5 Tips for Screen-less Summer
Things I've learned from almost 10 summers as a screen-minimal family & how you can be successful as well.
Almost 10 years ago, we made a big change in our family by intentionally choosing to be screen-minimal. The decision was really born out of trying to get a handle on screen time. We were careful with the content our then 2 and 5 year old consumed. We chose Wild Kratts over Sponge Bob and Dinosaur Train over Pokémon. Any iPad time was “educational” (or so we thought).
It wasn’t working for us. It often felt as though so much of our routine, especially in the summer, centered around me just wanting to get 20 minutes of quiet and my young boys wanting to watch “just one more show.” There were age-inappropriate tantrums and rules that seemed much harder to enforce than they should have been.
After reading Reset Your Child’s Brain by Dr. Victoria Dunckley, I had the knowledge I needed to stick with the changes I knew our family was craving.
We started with a 30-day digital detox which quickly grew to 45 days. The following summer we went two months without screen time for our boys.
The secret is that the less screen time my kids consumed, the less conflicts our family experienced.
All of this laid a foundation that we still build upon. My kids are now 15 and 12 and it is the first full week of summer break in our house. We are kicking it off with zero screen time at home for seven days. By doing so, I’m allowing them to establish some habits for our summer routine without defaulting to another episode of Dude Perfect. Here are my five tips for kicking your summer off on the right foot:
Establish No-Screen Days. For us, this has been swim team practice days (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). If there is swim practice, then the TV doesn’t get turned on. These two events have nothing to do with one another, but it was a simple formula that we could all remember.
“Mom, can I watch a show?” garnered the “Not today; it’s a swim practice day” reply often enough that they stopped asking on those days. Even when my kids pointed out that the rule was arbitrary, it still stuck. There were clear rules and they were consistently enforced.
No Screen Time Until After Chores. My kids have morning chores (cleaning out the dishwasher, , making their own breakfast and cleaning it up, brushing their teeth, feeding the dogs, etc., etc.). These are the basics and most of our summer days start slowly but it is easy to throw your whole day for a loop when basic hygiene and other tasks are prioritized behind entertainment. Most days my kids have other commitments or things they want to do as well - mowing the neighbor’s lawn, running errands with me, or hanging out with friends at the pool. I don’t over schedule our summer so we end up with a lot of days without any commitments. These usually end up being our best days. As I type, one of my kids is off on a bike ride with his dad, the other is playing with a neighborhood friend.
No Screen Time in the Morning. This one has had the biggest benefits for our family, especially when my kids were younger. I often found that on Saturdays and summer days my boys would wake up earlier than their bodies needed as they rushed to get in some cartoon time. Starting the day without enough rest ensured that my kids were grumpy and irritable all day long. Saving screen time for mid-afternoon when we have had plenty of outdoor time and the summer heat is at its peak always works out for the best.
Parents, Leave Your Phone at Home. I frequently leave my phone at home when I’m out with my kids and I make a point of letting them know I’ve done so. If being less attached to digital devices is the goal for them, then I better model what that looks like myself. Going device free will quickly make you release how often you mindlessly reach for your phone and after awhile, you’ll start to crave more phone free time as you adjust to the freedom. I already Brick my phone most days which really cuts down on my screen time as is.
Choose Family TV Time Instead of Individual Screen Time. During the summer months, our family enjoys watching tennis or a family movie together. These shared experiences are always more satisfying than individual screen time (and helps keep a watchful eye on content and cultural messages that are out of step with your family values). If your kids (or you) are craving some down time, choose a book1 or a puzzle. Going to the movies is often overlooked in the days of streaming, but rainy days can be just the time to indulge in some movie theater popcorn and the big screen. Last week I took my youngest and some of his friends to see The Sheep Detectives. We all gave this whodunit mystery two thumbs up.
It is so easy to fall into the screen trap at home when you are running low on patience or fun ideas. Another thing I’ve done is bought art supplies and had my kids make a list of twenty different activities they could do when they get bored. Giving our kids summertime memories is far better than glazed over eyeballs fixated on the ol’2 idiot box.
I highly recommend Theo of Golden for the adults or older teens and my boys have loved The Hobbit and The Wingfeather Saga series. Please comment below with more book recommendations!!
My kids don’t have access to a tablet and any computer use is done with a parent which really helps cut down on screen time and endless scrolling so I focussed mostly on TV. All of these tips could be applied to any screen though.
Such excellent advice, Emily! 👏 It was especially refreshing to read because right before your post, I read and email from common sense media with their summer screentime suggestions. It’s the kind of advice a corporation funded by big tech would dole out, to be sure… 🙄