SCREEN TIME
Bernstein, Melissa, “How We’re Endanger-
ing Our Kids’ Imaginations”, TIME, time.
com/4544654/how-were-endangering-our-kids-
imaginations/
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o Ki s, I
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Maker, H. Azmaira, “Screen Time: The Impact
on Kids and Parenting”, Psychology Today,
psychologytoday.com/us/blog/helping-kids-
cope/201808/screen-time-the-impact-kids-and-
parenting
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media. Children should only have about
one to two hours of screen time a day.
To help foster your children’s
imagination, fi nd the things in your
schedule that aren’t essential and block
off some downtime. Be their “imagina-
tion coach” by suggesting creative activi-
ties, such as a cooking contest based
on their favorite cooking show. You
can build on the activity to keep things
interesting, like turning a game of ping
pong into a family tournament or story
time can turn into a theatrical recreation
where they act out their favorite scenes.
You could also just rattle off ideas until
something sparks their interest, and if
all else fails, do the activity with them
until the magic begins and they start to
make it their own.
As important as it is to limit screen
time, it’s equally important to explain
to your kids why. There are billions of
screens out there and you can’t always
be around to make sure they use them
responsibly. Be clear about your feel-
ings on screen use and discuss the pros
and cons with them. If you emphasize
that screen-free time is an important
family value, your kids are more likely
to regulate their behavior to fall in
line with these values. And, of course,
set the example by limiting your own
screen use. You might realize how much
screens are affecting you too.
I
f your kids spend long stretches of
time staring at their phones, tablets,
computers, or game consoles,
you may be worried about what
that’s doing to their brains. For years,
scientists have been studying the effects
of screen time on developing brains,
and their fi ndings prove that you have
a right to worry.
As innocuous and helpful as they
might seem, screens, smartphones in
particular, have the same effect on our
brains as drugs. When you receive a
text or a notifi cation or use an app, it
triggers the release of dopamine, the
“feel good” chemical, in the brain. In
fact, gaming releases so much dopa-
mine that it looks the same as cocaine
use on a brain scan. Just like with
drugs, the more these dopamine recep-
tors are overused, the less sensitive they
become. They start to require more and
more stimulation in order to achieve
the same amount of pleasure, which
means longer periods of screen time.
Excessive screen use can overtax
anyone’s dopamine receptors, regardless
of age, but this is especially worrying
for children. In addition to making you
feel good, dopamine is also responsible
for focus and motivation. Even small
changes to dopamine sensitivity can
severely impact how your child feels
and functions. Kids who get too much
screen time start to develop symptoms
similar to ADHD, where they struggle
to complete tasks without getting
distracted. As their attention suffers, so
does the ability to process their envi-
ronment. Little demands feel like big
ones, resulting in bouts of moodiness,
irritability, apathy, or lethargy.
In order to form strong neural
networks in the brain, children need
stimulus from the outside and from real
life interactions with people. Too much
screen use at young ages can cause the
brain to develop shortcuts that serve
as a weak foundation for their mental
development. Studies show that exces-
sive screen use can cause shrinkage of
multiple areas of the brain responsible
for things like impulse control, planning,
memory, empathy, and communication
within the brain.
Another important and somewhat
overlooked impact of excessive screen
use is the loss of creativity and imagina-
tion. Many of our best ideas or lifelong
passions arise from boredom. When our
brains have the opportunity to wander,
they fi re a group of overlapping net-
works known as “default mode”, where
it relives recent experiences, connects
emotionally relevant information, and
constructs narratives that make sense
out of life. That’s why we usually have
big insights while we’re in the shower
or in the bathroom. When kids have
time to be bored it encourages them to
be inventive and explore. They seek out
other kids and start making up games
and forming friendships, giving them
the real life interactions they need. With
easy access to screens, however, kids in-
stinctively look to their phones or other
devices whenever there’s a dull moment.
This reshapes their brains to look for
external stimuli instead of having deeper
considerations about what to do or
about life. The more kids rely on screens
to occupy their downtime, the more
their brains become like an atrophied
muscle, compromising the ability for
deep or imaginative thinking.
Now that we’ve opened Pandora’s
box of technology, there’s no going back.
Technology is so interwoven into our
school and work lives that it would be
impractical to restrict screens altogether.
Instead, it helps to recognize the power
screens have and use them responsibly.
Set up electronic-free zones, such as dur-
ing meal times, bed time, and school. Try
to differentiate between screen time used
for creative use, such as learning a new
program for school, and consumptive use
like non-educational games and social
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