It’s an interesting time to have an elementary school aged child, isn’t it? You watch them grow and change so quickly, and it is sometimes difficult (for you and your child) to navigate all those changes. What’s the right diet? Are they getting enough exercise? How much sleep do they need?

One question that you may not have expected to have to answer is: What is the appropriate amount of screen time for my child?

Screens are everywhere, and they are not going away. Television, gaming devices, smart phones, tablets, computers. Sometimes there are even class sessions online, and if you’re a person who uses your computer for work, you may wonder what the harm is to let your kids hang out on the computer as much as you do. It’s a great question, and experts in the pediatric field are weighing in with helpful answers.

Too much screen time for children can impede social skills, cut down on physical exercise, and even harm sleep patterns. When children are on a device, they aren’t interacting in real space with adults or peers. Spending too much time watching television or gaming keeps children from important physical activity or from being outdoors in the fresh air. Watching a screen near bedtime has been shown to negatively affect sleep quality.

So, just what is the appropriate amount of time on a screen? How do you monitor use? The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry gives some guidelines, such as:

• the whole family (including adults!) shutting off screens and phones during activities and at meals;
• remove screens from bedrooms at least 30 minutes before bedtime;
• learn how to use parental controls;
• check phones and computers to see what your children are watching;
• involve your child in other activities that don’t involve screens.

(You may find the entire article helpful and can read it here.)

Decide when is the right age for your child to receive a mobile device, and the right age for engaging in social media.

Pay attention and be involved in your children’s screen activity. Steer them away from violent images and content, and from sexual content or media that harms their self-image; steer them toward content that helps them connect with family, that is focused on learning, and that enables them to be creative.

Screens have made the modern world more accessible and more complicated for children. You can help them navigate devices and programs in healthy ways.