Has anyone raised their child screen free until secondary age?

[angelgracetyler]

My partner and I plan on implementing a no screen time policy for DS when he gets older, however in today’s age how realistic is this? Has anyone mostly or completely avoided screens for their child?

My worry is I don’t want him to be left out amongst his peers if they are discussing a YouTuber or tv show. Or feel resentful that he cannot have his own phone or iPad.

We are planning on giving him his own device age 11 and giving him a weekly limit so he can decide how to divide the screen time per day, with limits on adult media and TikTok’s/reels etc. Does this method work? Does anyone have any other suggestions?

Im definitely not super mum and have given in twice already for 5-10 minutes at a time so I fear I’m being unrealistic.

Very unrealistic tbh (though I'm sure there will be someone along shortly to say otherwise)
Life IS online these days. Even the very underfunded school in which I work uses ipads for many activies, and more and more often children need them , or a lap top to complete work at home and submit it online.

You don't say how old your child is but they will need to be able to use technology and 11 is way too late. It's quite possible to strike a balance between all or nothing, some screen time without being addicted to it!

Also , kindly, if your son is still very small... making decisions about what he will or won't have up until he's 11, is a bit daft... you can't predict his interests or abilities (what if he wants to learn to program?), and for that matter how he and his friends will socialise... many little boys bond over minecraft and similar and it's no fun to be the one who can't play and doesn't know what it's about.

What you CAN do is make yourselves experts and set up any devices to be safe. I used Qustodio for my youngest son, which restricted what he could view and blocked sites I felt were not good for him. Tiktok will probably be out and something else in in the next few years but being a) a tech savvy parent and b) teaching your child internet safety and CHECKING their phone/ipad etc goes a long way towards making online life safer.

Technology can be a vital tool, and it's increasingly important for our children to develop healthy relationships with and skills in using technology. Rather than presenting tech as either a danger or a forbidden fruit, it's probably better to think about how it can be introduced and managed in a balanced and sustainable way.

Thank you, this is definitely helpful insight.

Our son is very young now (8 months) however my partner and I both do think ahead and honestly I was just curious to see whether it was achievable to delay screen time in children and wether it works well to introduce it later. All of my mum friends use screens with their children but I had seen some articles about screen free children and I found it interesting and wondered if there was anyone here who didn’t use screens and how it went.

My reasoning to delay screens throughout primary school is nowadays like you mention many schools do use tablets and electronic boards to teach the children, and I think added screen time on top of that would take away from time he could spend while no at school playing imaginatively, playing with toys, doing arts and crafts, sports, playing face to face with friends, being outside etc.

My worry was him being left out, however I think 11 is roughly the age when most children get their own phone in preparation for secondary school so he would be able to text his friends arrange play dates, play games etc. although when I went to school many children didn’t have any devices at that age. When he’s younger, while im sure he may feel left out, I’ll be sure to prioritise play dates where he can go outside play with his friends and do fun activities so he gets to connect with them despite not playing Minecraft etc.

I do appreciate your honesty and thank you for the tips on making screen time usage safe and healthy.

As someone who works with preschool and early years... and have a 3.5 year old grandson, I would definitely try to really limit it before he's 2.5/3... a little bit of cbeebies wont hurt when you need to get the odd job done, but really limiting it makes a difference.
I hate seeing babies and toddlers with a screen in their hands in pushchairs, not watching the world and not interacting with their parents, and it shows when they start nursery tbh...
Its not all bad... my grandson is allowed to watch my phone when he's going for a poo 😁 and he watches David Attenborough and knows so much about animals as a result... they can be amazing learning tools used wisely.
It's just getting there balance right:)

No hand held devices until primary school is doable, positive for brain and speech development. Later, not so much. At schools now, digital literacy is part of the curriculum. You learn to do powerpoint presentation, many maths platform are compulsory, so no, you won't be able to keep your child screen free, nor should you.

Endless scrolling or apps, even education ones, will be detrimental in the first stages of screen access. Real life teaching isn't fast paced with unicorns jumping out of clouds when you identify a letter or golden stars all over the screen when recognising a triangle. Screens do have an impact on attention and concentration. A lot of the content is irresistible and makes the alternative, be it books or puzzle playing less attractive.

A movie together as a family is a cozy experience. A movie at the cinema with a friend is a lovely afternoon, especially with overpriced popcorn.

You and your partner can make all the difference on how he approaches and sees screens.
This generation is born with screens. Their world and communication is embedded in it. You can't cut it out.

To complement the education they receive in school, the internet is amazing. We have the world's knowledge at our fingertips .

And the irony of asking on social media the feasibility of an 11 year long screen ban.