Anonymous wrote:It seems to be my kids’ preferred form of recreation and it bothers me greatly.

Right now I am a SAHM of 3. I used to be a working mom of 2. When my older 2 were under 5, they went to daycare all day, we came home, ate dinner, played, bath and bed. Spent very little time on screens. Weekends we did outings. We went to zoos, farms, museums, vacations, read books, did puzzles, played outside with rocks, dirt, anything.

Now my boys are 9 and 11. They do play several sports - tennis, soccer and golf. When we are home, they ALWAYS revert back to a screen whether it is an iPad, smart tv, video game or computer. It drives me nuts. Even when they see friends, they will often play Xbox.

We bake, fish, do puzzles, get tons of new books, go hiking, hiking, etc. DH thinks video games are normal for elementary boys.

Is this an age thing? Do all elementary boys play video games and watch YouTube?

Don't give them unfettered access to those screens. My kids are only allowed to use them sometimes, not during the school week (although they are actually in school now, things might be different if they were doing distance learning), but everything is locked so they have to ask and be granted permission to access screens. It solves the problem pretty easily.

Anonymous wrote:Are you modeling other leisure activities yourself? Books? Lego sets for adults? Magazines? Exercise? Calling friends? Board games?

Wow. I'm a NP, but this blew me away. I just have an infant, so we're not there yet, but yeah, when my husband or I have some downtime, we're often on our phones or computers. It's unreasonable to expect different from our children if that's the example we're setting. You've given me something to think about.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Op here. This is a great idea. I am going to figure out how to turn on and off the internet.

My kids do play. We went to the pool and our country club all summer. I just feel like when we are home, they want screens. They do play games with friends online and FaceTime. They will play alone or with others.

It honestly sounds like what you want to hear is that all boys their age are on screens all the time. So think that if you’d like.

Yes, I was hoping that people would say that their tweens no longer want to play with toys and play outside.

I tried so hard to keep screens away from them when they were younger and it didn’t prevent them from wanting to play Minecraft and Roblox.

Give them other stuff to do. Are they doing chores? Making dinner? Reading books?

Set a time limit every day.
If its only a couple of hours a day I wouldnt worry about it though.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Op here. This is a great idea. I am going to figure out how to turn on and off the internet.

My kids do play. We went to the pool and our country club all summer. I just feel like when we are home, they want screens. They do play games with friends online and FaceTime. They will play alone or with others.

It honestly sounds like what you want to hear is that all boys their age are on screens all the time. So think that if you’d like.

Yes, I was hoping that people would say that their tweens no longer want to play with toys and play outside.

I tried so hard to keep screens away from them when they were younger and it didn’t prevent them from wanting to play Minecraft and Roblox.

I think it’s just about balance. It does seem that screens are part of most kids’ lives now. If you haven’t, attend some parenting sessions about what is happening online these days, so you can stay ahead of it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Op here. This is a great idea. I am going to figure out how to turn on and off the internet.

My kids do play. We went to the pool and our country club all summer. I just feel like when we are home, they want screens. They do play games with friends online and FaceTime. They will play alone or with others.

Maybe take away their Country Club time?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Op here. This is a great idea. I am going to figure out how to turn on and off the internet.

My kids do play. We went to the pool and our country club all summer. I just feel like when we are home, they want screens. They do play games with friends online and FaceTime. They will play alone or with others.

It honestly sounds like what you want to hear is that all boys their age are on screens all the time. So think that if you’d like.

Anonymous wrote:You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Op here. This is a great idea. I am going to figure out how to turn on and off the internet.

My kids do play. We went to the pool and our country club all summer. I just feel like when we are home, they want screens. They do play games with friends online and FaceTime. They will play alone or with others.

You can set limits and turn off the internet. Unstructured play is great for kids.

Anonymous wrote:No, it's a parent thing. You're the boss, so act like it.

Yup. I have 10 & 12 year olds and I tell them when/how long they can game, code or be online.

Are you modeling other leisure activities yourself? Books? Lego sets for adults? Magazines? Exercise? Calling friends? Board games?

On the one hand, yes, many ES boys (and girls) play video games and watch YouTube. On the other hand, how much they do those things is up to you. You can set limits: either certain times where screens are okay or not okay, or a limit on how many hours a day or a week they can play, or a limit on which screen activities are permissible, etc.

No, it's a parent thing. You're the boss, so act like it.

It seems to be my kids’ preferred form of recreation and it bothers me greatly.

Right now I am a SAHM of 3. I used to be a working mom of 2. When my older 2 were under 5, they went to daycare all day, we came home, ate dinner, played, bath and bed. Spent very little time on screens. Weekends we did outings. We went to zoos, farms, museums, vacations, read books, did puzzles, played outside with rocks, dirt, anything.

Now my boys are 9 and 11. They do play several sports - tennis, soccer and golf. When we are home, they ALWAYS revert back to a screen whether it is an iPad, smart tv, video game or computer. It drives me nuts. Even when they see friends, they will often play Xbox.

We bake, fish, do puzzles, get tons of new books, go hiking, hiking, etc. DH thinks video games are normal for elementary boys.

Is this an age thing? Do all elementary boys play video games and watch YouTube?