Last week Makai started kindergarten, and though we are very happy with the school he's at (Cody's in his second year there and loves it), I had a fairly major complaint after the first 3 days. Makai's teacher was putting a show on (I think Peppa Pig) during the 30 minute recess, while the kids were eating their snack. My kids don't get to watch any TV during school days (and video games/iPad games haven't made their way into our home at all yet) so watching TV at school everyday was not something I was ok with. A show on also changes the dynamics of meal time, which I think should be a lively community event, where kids are free to chat, share their food, and simply interact face-to-face.
We see it every time we go out for dinner- little kids are watching shows on phones or iPads while their yayas feed them and often older kids and even the parents are all on phones too. When we eat out, my kids might be climbing around in their seats, talking way too loud, and crying over spilled drinks on their colouring sheets, but the chaos is part of our family and something we work with, rather than easily eliminate by focusing on a screen while we eat.
We have a policy in our home and even during Peace Church gatherings, that phones are not allowed at the dinner table (and even if you are new to our table, I enforce it!!!). In a culture where smartphones have become an addictive habit, often taking us away from personal interactions and making us less happy and more depressed (http://www.macleans.ca/society/how-the-smartphone-affected-an-entire-generation-of-kids/), curbing the use of screen time for some good dinner conversation (and a little chaos!) is a pretty easy decision for us.
More and more, I am realizing how counter-cultural it is to put limits on screen time and not use it as a parenting (or teaching!) behaviour management tool. I'm glad that Makai's teacher understood my concerns and has decided not to put a show on during recess anymore. Yesterday Makai told me, through giggles, about how funny it was when his new friend's juice box squirted all over her arm and how they laughed together... a kindergarten bonding moment that wasn't lost to a screen :)
We see it every time we go out for dinner- little kids are watching shows on phones or iPads while their yayas feed them and often older kids and even the parents are all on phones too. When we eat out, my kids might be climbing around in their seats, talking way too loud, and crying over spilled drinks on their colouring sheets, but the chaos is part of our family and something we work with, rather than easily eliminate by focusing on a screen while we eat.
We have a policy in our home and even during Peace Church gatherings, that phones are not allowed at the dinner table (and even if you are new to our table, I enforce it!!!). In a culture where smartphones have become an addictive habit, often taking us away from personal interactions and making us less happy and more depressed (http://www.macleans.ca/society/how-the-smartphone-affected-an-entire-generation-of-kids/), curbing the use of screen time for some good dinner conversation (and a little chaos!) is a pretty easy decision for us.
More and more, I am realizing how counter-cultural it is to put limits on screen time and not use it as a parenting (or teaching!) behaviour management tool. I'm glad that Makai's teacher understood my concerns and has decided not to put a show on during recess anymore. Yesterday Makai told me, through giggles, about how funny it was when his new friend's juice box squirted all over her arm and how they laughed together... a kindergarten bonding moment that wasn't lost to a screen :)
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| I had to add a photo of our sweet kindergartener on his sunny first day of school! |
