Summertime is well upon us, whether that be at home, the beach, or just a change of scenery. While we can’t guarantee sun time, we can predict high levels of screentime for our children and young people during the school holiday season.
Should we be calling time on screentime?
It might be tempting to shout NO to summer screentime and chuck all devices in the bin, but – there are some things you should consider first:
· Screentime activities like gaming can be a hobby, a source of fun, and, similar to social media, is a big (and important) part of how younger generations feel connected to the world. ·
· A ban on ALL screen time may not work and could be counterproductive (even harmful, in certain cases). You don’t want to set yourself up for the same argument time and time again!
A softer approach that focuses on compromises and establishing healthy habits is more likely to be effective – and cause fewer meltdowns.
Protecting your child without restricting your child
Bark Home ($79)
is one way to maintain healthy limits on screentimes and provide safe access to the Internet. Bark Home, sometimes referred to as "in-home filtering," is a small device that you connect to your home Wi-Fi router. It lets you block or allow access to websites and apps on internet-connected devices like gaming consoles, computers, TVs, and more. You can apply rules for different devices for different times of the day — like no Fortnite on weeknights.
Bark's Advanced algorithms enable Bark to detect and proactively alert parents to issues their children face online, such as bullying, online predators, suicidal ideation, sexual content, and signs of depression. Parents don’t get unfettered access to everything on a child’s phone — they only receive alerts for potential issues so they can talk to their kids and make sure everything’s okay. This gives kids privacy and enables families to build trust.
For $14/ month you will have all of the advanced monitoring features that Bark offers. Call us today to order your Bark and let Free My Music set up your account and install Bark across all of your child's devices.
