How old is to young for a childrens mobile game?

[tiredman]

Hello,

my first post here actually, so hello community! I'm very curious to know though, how young is too young to let a child on the mobile? My daughter is 1.5 years old and able to click through some simple games I bought. She's very engaged, and I feel like it's teaching her something, but then I read a lot of negative things online. Is it really that bad? Has anyone had any experience?

Thanks!!

Yes it’s that bad. She’s a baby. Everything she needs to learn at this age she can do so from you talking to her, singing with her, reading books together, playing with toys, going to the park.

She’d got decades of her life she can spend staring at a screen. Don’t do it now. I honestly can’t see why you would.

The issue is that the earlier they're introduced to screens the more they crave it. I have an 8 + 11 year old and although they don't have mobile phones (the eldest is getting one before year 6 ends), they're still transfixed by screens and love having a go on our old tablet. Before you realise it's too late and much harder to keep them off them. At 1.5 just use books and toys and the great outdoors and limit screens.

right yeah I get it, it's like an addiction right? But I mean some of these games are kinda like an interactive book no? You could think of it like that. Animals that make a noise when you touch them etc. Like those books that have a built in audio device. So curious to know Normandy144, how old was the fist time your kids had contact with a touch device?

Just get interactive books. Or books to read. No baby needs a device.

A book you might like to read yourself is Jonathan Haidt's book - The Great Rewiring of Childhood'. It's a sobering read.

oh theres a Joe Rogan episode of that guy Jonathan Haidt. I'll give it a watch thanks!

Have a read of this too.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/21/the-anxious-generation-by-jonathan-haidt-a-pocket-full-of-poison

Echo PP recommendation of Johnathan Haidt.

Take the phone off her.

Was a good watch actually, not %100 finished it. I'll get his book for a read. Some good arguments though on both sides. I guess for now money trumps regulations being put in place. And the way society is built these days where both parents have to work 8-10 hours a day. A lot of older kids just aren't being supervised by a lot of parents, because they can't. What the world is coming to