This form of leisure is especially popular with children, but the psychologist warns about the harm: here lies the root of many problems.

– Speaking of beginners, how long can they be allowed to use a variety of smart devices per day?

– According to most scientists, beginners can use smart devices for 1-2 hours. during the day. Of course, distance learning has prolonged the presence of children in technology.

– Is there any evidence of developmental damage if this threshold is exceeded? What is that damage? Is it durable?

– The damage of technology to development has been the subject of much research recently. It has already been confirmed that children who spend a lot of time with technology are weakening / decreasing:

Attention, management and maintenance.. Primary brains are still forming, so the brain adapts to frequent and rapid visual stimulation, learning can make it difficult to stay focused on the subject, as well as weaken the ability to imagine, creativity. There is a real increase in parents turning to psychologists for teacher recommendations to teach children to stay focused during lessons. To improve focus retention, I would recommend limiting technology and focus classes.

Emotional self-regulation skills. It is often noticed in public areas that parents paralyze a paralyzed child by placing a phone in their hands. Such sedation does not really help a child learn to calm down. The consequence is that first-year children and teenagers must be taught what to do when emotions overwhelm them, when it comes to children learning naturally at preschool age.

Physical activity. Children who spend more time on technology find it more difficult to participate in active physical activities. Children choose to passively spend more time on technology, which sometimes makes them forget to eat or get used to snacks while playing. This can lead to eating disorders. The adequate physical activity of children is very important to guarantee the good physical well-being of children.

Conversation skills. Instead of communicating or solving emerging communication problems, children immerse themselves in the world of games. It is a very common situation in which children, instead of playing with their peers, “merge” with technology and say “so there is nothing else to do.” Sometimes just letting the kids get bored, they will come up with some interesting activities.

Emotional intelligence. Children spend less time observing and interacting with other children and people, so the feeling of empathy, the ability to resolve conflicts and problems will develop more slowly. At the same time, cognition and emotion control are impaired.

Strengthening:

Uncontrolled aggression. Most research confirms that if children play violent games, this behavior comes to life: children fight more with their peers, argue with adults, do not control themselves when interacting with parents. For example, parents complain in advising that dishes are broken at home, broken furniture or even children are mistreated by their parents. Extreme aggression is observed when a long game of several hours is interrupted.

– How to explain to a child why smart devices are harmful? After all, if a child did not see that harmfulness right away, it is unlikely that he will be affected by sentences like that can harm his eyes, etc.

– If parents themselves use technology indefinitely, no matter what and how they talk to the child, it still won’t work. First, there is the example of parents themselves and the moderate use of technology, followed by the promotion and activation of physical activities, creative games and only then already the agreements on the use of technology. Technology can be a learning or entertainment tool when all tasks are done or daily arrangements are followed. Very often, if you are already struggling for technology time, you will face emotional consequences: anger, tears, hysteria. This could be an important and clear argument for the child about why technology is limited.

– Physically prohibit (deprive, limit the operating time of the tablet) or develop free will?

– If you always physically subtract and limit the operating time of the tablet / phone / computer, your child will not develop the ability to control himself. And if you think the child can control himself, he will also make a big mistake. It would be better to agree with the child what duties he has performed, when and for how long he can use the technology. I would suggest controlling the duration according to the child’s emotional state. It can be half an hour for one child and one hour for another. The most important thing is that the child can finish playing at the agreed time and feel emotionally stable.

– Or perhaps use punishment (if the child spends more time than prescribed) or rewards (if less time is spent) to help?

– I found it works best if the time saved can be used later the same day or the next day. The most effective way is for new companies to get involved in controlling the duration of the technology and offer their own options. Some parents find it very effective for children to link technology time and the number of pages read in a book.

– How can a child cultivate that free will so that smart devices are not interested or interested in it less than in reading?

– Unreal We can make a child spend more time reading than using technology. However, making it impossible for a modern child to be uninterested in technology would require the world to turn back. There should be no technology in the house, all the children around, people should not use technology. Do you really need that?

– Instead of a tablet, should parents offer the child an alternative or allow the child to think for himself what to do?

– It is always possible to offer yourself, act, allow yourself and think of yourself. When my children say I don’t know what to do, I always offer household chores what I can do. So, very quickly, create an activity for yourself. In fact, children’s boredom encourages their creativity. Nothing will really happen to a child if you let them get bored.

– Why are smart devices so attractive to children in general?

– Smart devices are very attractive to children, with constantly changing colors, sounds and images. The child does not have to do anything, just slide his finger on the screen and the images change, he can control the images. Gadgets, movies, games: a great selection. Children who participate a lot in games often have low self-esteem. By playing and winning in this way, they raise your self-esteem. Beginners are starting and interacting with friends on social media, playing together, making videos, collecting “lovers”, emoticons for uploaded videos or photos. In fact, distance learning has accelerated children’s participation in social networks, which those who did not have to develop. Children are compared to their parents. If the parents can, why not me? If a friend can, why not me? The more we restrict, the more they want.

– And how to control it if the child is left alone at home? Do you trust or check how much time you spent on the screens?

– Trust and verify unequivocally. Beginners cannot resist technology. We teach, manage the duration of the technology ourselves, encourage for the work done and honesty. If we fail, for how long can we install restriction programs and still check, because modern kids are cunning, they know how to hack programs.

– How to make the time you spend on screens at least useful

– We can let in programming circles, offer to play educational games (Crayon Physics Deluxe, Nancy Drew). Useful pages for early childhood education: here and here. It is very important to learn how to find the information you need. For celebrations, you can ask children to organize a questionnaire through the program at www.kahoot.com.

– What games are particularly damaging to the psyche and development of children? How?

– I would recommend to beginners to only allow games that are age appropriate. Violent games directly promote children’s aggression, inability to control, and tolerance of violence. Games with horror elements can leave unpleasant nightmares for the most sensitive children. The researchers show that seeing horrible images can “escape” from children in dreams for another twelve months.

– And would you recommend taking extreme measures and not spending time on screens (if it’s not a lesson)?

– It is recommended to abstain from screens in case of addiction to technology, increased sensitivity (crying, tears, fear, loss of emotions), trouble sleeping. Especially if the lessons are taught remotely, technological time must be controlled. It is also very helpful to refrain from using the screens for a couple of hours before bed as blue balances the rhythm of sleep. Summer is definitely a very good time to teach children the responsible use of technology when we can offer more active and creative physical activity outdoors.