As shared in the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) Guidance on Screen Use in Children, your child may be spending too much time on their devices if they:
When deciding the appropriate amount of screen time your child should be allowed to have, you can consider:
Are unwilling to share the device or to return it to parents when asked
Have poor sleep quality and quantity
Display anti-social responses or behaviours to get more screen time
(e.g. telling lies, screaming, displaying aggression like hitting others)
Have poor emotional regulation
(e.g. disproportionate or prolonged anger and sadness)
Throw extreme tantrums when the device is taken away
(e.g. displaying unusual levels of irritability and restlessness when not on the device)
When deciding the appropriate amount of screen time your child should be allowed to have, you can consider:
-
According to MOH’s Guidance on Screen Use, screen use for children aged 7 to 12 years old should be balanced with other screen-free activities, with less than 2 hours of daily screen use that is not related to school-work and no access to social media (major social media services require users to be at least 13 years old)
-
They should not use screens during mealtimes and one hour before bedtime as well
-
-
To help your child manage their screen use, you can develop a collaborative screen use plan or timetable
-
Allow your child more time to engage in age-appropriate, active screen use activities that promote creativity, are educational, or offer social interactions with loved one while moderating passive screen use activities for recreational purposes