Brilliant fireworks. Chilled watermelon and hot dogs and burgers. Summer has fully arrived! And with summer comes many a parent’s ambitious goal – help your kids create memories that will make them smile even when they are all grown up and adulting is kicking their butt. The hope is that kids and summer mesh like two people in love relaxing and enjoying each other’s presence. But then screens busts in – like a giant mosquito buzzing in their ears and then biting them and sucking up their summer fun. Screens steal kids’ attention, cause quarrels, leads to time outs or ‘go to your room!’s and just ruin the mood. Let’s not let that happen.
Screen Time Can Be a 3rd Wheel Between Kids and Summer Fun
Without the structure of school days, screens invariably get a bigger role in most kids’ days over the summer. Some of that role is welcomed – video chat with family and friends, cozy movie nights after a long day of running around, video games to relax and, enrichment content that keeps summer slide in check.
However, screens can also be like a summer guest you were excited to host but quickly soured on upon realizing they have some nutty habit – like brushing their teeth only on even numbered days. Kids try to get online even before they’ve brushed their teeth and so the day begins with a quarrel. Kids may spend hours whining about when their next screen time will begin and claim ‘there’s nothing to do!’ without making any attempt. Even when screens are off, it’s a presence you can’t shake and it gets between the kids and all the potential for fun.
Some Ideas for How to Keep Screens from Being Like a Bad Summer Guest in Your Home
1. Make It Physically Harder for Kids to Get Online.
One way is to place devices out of easy reach. If the kids use computers, move it to an inconvenient place where it is just that much more of a pain for them to get to. If the computer is right there on their desk and the first thing they see in the morning, of course it is attractive. Making it physically harder to get to the device can be tricky if the device is a tablet but there are ways. One mom made sure she never charged the tablet overnight so that it was bound to run out of charge at some point in the day. And the only charger was at her bedside where she used the same cord to charge her phone. She set the kids up :)!
Kids being kids, they would use the tablet till the battery got drained. But if mommy’s phone was charging, they had to wait till it got to 100%. During those times, there was no argument they couldn’t be online:).
2. Make Alternatives to Screen Time More Attractive
It’s hard to keep the kids entertained and engaged during the summer but the truth is, if you don’t make a good attempt, screens will become their go to. This doesn’t mean you have to spend gobs of money on summer camp or break your back transporting them to activities. But, you have to give something to get something.
You know how your own measly toys are never so attractive as when someone else wants to play with them? Playdates are one way to give the kids distraction and essentially split child care with another family.
Some kids are also very food motivated so having treats as a reward to do some longer activities they may not want to do on their own can also fill the time. Huge whiners who hate going on walks may suddenly become more pliable to the idea if going for a walk also means there is a popsicle or a frozen yogurt at the end. Fight fire with fire :).
3. Make sure the grownups set a good example with screen time
Picture this scene. The family is cozy around a fire pit, smores are toasting and there’s a great summer evening vibe. You, parent, look around contentedly and gaze with wonder…into your phone screen. No can do.
It’s hard, but you’ve got to set the example. You can’t yell at the kids not to squander their summer vacation on screens if you’re going to constantly be on screens around them. Kids have an annoying habit of mirroring the grown ups around them. If you don’t want the strongest summer bond your kiddo forms to be with their tablet, you have to try your darndest to show you can gaze with wonder at the skies.
