CLEVELAND — Summertime. It's a magical time of endless freedom. Sunshine, no responsibilities -- the possibilities are endless...if you're a kid.
If you're a parent, summer can be a time of added stress. And this year, many of us were hoping to make up for lost time after everything got canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We did that by signing our kids up for everything under the sun, to account for everything they missed. Other parents are more the free-range type, letting their kids do whatever (within reason) with little structure.
So what is best for your kids?
Dr. Carolyn Landis is a pediatric psychologist with University Hospitals. She says, it should be up to your kids to figure out what they want to do.
"This is the time in the summer to explore new things, new activities, and figure out what feeds you what gives you joy, what do you want to learn more about," said Dr. Landis told 3News' Maureen Kyle. "And I want kids to give themselves permission - you know what, I need more down time. Or I really want more of this, or I don't like that. Like to really communicate that and not be judged for that."
Dr. Landis is also a sleep specialist. In the podcast, you can hear about how to adjust your kids' sleep schedule during the summer months and also how to tell if activity overload is affecting them in a negative way.
Check out the Mom Squad Pod Podcast wherever you get your podcasts and at the links below.
EDITOR'S NOTE: You can watch this episode of the Mom Squad Podcast in the player below.