Screen time – Rules of the home

In my previous post, I had agreed that, we do allow our daughter little screen time when we are left with no choice. We let her watch some nursery rhymes and other educational programs for 15 to 20 minutes a day when we have to do a quick personal and important tasks like taking a shower, bathroom trips, prepare a quick meal, make an important phone call when no one else is there to watch the baby. But we have set our own rules for using the smart devices. We try our best to follow these rules and I must say, these rules have made our lives guilt-free.

Mom doesn’t give me her phone! So I just pretend like I am using ‘Apple’!!

1. I have to watch the content and approve it before letting her watch it. This assures me that she is not watching anything that is not appropriate for her age and it doesn’t have any crappy, useless stuff.
2. The control is either with mom or dad . My daughter does not get to change the songs or programs and right now as she is too young we don’t let her choose what she wants to watch.
3. We don’t hand her over any mobile devices. We let her watch TV for only for 15 to 20 minutes a day and that too only the songs, rhymes and other programs chosen by us. We make her sit in her chair and let her watch only useful content. We don’t give mobile phones, laptops and i pads. Those devices are only for mom and dad 😛
4. No screen time while travelling. Yes, we don’t let her use mobile devices while traveling. We make the journey interesting by telling stories , having interesting talks , showing her the outside world or eating her favorite snack but definitely no screen time. It strains their eyes and they get addictive and tend to ask for smart devices every time they hop into the car.
5. No playing games on Mobile phones. This rule is for mom and dad. We don’t have any games installed in our mobile phones and we don’t use our phones for such purposes. After baby, we have restricted our phone usage to a great extent
6. No mobile phones or smart devices in public places. We don’t let her use mobile phones and other devices while going for shopping, visiting someone or when having food at a restaurant. We don’t give her smart phones to her just to make her behave or make her quiet. Sometimes it is hard but she is learning to observe the real world. So we just stick to the rule.
7. Only high quality contents must be played on TV. I make it to a point that even when we (parents) watch TV , we watch programs with high quality and useful contents and I make sure that they do not have any cheap, vulgar, violent and negative substances. It is because, children are sub-consciously listening to the voices around them and such information enter their mind easily. They learn too many unwanted things at an early age which is not good for their emotional growth.
8. It is only for a maximum for 20 minutes a day.

“Mom! Can I please use your phone for a little while? It’s boring! “

Do you have your own parenting rules that make your life easier and benefited your baby? Please share! I would love to know.