Way too much screen time. What is your ‘timetable’?

[GreyishDays]

Children are 7 and 9, older has ADD and struggles to do much school work.

We used to have a bit of tv first thing, iPads from 4.30pm and maybe a film at 2.30pm to let us get some work done.
Now seems to have crept to be all of the day unless they are
Out for a walk
Put in the garden for sunshine
Eating meals
Having a bedtime chat
Doing school work (not much)
Doing some other activity

So it’s not totally awful, (but quite awful) but I feel like we’ve lost the pottering about and playing time. The default seems to be on screens rather than off.

How does your lockdown day look? Either weekday or weekend.

I think normal rules have to be relaxed at this time as the children don't have their normal routines that get them away from screens in place.

Plus much of the home learning is screen based where it would normally be in person at school - so that doesn't really count as such imo.

At the moment I think parents just need to go with the flow and do whatever works for everyone in the family - whatever gets them through.

Ours is pretty similar really, if we’re not doing one if the things you listed then the tv is probably on or they’re on their iPads. I’m fairly chilled about that to be honest. We’re doing some school work, plenty of time outside, bits of baking, board games..... these aren’t normal times - if they were we’d be going out if the house to do things but we can’t do extra screen time is pretty inevitable really!

So not do

I am trying not to stress too much about screen time at the moment. I am not allowing Fortnite until after schoolwork is done on weekdays, because once DS starts that, he is very difficult to get off it. Otherwise I have pretty much done away with any limits.

I work mornings so my children have breakfast and watch tv/play xbox before and after.
At 12 I finish work and we aim for no screens until evening. School work and a walk then whatever they want so long as not screens. Usually garden or drawing. Both told it is too much but they get screens all morning because of work/lockdown. Screens after dinner only if behaving, school work done and had some exercise.

It is too much but best we can manage right now. I might have a battle when back to normal to reset the boundaries but I am ok with that. It will be easier to reduce screen time when school takes up a big chunk of time and sports clubs back on and friends to play out with.

I need to get a few hours done each day so our school day starts at 10 (I work 8-10.30) and they (7 and 10) have to be dressed and breakfasted by then themselves but can do pretty much whatever they want as long as they don’t annoy me.
10-10.30 they read their book
10.30-12.30/1 they complete 1 maths task (like a worksheet or a page of work. Probs 20 mins worth of work, sometimes less sometime more)
10 spelling words with 3/5 sentences written using the words.
A literacy challenge like online at learningtheory or working with punctuation etc or even just writing out quotes or making up stories or reports etc. Again around 20 to 30 mins.
These tasks are interspersed with some outdoor activity to break up the time- eg quick 5 minute trampoline bounce or if the weather isn’t good we might play a game of cards just to loosen off between tasks.
Lunch 12.30/1-2
Outdoor activity 2-3.30 ish and as we live near a park and woodland and beach this is always enjoyable
The end of routine.

We are usually very strict on screen time as our dc just aren’t very nice to be around when they have lots. So usually they have no screens at all during the week, and watch/go on tablets for a couple of hours on weekend mornings - that’s it.

Dc are 6 & 7.

We have relaxed a lot during this time because we are of course at home a lot more, trying to juggle work etc.

We still have no screens on weekday mornings - if it’s just not an option they play much better than if they think they can disappear off with a screen.

Schoolwork is mostly finished by lunch and then they have free play in the afternoons but no screens until 3.30. They probably average 1.5 hrs a day atm.

Weekends they do get a couple of hours in the morning (gives us a lie in) then we try to have them off until mid/late afternoon when we might watch a film together or similar.

This works for us but like I said at the start, our dc aren’t very nice with a lot of screen time and we already had quite firm boundaries in place. Other dc aren’t as affected by screen time as ours and then there’s no need to be as bothered by it (we only restrict in the first place to make our lives better!).

Also, this is a really difficult time so just do what works for you and yours really.

We have a loose sort of routine of schoolwork in the mornings 10-12 (schools are setting lots of work each week) then some sort of movement (walk, trampoline or joe wicks etc) and then lunch them some sort of activity like crafts or science experiments or gardening. Then a board game and then they are allowed back on electronics.

Yes, DC1 is 9 and almost all of her schoolwork is on the computer so the entire school day is screens for her. In 'the old days' (pre-coronavirus) they were at school mostly not on screens, would maybe watch a bit of tv, then were allowed to play on the nintendo or ipad from 5-6pm. Now they watch tv in the morning while I get ready and often in the lunch break from school time if I can't force them outside and after I have given up on school for the day in the early afternoon. I hate it but I don't have the strength to argue after hours of trying to get them to do school work.

That’s really interesting everyone, thank you.

I have to say I’m not including school work as screen time, where it requires screens if that makes any sense. Most of it doesn’t, luckily.

Ours has been slipping a bit. At the start it was mornings and turned off by 8:30, about half an hour at lunchtime and then from 5. But the mornings have been stretching out longer, and then I started letting the older one on the tablet during the toddler's nap because I valued the rest and peace for myself. Then he has started convincing me to put on 'learning programmes' for a bit in the afternoon, so we are only really having gaps of about an hour/hour and a half in between each screen time slot. I am planning to tighten up next week because I don't want it to gradually slide into more and more screen time and less and less playing and learning time.

