If your kid has bad behavior during/after screen time, I have a fix for you!
But it’s probably not what you expect.
Most of the time, what we think of as a “behavior” issue with screens is actually related to other factors. Namely, access to a screen (time spent, conditions of access, etc) and content on the screen.
That’s why I came up with the Screen Time ABC’s: access, behavior, and content. These three things are not only key components to consider when giving our kids screen time, but they’re also the primary underlying causes for screen time issues.
Until we get curious about these factors, we probably won’t see an improvement in behavior, because we aren’t actually addressing the true underlying cause.
If a child is struggling to stop playing an open ended game like Grow a Garden or Minecraft, and they yell and cry when we turn it off, we reasonably think of that as a behavior issue. But that doesn’t help us fix it.
All we can do is help them manage the behavior but we are still focusing on the symptom and not the cause.
But if we can get curious and ask what may be causing the problem, we may realize that our child doesn’t know how to stop in the middle of something, which is not only an Access to screens issue, it’s also an executive functioning skill they need in many areas of their lives.
We could address this issue by offering alternate Content when we have a tight time frame, and by addressing the difficulty of stopping Access to something in the middle of playing, both of which would help the Behavior.
If you’re curious about this, I cover it in SO much depth with so many helpful tables, checklists, and suggestions, in my book! Buy it wherever you buy books, this link to bookshop where it is on sale and supports your fave indie bookstore, or get it/request it from your local library!
