My kids haven't been watching much TV lately but they play a lot of games on the ipad or their old leapsters. Right now they're really into playing Life on the ipad. That was one of my favorite games as a kid, so I get it. Fun game. But is it so great that you should play it two hours a day? No, not really.
If you're like me you may want to limit your child's screen time (ipad, video games, TV, etc). You could just use a timer and a set amount of time each day or you could do something a bit more fun.
Enter the Screen Time Express tickets. Earn these by completing your daily tasks without whining or complaining (see the free printable chore chart). How you use them is up to you! Hand them out daily or weekly. Give as many as you like. As long as you're consistent with enforcing no screen time when they run out of tickets this system will work well!
Laminate them if you want or just print and cut. There's a place for a name so you can be sure they aren't being traded as a commodity. Unless you're fine with that!
Do you have kids that complain they're bored and don't know what to do? Post a list of ideas! Often they just need a little reminding of all the great things they CAN do instead of playing games or watching TV. Here's a fun list to get you started:
- artwork
- write a story
- play a board game
- make a fort
- ride a bike
- make an obstacle course
- clean your room
- make something for someone
- build something with supplies from the recycle bin
- read a book
- quiz yourself with flashcards
- learn something new
- play with toys
- hunt for bugs
- act out a story
- build a scupture with clay
- help a neighbor
- build with legos
- cook something
- make a map
There are so many great things to do! I'm sure if you sat down with your kid(s) to brainstorm they could come up with 100 possible fun things they like to do!
How do you limit screen time at your house?
