Screen Time

Addressing your screen time struggles with science and understanding.

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We all know that media and technology unleash incredible opportunities for our kids and teens. They can connect, learn, create, take action, and share. We also understand that managing screen time unleashes incredible power struggles and worries: How much screen time is healthy? Is screen time bad for babies? What are the best cell phone rules for kids? What about social media and anxiety?

Media headlines don’t answer these questions very well, often relying on fear-based or tech-euphoric soundbites. You deserve guidance grounded in research so that you can worry less and parent better. Check out the posts below or search our full blog and be in touch with your questions.

How We Talk About Youth Mental Health Matters

“Just checking in! How is everybody doing?”

When Elmo asked this question on X in January 2024, no one expected it would generate 180 million views within just two days. Initial responses were light and playful. But people across the internet quickly began sharing more honest…

How We Talk About Youth Mental Health Matters
When Screen Time Rules Fall Apart

When my family had a conversation about summer screen time a month ago, our agreements and ideas felt so full of promise. They didn’t result from an idyllic family summit or long formal meeting, but the conversation was earnest and grounded in our most positive…

When Screen Time Rules Fall Apart
AI Companions Are Talking to Kids—Are We?

I remember watching the 2013 movie Her, where a man named Theo develops a relationship with an artificial intelligence operating system, and feeling two contradictory things at once: incredulous (“This could never really happen”) and uneasy (“This seems like it really could happen”).

Fast forward twelve years, and…

AI Companions Are Talking to Kids—Are We?
Teens, Tech, and the Power of Staying Curious

When our kids are little, we get a lot of data about their lives. We know their friends, what they ate for lunch, and which show they want to watch on repeat. I remember sometimes wishing for less data when my youngest’s preferred safety spot…

Teens, Tech, and the Power of Staying Curious
Boys and Belonging: Let’s Not Leave It To The Manosphere

I watched the hit Netflix series Adolescence with two hats on. As a professional, the online misogyny wasn’t new. I’ve written about online extremism before. But as a parent, with a kid the same age (and freckles) as the main character sleeping upstairs, the show…

Boys and Belonging: Let’s Not Leave It To The Manosphere
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Talking About Screen Time? Don’t Fall Into This Common Trap

“You are always on the iPad,” I said as I rounded the corner into the dining room and spotted my son on his device.
As soon as I said it, I knew it wouldn’t lead to a productive conversation about my kid’s tech habits. I wasn’t…

Talking About Screen Time? Don’t Fall Into This Common Trap
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From Tablets to TikTok to Tools for Calm: The Latest Data on Young Kids’ Screen Time

“Broken!” Miles exclaimed. “It’s broken!” he repeated, his frustration building.

It took me a moment to catch on. My nearly three-year-old was standing in front of the TV, furiously trying to swipe at Daniel Tiger with his index finger. Then it clicked—he was trying to move…

From Tablets to TikTok to Tools for Calm: The Latest Data on Young Kids’ Screen Time

“Media and technology are not inherently good or bad, they are powerful. The good or bad depends upon how we use them.”

Dr. Dave Walsh

Addressing your screen time struggles with science and understanding.

Screen Time

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Want to learn more in person?

“Media and technology are not inherently good or bad, they are powerful. The good or bad depends upon how we use them.”