CLEVELAND -- Toddlers are growing up with an iPad, iPhone and video learning. Now, research is finally catching up to the trend.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends limiting screen time to one hour for kids ages 2 to 5. But some of our experts say, even that's too much.
Have you ever noticed a child (maybe your child or grandchild) throwing a tantrum after using the tablet or phone and it’s taken away? That’s a huge red flag that it was affecting their brain chemistry.
When it comes to tablets and educational games, parents might think they are at least exposing their little ones to something that develops their mind. But Founder of Families Managing Media, Melanie Hempe, says even educational games don’t promote creativity.
“They learn through play. Through real play. And real play is when they're in control. No matter what the program it is. And you think, well they're the ones that move the red balloon over here. No, they did not. The algorithm was already written. Designers knew that a toddler was going to do this next, and it went ahead and fixed that algorithm for that toddler.”
Hempe explains that our toddlers learn three different ways. First is using their imagination. That's how they develop key problem solving and critical thinking. Second is by using their bodies. They touch and sense the world, but screen time doesn't allow them to do that. Third is developing creativity, which is a by-product of using their imagination and senses.
Think of it this way: When we read to our children, they must use their brains and knowledge to fill in what the house looks like, what the character talks like and all the small details. Hempe says when we let a tablet tell the story, then all that information is filled in for them.
Hempe also says giving them that phone or tablet at a restaurant or doctor’s office to keep them entertained robs them of learning “patience."
“When we hand our kids a screen, we are not teaching them to deal with transition time. Their attention span is getting shorter and shorter and shorter, so then they're going to get focus problems in school because they didn't learn how to just sit in the restaurant and color and entertain them self.”
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To read more about how to set boundaries for your children, you can check out Families Managing Media.