1. Activity based learning
One solution is to indulge them in activity-based learning. This type of learning is hands-on and interactive, and it's proven to be more effective than traditional methods like lectures and textbooks. Plus, it's more fun for children, so they'll be less likely to reach for their smartphone when they're bored. If you cannot find creative ideas, an internet browsing on the topic will help you.
2. Give them activity & puzzle books
If you want to keep your child away from mobile phones, give them activity books and puzzles. These can help them stay occupied and improve their problem-solving skills. There are many different types of activity books and puzzles available, so find ones that fit your child's interests and abilities. Activity books can provide hours of entertainment for kids. They can learn new things while working on the activities inside. Puzzles can also be a great way to keep kids busy. They can work on them alone or with supervision. There are many different kinds of puzzles, so find ones that fit your child's interests and abilities. Amazon has a big collection of such books, for example.
3. Introduce picture books to toddlers
Picture books are a good alternative to keep the little ones engaged off screen. Start with simple picture books. Look for ones with bright colors and interesting shapes. Point to things in the pictures and name them. This will help your baby learn new words and concepts. Take your time and let your baby look at each page for as long as they want.
They may not be able to sit still for long, but that's okay! Just keep reading as long as they keep enjoying.
4. When feeding, tell stories, instead of phones
When it comes to feeding time, don’t resort first to the screens, to keep the kids calm to take foods. Tell them stories instead of giving them phones. Not only will it be a bonding experience for you and your child, but telling stories can improve language development, literacy skills, and concentration. Make sure you select stories with good messages, and even in their old ages, your kids will remember you whenever they remember a story!
5. Cultivate and encourage diary writing
Writing diaries can help children express their thoughts, feelings and experiences in a meaningful way. It can also help them to become better at critical thinking and communication. Encourage your kids to write diaries regularly. Writing diaries can also help kids to develop better social skills. It can help them to express their emotions in a more appropriate way and communicate better with others. It can also help them to develop better self-awareness and self-confidence. It helps them become more productive, creative and competent individuals.
Following are some tips to help your kids cultivate the habit of writing diaries.
➢ Start small. Encourage your child to write a few sentences in the diary each day. This will help them get used to the habit and make it less daunting.
➢ Offer rewards and appreciations. Give your child stars or small gifts when they complete their daily writing. This will help them stay motivated and keep up the habit.
➢ Make it fun. Provide your child with colorful pens, markers, and other stationery that they can use to write in their diary. This will help make the activity more enjoyable.
➢ Encourage them to be creative. Suggest topics that your child can write about. Help them improve their creativity and imagination.
➢ Make it a family activity. Get other family members involved by writing in their own
diaries. This will help them bond while also helping the kids reduce their screen time.
➢ Read it aloud. Start a family tradition of reading aloud from everyone's diary at the dinner table once a week. This will show your kids that you value their thoughts and feelings, and it will also give you an insight into their inner lives.
With some patience and encouragement from parents, kids can cultivate the habit of writing diaries and reap the benefits it brings. It can also help them to express themselves when they are feeling overwhelmed or stuck in a rut. When children understand the value of writing in a diary and start enjoying it, they are more likely to commit to doing it regularly.
6. Recognize the kid’s taste, build on it
Observe what attracts them away from their screens, even for a short time, and try to build on it. This could be something as simple as playing a game together or going for a walk outside. By taking note of what interests your child and finding ways to engage with them in those activities, you can help reduce the amount of screen time.
7. Less attractive launchers and features in phones
Using less attractive launchers and features on phones can possibly reduce kids’ use of them. The colors, brightness and beauty of the smartphone screens cause kids to get attracted to the screens. Even the adults lose themselves in mindless scrolling on the screen, sometimes due to the attraction of the smartphone screens. By using less attractive or complex-to-use launchers and features in the phones, we may be able to reduce screen time.
