Screens are part of family life, and many parents feel torn about them. The good news is that how children use a screen matters as much as how long. A short, calm session with a good learning app, with you nearby, is a very different thing from an hour of autoplay. Here’s how to make screen time work for your child, not against them.
Not all screen time is equal
It helps to think about three questions:
- Is my child doing or just watching? Reading a book aloud, solving a maths question or building a word is active. Scrolling through videos usually isn’t.
- Is it designed to help, or to hook? Endless feeds, streaks, loot boxes and pop-up rewards are built to keep children playing. A learning app should be happy for your child to stop.
- What is it replacing? Ten minutes of maths practice after school is great. Screen time that pushes out sleep, outdoor play or family meals is not.
The Australian Government’s 24-Hour Movement Guidelines recommend that school-age children spend no more than two hours a day on recreational screen time, alongside plenty of physical activity and sleep. Schoolwork and learning time is a separate question, but the spirit is the same: balance.
Sit together, especially at first
When your child starts a new learning app, sit beside them for the first few sessions. You’ll learn how it works, see where they get stuck, and show them that this is something you value. Later, you can move to “nearby”: cooking dinner while they read, and coming over to celebrate when they finish a book.
Shared time is also when the best talking happens. “That was a tricky word. How did you work it out?” is worth more than any on-screen star.
Short sessions work best
Young children learn well in short bursts. Ten to fifteen minutes of focused practice is plenty for most children from Prep to Year 3: one book, one round of maths, or one science lesson. A few short sessions a week will do more than a long one on the weekend.
- Agree the plan before you start: “Two books, then we’re going to the park.”
- Give a warning: “This is the last page.”
- Stop on a win. Finish straight after a success, such as a book read or a round finished, not after a mistake. Your child walks away feeling capable, and is keen to come back tomorrow.
- Move to something physical: a run outside, a game of catch, or helping in the kitchen.
Watch for signs that it’s time to stop early: guessing wildly, tapping fast without reading, or getting upset. Tired children don’t learn much, and there’s always tomorrow.
Over the long summer break, our summer holiday plan keeps learning to about ten minutes a day.
Choose apps that respect your child
Before you hand over a device, check a few things:
- No ads. Ads distract children and can lead them away from the app.
- No in-app purchases or pressure to upgrade.
- No accounts or personal details needed for a young child, and no chat with strangers.
- Privacy you can understand. Read what the app collects and where it goes. If it isn’t clear, that is an answer in itself.
- Content that fits. For Australian children, that means Australian spelling, Australian money and seasons, and links to what they learn at school.
The eSafety Commissioner has more practical advice for parents on keeping children safe online.
For the words to use with a young child, see how to talk to your child about online safety.
How KidStudy fits
We built KidStudy with these ideas in mind. It’s free and non-commercial, with no ads, no accounts, no cookies and no analytics or tracking. Your child’s progress, such as books read, stars and badges, is saved only in the browser on your device and never sent to us. You can save a copy with Back up progress on the home page.
On an iPad, you can add KidStudy to the Home Screen from Safari’s Share menu so it opens like an app. Safari and the Home Screen app each keep their own progress, so pick one and stick with it. If you’d like your child to stay in one app, iPad’s Guided Access (in Settings, under Accessibility) locks the screen to the app that is open.
Balance screens with the real world
The best learning apps send children back to the real world: printing a handwriting sheet, reading a paper book together, counting coins at the shops, or trying an experiment in the kitchen. Screens can be a helpful part of learning at home, as long as they stay a small, calm and shared part.
