we consume. When screen time is a recurring topic of conversation in your household, it becomes another way to engage with your kids, whether you co-view content, or just talk about it afterwards.

Reliance and addiction potential
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that children ages 8 to 10 spend an average of 6 hours per day in front of a screen and kids ages 11 to 14 spend an average of 9 hours per day in front of a screen. Clearly the addiction potential is there, which is why we recommend healthy limits with an emphasis on intentional screen time that’s for a purpose, and not just for passive viewing.

Lack of physical activity while using devices
Passive viewing of content on devices typically happens in a sedentary position, and those hours add up. Does screen time affect brain development or physical development? Well, the physical strain and lack of activity can lead to obesity, sleep deprivation, and even attention problems. The key is to pick appropriate content with adequate cooling off periods so kids know when it’s enough for the day.

Exposure to the wrong content
When we think about “what is proper screen time for kids,” we’re also thinking about “what is proper content for kids.” Ads, in-app purchases, and automatic recommendations can all lead to unwanted outcomes, so it’s best to curate both the device your kids use and the content they consume.

Make screen time intentional and worth it

Screen time should be a purposeful event in a child’s day, regardless of the content or activity.

Plan what your child views and engages with

Proper planning and preparation of content ensures that each screen engagement is for, or about, something.

Making screen time an event means it’s something you can talk about, reflect on, or even debate about afterwards.

Have warmup and followup activities to screen time

Kids should know what to do before and after their screen time to properly frame it in their lives, and not just treat it as a default state.

Make screen time just one of the many activities your child does

Using a device should feel just like reading, or playing sports, or any other activity your child does in a day, and not like an extra reward for doing something good.

Avoid idly having devices playing on in the background

Even when a screen is playing content in the background, it will invite attention and encourage idle viewing.

You want screen time to be purposeful, and not just an accompaniment to another activity.

Don’t give your kids a device just to keep them occupied

As we mentioned, screen time has to be an active use of time. Of course there are times when you just need your children to stay busy for a few minutes, but this should be the exception, and not the norm.

This is a tricky one, but we know kids often mimic their parents, and this is true of our screen use as well.

The most important takeaway from all this is that a pragmatic and flexible approach to screen time that takes the specific needs of your family into consideration will likely do the most good. We recommend starting an open dialogue with your little ones about devices, technology, and screen time in general to stimulate critical thinking about the issue that makes it easier to adjust your rules over time. At Totoli, we’re always striving to make screen time purposeful and engaging, and helping to make technology a healthy part of our children’s lives. We’ll continue to address this topic in positive ways as our relationship with our devices continues to evolve over time.

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Everything you need to know about screen time for kids

Answer how much screen time is healthy for kids based on expert recommendations and a helpful list of dos and don’ts.

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