The android launchers named ‘minimalist phone: Productivity’ and ‘Indistract Minimalist Launcher’ are two good examples in this regard. These launchers make the screen fully black and white and hides the beautiful menu of apps; instead provide a black and white list of apps only and many features to reduce our screen time. The best part is that these are not developed to reduce the screen time of kids, but of the adult phone owners, so that, it can be bit more effective in case of younger kids.
Enabling night mode to remove the blue and beautiful light on the screen is helpful in making the phone less attractive and is also better for eyes. It's no secret that staring at screens for too long can be bad for your eyes. Children are more vulnerable to the negative effects of screen light, since their eyes are still developing. Night mode is a built-in feature on most smartphones and tablets that filters out blue light, which has been linked to eye strain and sleep problems. Not only will this help reduce your child's screen time, but it's also better for their eyesight in the long run.
Using dark themes in the phones, along with removing or hiding all beauty features to convert the phone into a less attractive utility device can add effect. Smarter kids can find ways to bypass all these, but these hacks are more likely to work for younger kids and in the phones of the parents, that sometimes get grabbed by the kids. At least in some cases, they will come back to you or put back the phone if you make use of such tips. Customizable launchers can make it difficult for users to access certain features, and this can be helpful to limit use of apps that are known to be addictive or time-consuming. By making it more difficult for children to access these features, they
will be less likely to use them as often.
8. Go back to older resources and tools
Smartphones have replaced many things we used separately until recent past. From television, camera to alarm clock, dictionary and encyclopedia, everything is now integrated in the small device and we most often resort to the phone for all such needs.
But that we can use smartphones for all different purposes doesn’t mean that we must use the phone mandatorily to replace all those things. Actually, it increases our screen time and our addiction-like inclination to the phones, which in turn gets copied and modelled by our kids. To make things worse, all such official and necessary uses by us are seen or
termed by the kids as ‘playing’ on the phone, which subconsciously can normalize excess screen time in their minds. In order to reduce our screen time, and eventually that of our kids, it’s better to change this habit. When you have an alternative for phone, use it. For
example, if you want to read, try not to use mobile in front of the children for reading, instead use books. Read news on newspapers, not on mobiles. Read magazines in the ‘old-model’ printed copies. Use a calculator device instead of mobile. Repair and use the ‘old’ alarm clock. It can also help remove smartphone from the bed or under the pillows. If you think someone can call for an emergency in the night, keep a feature phone as well, beside the alarm clock. Set clocks in bedrooms and common areas and make using wrist-watch a habit, so that going to smartphone for knowing time can be avoided. Even, use a computer where possible, instead of the smartphone. It’s a better screen than the phone, when it comes to putting a model in front of the kids. When your kid asks a question, it's important to take the time to look up the answer in a dictionary or encyclopedia. Don’t ask everything to Google or Siri, as it can lead to excess smartphone use, bad habits and a lack of critical thinking skills. If you want your kids to grow up to be independent and resourceful, it's important that you model those qualities yourself. When they see you looking up answers in books instead of just asking Google or Chat GPT, you are setting a good example in front of them.
9. Get back those older playing devices
There are many older and lesser dangerous playing devices that can still engage kids to an extent if we introduce them to the kids. Some of the less advanced digital playing tools and games, which were craze of today’s parents in their childhood, are still able to engage the children for a while. They don’t have the smart screens with blue lights or vibrant colors, and therefore are better options compared to the smartphones.
10. Introduce useful games & programs
Even when kids are allowed access to screens, don’t let them go loose, search and do whatever they like. Doing so, the kids can waste their time on less useful or harmful contents or apps. Be watchful, give them proper direction and get them interested in quality educational and creative programs, games or activities that can enhance their skills and attitudes.
There are a variety of different games available that focus on things like STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), creative thinking, and more. There are plenty of programs and apps out there that can teach kids valuable skills. Few examples are given below.
▪ Osmo: It is a game system that uses an iPad and real-world objects to get kids engaged in learning through play.
