Screen time in nursery

[GloriaPritchett]

I went to see a nursery today. It's the only one with places nearby so my hands are really tied.

The rooms and activities were lovely and clean. The staff were very friendly and caring... but there was a computer in the corner with 4 little boys glued to it. They were playing a pac-man type game and I mean glued. They didn't look up the whole time I was there.

Is it marvellously PFB to tell them that I do not want my DC using a computer?

I strongly believe in the negitive impacts on the developing brain of screen time. Especially for some children (tends to be the one who seek it and become transfixed). This article is good -

aricsigman.com/IMAGES/VisualVoodoo.pdf

YANBU. I would choose another nursery.

Another one who is totally against screen time in nursery. A mother trying to juggle cooking, cleaning and looking after other children may well need to give their toddler screen-time, but a nursery is not the place for it.

This is why we picked an outdoor forest Kindergarten. Plenty of tech - digital microscopes, digital cameras, etc but no screen based 'educational' 'games' for entertainment. Tech as tools. Education based in relationships.

For me the problem is the computer games are designed for instant reward and gratification and are essentially more 'exciting' (on one level at least) than traditional play.

Nothing else can measure up to the dopamine-induced fun of playing such games.

I'd rather mine didn't have screen time at preschool so that I feel I can use it at home (within reason) when I need to get things done...

To the poster who assumed their child was having screen time because they knew the songs - our nursery has a CD of kids' music they put on which includes things like Bob the Builder theme tune, the Frozen song etc. So mine has learnt various songs from the CD even though he's never seen the programmes/film they come from.

The op says the boys were on it for the 30 mins she was there. They may have been on ot before and after too.
Regardless of the nursery policy, that's what she saw happening

I wouldn't write a nursery off if it was otherwise good for this - I might ask them about their policies on using computers/tablets.
I don't like the idea but the problem is that tech is part of the requirements -at least here in Scotland - part of CforE.
A few years ago, in an inspection, the local playgroup were told they had to improve their tech provision - a required improvement. It included a comment about the children needing to develop their 'Mouse Control' -in the same way you would talk about pencil control. And we are talking about 2-3 yos.
They were then told a few years later they should really have tablets too... (And actually now in the age of touch screens - mouse control is becoming redundant and as voice recognition etc improves touch screens are likely to follow the same path)
I view this the same way as 20 years ago I was surprised in a primary school they had a couple of maths lessons 'how to use a calculator' - and it wasn't about using a scientific one with lots of functions etc -it was a basic calculator and simple sums.
People of my generation weren't taught about tech at school - we weren't taught how to use calculators etc. We picked it up as the technology advanced. And actually using things like computers day to day is a lot easier than it used to be... before mice were introduced and when you had to add file extensions to limited character file names.
I do think teaching primary age children how to use basic office programs etc has some value - but using tablets (and smart phones) - I don't think needs to be taught.
I am not anti tech - I do like things like Beebots etc - (simple programmable robots) which gives children an idea about programming/coding - is teaching them logic. I am a bit hmmm about things like voice recording clipboards and storytelling earphones -they seem more gimmicky than useful.
And I think some education games/apps have a use - for things like learning times tables etc but I also think some are stifling creativity.
(I don't think any app is as good as eg learning colours by spotting things in the environment and mixing colours by playing with paint.)
The playgroup had timers on their computer/tablets - it was recommended they used sand/egg timer types - so the children could see the time passing. iirc it was 10 mins ...but now with C for E the children are not supposed to be directed - it is all child led - so eg you can't have a 'story time' - you can't read a story unless a child asks for one, you can't suggest a child who does the same thing every day tries something else. So you can't put them on a timer on a tablet...

children needing to develop their 'Mouse Control'

I didn't need to learn Mouse Control until I was nearly forty and I learnt it in half an hour. That is madness, frankly.

With the games - they also learn they can't cheat! Which many kids find difficult!

So they lose fairly

As an example of appropriate computer use at preschool - apparently one morning my son was asking about a particular topic so a staff member helped him to look up some information about it on the tablet (as well as in some books). That sounds to me like the sort of thing EYFS/Ofsted means by 'understanding of technology' but maybe some nurseries aren't sure how to interpret it and just see it as 'need to have children using tablets'.

Just a thought - you said that there were 4 boys I think? Could it be they had 10 mins each and were 'sharing' their time by all crowding round 1 computer and taking it in turns? That would explain why it was over half an hour.

I think if it's that important to you, you should ask the nursery about their policy AND about the incident you witnessed. It could have been a one off (maybe a reward for some exceptional behaviour or work, or perhaps a member of staff had gone home sick so they were short staffed so it was an exception letting them just play in it). Without asking, you won't know and just presume the worst!

I do think you are being a bit PFB - but that's your prerogative! There are times when I think that our kids have too much screen time. Then when I see some of the things they are doing I realise that as well as rubbish videos etc, there's actually some real learning going on too!