They have tv when they get up, then we have breakfast, teeth and get dressed. School work starts around 9 and finishes at 12. We go on a long walk after lunch and then they have free time to do what they want including ipad. Some days the go on it for a bit then come off of their own accord and play. Some days they would stay on for ages if it gets like this I tell them they need to take a break and go and play for a bit.
One of my children is particularly fond of the iPad and can get cross when told to come off so we have a rule that any crying or shouting then you won't be allowed on it the next day at all.

My two are 9 and 10. Most of the set school work is screen-based, so that's now their morning screen time (with a 10-minute screen break every 40 minutes) typically 7.30-9.30 (they choose to get their school work done first thing).
Then in the afternoon they have one hour of screen-based but educational hobby time (eg, coding, sign language, art tutorials, online chess), usually 1-2pm.
Then an hour of social screen time at 4pm (playing games while also on video calls with their friends).
Then DS does an online chess tournament with his club at 6pm while DD watches tv. If there's no chess tournament on, we all play on the switch as a family.
So 3 hours if we don't include the school work, and for a variety of things.
At weekends, the school work is replaced by Minecraft in the mornings!

My daughter is almost 8 and in year 3. Most days we do 2-3 of the activities set by school in the morning, once she is finished she is free to go and play, then lunch and then the same again in the afternoon. This usually means that she's working from 9ish until around 10.30/11ish. Has a break from then until 1ish when we start again until around 3. She chooses what she does during the break, mostly she plays in the am and tablet in the pm. We have occasional days when I feel she needs a break (like today), those days she can do whatever she likes and if she spends all day with her nose in her tablet that's ok, it's our kind of Netflix and chill day and I think we all need that from time to time.

I don't think school work counts as screen time although most of it is on screens.

TV can be on here after breakfast if dressed, teeth done etc. No games though.

'School' starts with Joe Wicks at 9.00 (although we would love an alternative if anyone can suggest one), then it's 'school' for the day while we try and work. We have a morning break then lunch when may go out for walk, no screens, finish at 3.30 then DC can have 2 hours of whatever screen time they like. That's much more than we'd normally allow on weekdays but keeps them happy and motivated to stick to school work, plus gives me and DH opportunity to get on with our WFH.

satsumamumma try Les Mills.

Screens off at 9am for schoolwork. We all watch a bit of tv with or after lunch. The they go out most of the afternoon.

Screens/tv from 4.

This thread is making me feel so much better! My two are a bit older, 13 and 10, and I'm constantly beating myself up for the amount of screen time they're having at the moment. My older DS is ok at finding things to do other than being glued to the Xbox but younger DS really struggles to find much else that interests him. In normal life they are allowed screen time during the week once school work is done and then pretty much whenever they want at weekends - but this is all broken up by football, tennis, cricket, hockey, guitar lessons etc so at least there's a bit of a balance.

In lockdown world we're doing schoolwork 9 till 2.30 then they can go on screens after. At the weekend it's pretty much a free for all, I try to drag them off a couple of times a day and get them into the garden which sometimes they're up for and other times it's a real battle.

I found myself getting really stressed worrying about it so am trying to not let it bother me so much, it's a small snippet of their lives and as long as they're polite, kind and can engage in normal conversation with people on the occasions that I can drag them away from Fortnite then I think all is not lost.

I’ve never done screen time and now he self regulates.

@satsumamumma depending on the age of your DC we've enjoyed Moana, Frozen and Trolls Yoga on YouTube. I forget the brand name, but if you search the terms above you'll find them.

Probably ideal for 4-6 year olds. DD is 3.5 and goes along with about 15 minutes worth.

OP our routine (hahaha "routine" as if). Is written up on a whiteboard (£30 Amazon) to work around mine and DH's work calls (hahaha "work around" pah).

And is loosely:

TV in PJs before breakfast.

Breakfast at 8:15ish.

Showers, teeth, getting dressed (showers for us, she has a bath in the evening).

Some sort of YouTube exercise at 9.

Then a mix of: reading, writing, drawing (usually I make up a theme for the day as I'm shit at free play). In 30 minute increments switching between DH and I around meetings.

Also a bit of: garden/water play, PlayDoh, kinetic sand, general crafting, cooking. If we get a free hour.

DH speaks French and Spanish, so we often have a couple of words of the day.

When we have meeting-clashes, she watches a film, or plays an educational iPad game (she likes CBeeBies and Khan Academy).

She watches a film most days. I find watching those 20-30 minute TV shows (like the Julia Donaldson ones) less depressing than watching 5 shorter shows.

If this sounds like we've totally got it covered, we totally haven't - she always watches more TV plan planned, she always has to be shushed while we're on calls, she always gets in a strop becuase we can't give her the attention she needs. We try, but that's all we can do.

TV used to be before school - so it goes off about 9/9.30.
Then learning apps at 2.30 or 3 depending on when they finish school tasks (both are primary aged and one has SEN so they don't do much but need a lot of breaks/refusal time.)
We have on screen exercise at lunchtime occasionally.
After games on the tablet, about 4, some days we allow more games, some days it's a bit of TV and some days it goes off.
They then each get to pick one programme after tea if behaviour at the tea table has met (fairly low) standards.

(Weekends there is morning TV - about to go off - minimal learning, some household help and a trip out required before tablet time, about 2.30-3 again.