▪ Kano: They provide a kit that lets kids build their own computer and learn to code with it. It's a great way to get them interested in technology and how it works.
▪ ABC Mouse: This is a program that offers a wide range of educational activities for children in the age of 2-8. It includes games, books, and more. ABC Mouse is available online and can be accessed on smartphones, tablets, and computers.
▪ PBS Kids: They offer a variety of educational games and videos for children of all ages. PBS has a separate section of parent resources as well.
▪ Khan Academy: This website offers video lessons on a variety of subjects, including math, science, history, and more. Khan Academy is a great resource for parents who want to help their children learn new things in an engaging way.
11. If necessary, give them feature phones
If you think that it’s necessary to have a phone with your kid for safety or communication purposes, give them feature phones instead of smartphones. Some parents tend to gift them smartphones in such occasions, which can have a damaging influence considering their screen time. Feature phones have enough of the basic functions of a phone, but don't have all the bells and whistles that come with a smartphone. Also, if it’s very necessary to have a smart device with the kid, try to manage with a smartwatch instead of a smartphone. This can help reduce the amount of time your child spends on the phone, as feature phone and even smartwatches are less addictive, compared to a fully loaded smartphone.
12. Use big screen
If your kid is in real need to watch something on the screen, better to arrange it in a big screen like TV monitor or computer. Make sure it doesn’t cause additional screen time, if you get busy with other things. Using an easy-to-operate projector is a better way if kids need to watch something. It can reduce blue light issues on eyes, addiction, as well as
many other bad influences of the smartphone.
13. Donate or recycle old electronics
If you have old electronics, including smartphones or tablets that you no longer use, consider donating or recycling them. If they are in working condition, they add to number of screens available to the kids. Sometimes such devices may be completely out of
your memory or care, which makes it easier to the kids to use them excessively. Donating such electronics can help others in need, and recycling can help reduce electronic waste. Keeping number of screens in the home lesser is key to reducing screen time of kids.
14. Keep your child’s bedroom screen-free
In order to reduce your child's screen time, it is important to keep their bedroom screen-free. This means no computers, TVs, phones, or tablets in their bedroom. By having a screen-free bedroom, your child will be less likely to spend hours in front of a screen and more likely to get a good night's sleep. There are many benefits to keeping your child's
bedroom screen-free. One is that it will help them sleep better. The blue light emitted from screens can disrupt our natural sleep cycle and make it harder to fall asleep. If your child is having trouble sleeping, removing screens from their bedroom may help.
Another benefit of a screen-free bedroom is that it can help reduce anxiety and improve mental wellbeing. Too much screen time has been linked to higher levels of anxiety and depression in children and adolescents. By having a screen-free space for them to relax in at night, you can help your child wind down and feel more relaxed before bed.
15. Media Fasting - set a no-device day
There are many benefits to setting aside a day to disconnect from devices and screens. It can help improve focus and concentration, boost creativity, reduce stress levels, and promote healthy sleeping patterns. It can also be a great opportunity for family bonding and interacting with the world around. Set clear rules and expectations for the day. Let
everyone know that there will be no screens or devices allowed, and make sure everyone is on board with the plan. Have plenty of activities planned. Make sure there are enough things to do so that everyone stays busy and happy throughout the day. Put away all devices in a central location. This will help reduce temptation and make it easier to stick to the plan.
16. Use a screen time chart
Keeping and displaying a screen time chart is a great way to track your family’s screen time. Simply write down the amount of time each family member spends on screen each day. Then, add up the total screen time for the week and compare it to the recommended limits. If your family’s total screen time is too high, try setting some limits. For example, you may want to limit screen time to 2 hours per day on weekdays and 1 hour per day on weekends. Or, you may want to have no screens on Sundays. Whatever limits you set, be sure to stick to them! And don’t forget to encourage your family members to find other
things to do with their time. Have some gifts to those who keep up with the limits, especially if the kids are the winners; and have some funny punishments for those who fail to control their screen time.