As a parent, you want what is best for your child, which is why choosing child care is an important decision to make. The process is usually an extensive and competitive one, from applications to interviews to community reviews and testimonies. You go through a lot of work to find great, affordable day care for the kids that you love, but have you ever considered the impact on their childhood development if your daycare allows too much screen time? The right daycare center has a vast array of activities for kids to participate in, so that children can develop their social, cognitive, academic, and artistic skills.
However, as technology, gaming, and internet usage rises more and more, children are becoming more accustomed to long hours of screen time, in which they are parked in front of a computer, television, tablet, or other gaming system. While this may seem like an easy solution to the issue of making several kids entertained at once, experts suggest that excessive screen time does not come without consequences.
In your search for finding a good preschool, take note of the child day care, kindergarten, or summer camp programs that allow large windows of “free play,” “open playroom time,” or other phrases that may indicate that the children are freely roaming about the play areas of the daycare. In daycares, the computers, televisions, and other screens are often stationed about the daycare for the free use of children. You may want to ask the provider if kids are allowed screen time for hours in the event of open or free play.
Excessive screen time can have adverse effects on the bodies and brains of your children. According to a study from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, children who excessively used screens in proportion with very little reading or other activity time were found to have diminished activity in the language and cognitive control areas of the brain. The very chemistry of the brains of children who are considered internet addicts is different from other children, with studies showing that excessive gaming and social media use is closely linked to addiction pathways.
Psychological factors should also come into play when you are frantically finding a good preschool. As children develop a more and more concrete understanding of the images they come across in gaming, on the internet, and on social media, there are some resounding effects on their self esteem, particularly in struggles with depression and suicidal tendencies that progress into adolescence. Studies indicate that older children and teenagers who spend more time engaging in social and developmental activities such as homework, sports and extracurricular activities, spending time with friends, and participating in church have a much lower chance of struggling with both depression and suicide.
Your child may begin to suffer early on from headaches and nearsightedness if he or she comes addicted to screen time. Other issues that may develop include troubles with the neck and back. Additionally, you may struggle to control your child’s behavior if there are no boundaries on screen time. A young child will become difficult, stubborn, and demanding if the restrictions on technology are not taught early on.
The mind of a child is an expanding, beautiful thing; if you are successful in finding a good preschool, it can help your children to develop and thrive, but the wrong attitude or approach to screen time can set your little loved ones up for a lifetime of struggles with addiction to screen time.
