Growing up in the digital Age
Technology For Children
Technology and Play Supporting A Child’s Growth and Development
Let’s face it, kids love screens! It’s hard to compete with the realities of life when a child can delve into a fantasy world with one touch, drag or swipe of their tiny fingers. Who can blame them?
Most of us take advantage of technology every day answering emails on our smartphones, connecting with our friends on Facebook.
Children have always been attracted to the adult world
and today’s children are no exception.
Imagine what it’s like to be a child today, growing up around adults who never leave home without their smartphone or iPad.
With the average adult spending five hours at the computer and a couple hours on a smartphone a day, children are modeling our behavior.
How technology can influence children's growth and development?
There is a considerable disagreement among experts regarding the affects of technology on child growth and development.
Some regard technology as advancing intellectual development.
Others worry that technology may overstimulate and actually impair brain functioning.
As a result,there is a greater disconnect between parents and children today,and some adolescents have been less respect for the knowledge,
Are you being a good technology role model to your child?
Health experts say screen time at home should be limited to two hours or less a day.
The time we spend in front of the screen, unless it's work- or homework-related, could be better spent being more physically active (increasing our energy out).
As a parent or caregiver, you can set a good example for your kids and set rules that limit their computer time, TV watching, and video game playing to reduce how much time they spend in front of a screen.
In 8- to 18-year-olds:
•28% said their parents set TV-watching rules
•30% said their parents set rules about video game use
•36% said their parents set rules about computer use
However, the same study also showed that when parents set any media rules, children's media use is almost three hours lower per day.
Stats On Technology Use By Young Children
Children ages 8–18 spend the following amount of time in front of the screen each day:
•Approximately 7.5 hours using entertainment media
•Approximately 4.5 hours watching TV
•Approximately 1.5 hours on the computer
•Over an hour playing video games
Stats On Technology Use By Young Children
- 25% of kids are using the internet daily by age three
- 50% of kids are using the internet daily by age five
- For kids 8 and younger, 27% of all digital media is screen-based
- 60% of all best selling educational apps are geared towards preschool children
- 30% of apps on parents’ devices are downloaded by their children
- Pediatricians recommend no screen time for children under two, and a maximum of 1-2 hours per day for ages 2 and up.
What is screen time?
Screen time refers to the amount of time spent watching
- TV including videos and DVD’s;
- playing computer games on video
- computers and using computers for other purposes
- screen time also refers to using telephones for texting and social networking.
- Electronic Media (EM)
Too much screen time can:
Make it hard for your child to
- sleep at night
Raise your child's risk of
- attention problems
- anxiety
- depression
Raise your child's risk of
- gaining too much weight (obesity)
Screen time increases your child's risk of obesity because:
Sitting and watching a screen is time that is
not spent being physically active.
TV commercials and other screen
ads can lead to unhealthy food choices.
Most of the time, the foods in ads
that are aimed at kids are high in
- sugar
- salt
- fats.
Children eat more when they are
- watching TV
- especially if they see ads for food.
As a parent you should:
Computers,smart phones,mobile video game devices,television play seem endless for kids today.
Always beckoning,digital games and ''screen time'' have
changed how kids spend their leisure time.
Where kids once played outside for hours,now the default is often sprawling out on the couch in front of a screen.
For children there's like wii games which is fun and keeps them fit,for kids it makes
them to learn at some point eg. for toddlers the books that they read out and
they follow along.Majority of kids are not much active because technology is getting
too much.
Parents have observed how technology can be used to make learning more fun,build fine motor skills and improve hand /eye coordination in children.
In my point of view there are most positive things in life,there is a flip side,and when
technology is used too early in child's life or too often,there can be negative consequences
for children.
As a parent you need to
Talk to your children about what you think is acceptable. What sites you want them to stay away from and who they are allowed to text. Give them boundaries and let them know if they break those, that there will be punishment for their actions.
Monitor what websites they go to. Pay attention to where they go online and be sure to check their browser history.
Make sure your children are instructed to never give out vital information about you or other family members. This includes names, addresses and phone numbers.
- Make agreements with children about how much time,video games,texting and internet time is reasonable.
- Do not allow computers or TVS or cell phones in children's rooms
Brainstorm fun alternative activities,that bring family member's together.
Growth and Development
Why do I suggest that you make this announcement? First, because you should make a general plan before you discuss screen limits with your kids.
If you don’t plan ahead, you’ll wind up doing what most of us do: Walk in the room, see your kids lost in their alternative worlds on a beautiful day, or when they were supposed to be doing something productive, blow your stack, and announce, “That’s it, no more TV (iPad/iPod/smartphone/video games), it’s over.”
Protests and negotiations will follow, a temporary cease-fire will be declared, and within a few days you will be back to whatever you found intolerable in the first place. Sound familiar?
Second, school-age children usually have ideas, often very sensible ones, about what reasonable rules should be.
Just because they act like they would like to do whatever they want, whenever they want, that doesn't mean they don’t recognize that parents have the right to be responsible for who is allowed to do what.
Even if you don’t agree about what the rules should be, listening and considering their opinions will help you seem reasonable and respectful without yielding your authority.
For now, think about the rules that fit your children’s needs. First, what are they like when they don’t have access to screens? Are they active indoors and out? Do they enjoy independent play?
Can they find things to do when there’s nothing to do? Do they read well and enjoy reading books at their reading level?
Do they fall asleep easily at bedtime and wake up refreshed in the morning? Are their tastes shaped by what is interesting
to them, or do you notice that they want to do or own things they see advertised on
screens? If you don’t already know what your children are like without screens, then the first step in setting limits will be to have a screen vacation (at least two weeks) so that you can find out.
How to decrease screen time
To decrease screen time?
To decrease screen time:
- Remove the TV or computer from your child's bedroom.
- Do not allow TV watching during meals or homework.
- Do not let your child eat while watching TV or using the computer.
- Do not leave the TV on for background noise. Turn on the radio instead, or have no background noise.
- Decide which programs to watch ahead of time. Turn off the TV when those programs are over.
- Suggest other activities, such as family board games, puzzles, or going for a walk.
- Keep a record of how much time is spent in front of a screen.