Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Computer games/TV time

Like most kids, DS3 loves to watch TV and play iPod/iPad/iPhone/etc. He is a little too good with touch screen and mouse pad that I would like to admit.

I am one of those stubborn parents who try to discourage him from screen time as much as possible. I want him to have human interaction instead of machine interaction.

Now with a newborn, I don�t have as much time to spend with him as I would like. A lot of time, he would just lay on the couch until I suggest something fun/challenging to do (e.g. new puzzles, snip circuits, mazes, books, etc).

I am starting to second guess myself if limited amount of screen time is better than just laying around.

I am all ears.

P.S. preschool is currently not an option because he easily gets sick from group setting, and I am afraid he would spread the germs to his sister.

I'd say this largely depends on what your screen time limits are, and what else the kid could be doing while you're otherwise occupied.

Personally, I think the advice for kids and screen time is well-intentioned but misleading. The real problem behind the solution of limiting screen time is to make sure the kids are getting enough of the other things they need, like exercise and interpersonal contact. This is because excessive screen time crowds out these other things, that are very important. In reality, the purpose is not limiting screen time, it's protecting time for these other things.

So, as long as the kid is still getting enough face time and fresh air... what's the harm?

There are a lot of studies saying television in particular harms a developing mind's attention span, but you sure couldn't prove it in my house.

Germs can be good for you, seriously that's what the dr's are saying! But outside of that, have you considered more social time with just one or two other kids? Once you get past the initial sharing of new germs the frequency of illnesses should go down...until one of them starts preschool.

Yes human interaction is best, but there have to be other humans around!

(sorry to be blunt, are you saying he has a serious immune issue, or just that getting sick is a pain and he's sensitive?)

My ds is sensitive and so much more likely to get sick than his sister it is ridiculous at times, but still he's gotta get out there and do his thing.

DH and I both work full-time.

DS was in daycare for 6 months, and he was sick almost every week for those 6 months. We were using so much vacation days that it's not practical for him to be in daycare. Even his dr suggested nanny over daycare until DS is older.

I've read to limit TV and Screen time all together to a maxium of 2hrs.a day, not 2 hours each.

It's ok for a child to just sit still and be quiet sometimes, even if he is a little bored. That good coping skills. I would suggest lots of books around and have a bedtime routinue of reading. My children 8 & 11 both read every night before bed. Infact they get mad if they get home late and don't have reading time.

We have a no electronics policy at our house. Tues. and Thurs. and Sat. and Sun. mornings till lunch there are no electronics.

What they do on no electronics day is up to them.

DS definitely doesn't get 2 hours of screen time a day. He would be lucky if he gets 15 mins a day if I am home.

We have lots and lots of books, and he loves to read. We also spend at least 1/2 hour every night reading to him.

I remember being bored when I was a kid, and I used to hate it. So I feel bad that DS is just laying around doing nothing.

Sometimes while it seems they are doing nothing, the daydreaming they are doing is necessary for growth

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog...dren-process-information-and-explore-ide

Fifteen minutes a day? In this case, I'd say an increase is definitely a no-harm, no-foul proposition. These kids are going to grow up in an increasingly digitized world, so the more comfortable they are in it, the better.

We have no electronics policy in my home. DD has independent access to a number of electronic devices, and unless there's something else she needs to be doing at the moment, we generally don't interfere. But as much as she enjoys these things, she doesn't spend two hours on any of them in a day combined (unless it's a family camp out night, which always includes a movie). There are always other things she'd like to do, too.

She's got a Nintendo DS she keeps in the car for long trips, but lately, all she wants to do there is read.

I did not and still do not limit screen time.

Why make it forbidden fruit?

Some days my son will spend six hours straight creating a new stop-action video from his Lego characters, others he may watch an old Star Trek on Hulu (or a new Modern Family) and then turn it off. He's a different kid, and some days he needs a lot of alone time and needs to have long enough to completely lose himself in a project. Other days he's social and wants to go next door to play with the neighbor boy. It balances out. Books and reading are both great, but we live in an age where I think whether he's reading instructions for creating a new map, researching black holes online, or struggling to spell words for the video he's making, reading is reading. He'll likely never read Moby Dick, but he may make a very cool movie based on it.