There has been debate on the ideal age to give your toddler screen time. Previously, parents were recommended to allow their kids some screen time after attaining 18 to 24 months. However, things are different due to technological advancements, and limiting your child from using digital devices is impossible. Rather than juggling between keeping your child occupied and creating time to do other things, use kids TV shows for learning and development. In this read, we will look at screen time’s benefits for children’s education and how to find a fitting plan for your child.
Tips to Making Your Child’s Screen Time Educational
Here are tips to improve your child’s screen time:
Make it interactive
Parents can improve their children’s time on the screen by making it more interactive. The TV show to watch depends on a child’s developmental stage. For example, slow and repetitive programs are suitable for preschool children as they are at the learning stage and need more time to practice what they learn. Still, their cognitive skills isnt the same as school-going kids or teenagers. It is why educational videos for toddlers are very colorful as color strikes out more at their age.
There should be an interactive element to watching or listening to educational shows. It could be teaching children body movements or aiding them. in speech.
Parents Interaction
Getting interactive is not enough, as parents need to be there to help preschoolers in their development. It involves watching kids’ TV shows with your child or playing video games with them. An adult’s engagement with young children during screen time is beneficial in assisting the learning process. It is similar to the interaction between children and parents over other activities like reading books or creating art.
Engaging your kid during screen time helps in bonding; children can ask questions, and parents can clarify any areas. Still, it is important to instill values in children and avoid negative influences from what they watch.
Use Apps Oriented to Kids Use
If ypu are using a mobile app for your child’s educational screen time, choose an application customized for children’s use. It shouldn’t be wholly tech-oriented but is easy for children to interact with. The ideal app allows kids to interact and be creative with the device. Still, it should be age-appropriate for your kids. For kids between 2 to 4 years, the material should be geared toward assisting their development. Once their age progresses, the TV shows to watch change to fit their developmental level.
The Concern of Early Screen Time
Studies show that children gain more from human interaction and physical activities than they would get from watching TV. Giving your child real-life interactions is important to aid their development and interpersonal skills. Relying on kids’ programs is not advisable, and it would be best to create the right balance in screen time and interactions with other children. There should be a limit to the amount of time young children should spend on the TV. Furthermore, children view items in actual life in three dimensions and can interact with the items in front of them. On the contrary, TVs show objects in two dimensions, which makes it difficult for a child to relate to them and will take time to grasp what it is compared to the alternative option.