Does your child have difficulty focusing on one task for an extended period of time? Parents are quick to assume their child’s short attention span must mean they have ADHD, and while that may sometimes be the case, screens are just as much to blame.
Screentime has a negative effect on a child’s development
According to Unicef, screentime affects the way your child’s brain develops. In fact, studies show that too much screen time can make your child moody, less creative, and (you guessed it) more prone to distraction. When your child can’t focus, it sets them up for learning difficulties as they grow older (not to mention, it makes it more difficult for you to get anything done as a parent!)
At the end of the day, children need more free play and interaction with others and less time in front of a screen.
How much screen time is too much?
While there isn’t anything inherently “evil” with screentime, it does have a crippling effect and therefore needs to be enjoyed in moderation. The Center for Parenting Education says that if parents want their children to focus better, play better, learn better, and interact with others in a healthy manner, they need to limit how much time their kids spends in front of a screen.
“If a child’s growing brain is being fed more than two hours of screen time a day, his brain cannot develop properly. This can result in:
-a decreased attention span,
The Center for Parenting Education
-underdeveloped or delayed language abilities,
-critical thinking abilities or creativity skills,
-and decreased intrinsic motivation for learning.”
While two hours is the max recommended time, many experts advise that younger children especially should spend only an hour or less in front of a screen.