The introduction of electronics into our children’s lives has been a double edged sword.
On one hand they can look up information for a report much faster than the old fashioned method of thumbing through countless books at the library, but on the other hand they can quickly be swept into vast information highway and become unaware of the outside world.
Just as in everything, there is a time and a place to allow the digital expanse to broaden the mind, just don’t permit it at this time of day or you will only increase the chaos of the next day.
When and how we give electronic devices to kids undoubtedly changes the outcome of their behavior.
Every parent who has let their toddler have their cell phone while in the grocery store and then tries to take it away when you get back to the vehicle knows exactly what we are talking about.
But desperate times call for desperate measures.
As kids get older, the education system requires them to be more involved with the internet and electronic devices, so avoiding them altogether is virtually impossible these days.
Taking devices away during the day when the kids need to do their homework, virtual learning, or catch up with friends can be encouraged and monitored during or after school, but when the son goes down it is a different story.
When kids have devices in their room at night and they are supposed to be winding down for a good nights sleep, it can interrupt more than their sleep cycle.
Diana Park, writing for Scary Mommy, found this out the hard way with her two teenagers and uncovered there is evidence to back up the issues she was seeing at home, such as lying, sneaking around, and obsessed with their devices.
Let’s not learn the hard way and take heed to the warning of other moms.
Take devices away from your kids at night and enjoy these three amazing benefits…
1. A better night’s rest
A study in BMJ Journal by Mari Hysing found teenagers ages 16-19 who browsed or talked on their cell phones at night were much more likely to take an hour to fall asleep.
Say your child is able to control themselves and keep their cell phones in their room without using them until the following day, that is not enough to sleep well through the night.
According to The America Academy of Pediatrics, even sleeping with a cell phone in your room is more detrimental than sleeping with the television on!
2. Increased concentration
The AARP states:
“The prime culprit in hijacking attention spans is the smartphone.”
Multi-tasking is praised in modern society.
The mom who can play with their toddler on the floor, catch up with their mom on the phone, all while simultaneously ordering groceries online is considered a super mom.
But for a child this is often labeled as attention deficit disorder because they can’t focus on a task at hand long enough to finish it before they move on to something else.
William Klemm, senior professor of neuroscience at Texas A&M University and author of Teach Your Kids How to Learn, told AARP:
“The brain starts learning how to switch rapidly from one task to another. It has become a habit. But this habit conflicts with focused attentiveness.”
Taking away the temptation to look at their phone at night, along with encouraging them to do more appropriate activities that would prepare their minds for sleep, will allow your children to wake up attentive and ready to start their morning.
3. Happier mood
No one operates at their best when they are sleep deprived and their mind is racing.
Moms who spend all night binging Hulu and then wake to kids who are devastated because you forgot to get their favorite cereal for breakfast and pack their lunch have felt the effects that a lack of sleep and concentration can have on your mood.
Park said that her children actually admitted, somewhat begrudgingly, that having their devices taken at night has made them happier kids!
Transitioning to a home where all devices are turned off at night and handed over to mom at night will likely be difficult at first.
But when the kids begin to feel the benefits and you see the increase in their quality of life, the first few nights of arguments will all be worth it.
We may not be able to control who tries to woo our teenage daughter at school, but we can give them a clear head to decipher who she should give her time to by this one powerful move- no devices at night!