A parent’s guide to screen time

1. Connect with your kids by sparking conversation about what they’re watching

2. Use screen-time as a tool to navigate large, difficult conversations

3. Setting boundaries and limits together can make rule-following easier for everyone

4. Use screen-time regularly and moderately to help kids develop a healthy routine

5. Find content that has your kid’s best interests at heart

6. Pick playful, digital learning resources

7. Create positive memories with loved screen-time treats

8. Encourage children’s digital interests to spark a lifetime of curiosity

9. Develop children’s emotional intelligence with powerful screen story-telling

10. Find content with positive, diverse and inclusive representation to help all children feel understood and succeed

Children are curious creatures but sometimes need a little nudge from us to get chatting about their interests. While this generation of parents is more digitally engaged than ever, a lot of screen time happens without us looking over their shoulders. Asking open-ended questions about what children are consuming can spark interesting conversation while enhancing their cognitive and communication skills. Questions strengthen how children can actively consolidate knowledge, rather than consuming content passively. Getting kids to think about what they’re consuming on screens encourages them to stay curious, see the bigger picture and develop their critical thinking. Sharing content together also provides easy conversation starters. Joint co-viewing experiences are great contexts to boost learning and bonds between parent and children.

Open-ended questions are a wonderful way to stretch children’s curiosity, reasoning ability, creativity and independence. When watching educational content on the BBC, children can reinforce their learning with your help. Open-ended language about their favourite interesting shows could include;

●  “Tell me about... what the Octonauts found....”
●  “Why do you think... the Stegosaurus has a spiky tail? ”
●  “How can we... help David Attenborough protect the Earth?”

By prompting conversation together about what’s on kids’ screens, you can both connect by exploring the bigger picture and take the chat to some interesting places!

Screen time is not only a great way to prompt conversation with your kids, it is also a fantastic tool to use for introducing difficult topics and navigating conversation around them. Sometimes we struggle to find the words or examples ourselves to broach hard and necessary subject matters with children. From matters such as dealing with a new family member, moving to a different home, school or country and difficult emotions or loss. These subjects can be approached safely by engaging first with content which explores the specific theme. Searching for content on a reliable site such as BBC iPlayer, CBeebies and CBBC provides easily accessible and catered resources which address the issue. Find what you are looking for first and then go to your child with the content and a rough idea of questions you can ask them about it. Using open-ended style questions will keep the communication open and flexible for your child to express themselves. Children learn best through scaffolding of information. Watch, then talk about the content first: what the characters are doing, what happened, how they felt etc. Then relate the content to what your child may be experiencing, asking if they are experiencing something similar and how they feel about it. The shows will have specific examples for you to refer back to, ensuring understanding and an open line of communication between you and your child.

With easy access to screens on multiple platforms and devices, along with the busyness of parenting life, monitoring screen-time is hard. Parents often express concerns about watching age-inappropriate, violent or foul content or engaging with screens for too long (BBC Survey, 2023). Studies have shown that what we watch affects our thoughts and behaviour. Thankfully, there is a large variety of quality content online for children to consume. Plenty of screen time can be a positive, fun and educational experience. Most parents also agree that setting screen time limits is important (BBC Survey, 2023). Studies have also shown that parenting styles which implement screen time rules have a positive effect on children’s attention, physical activity and reducing access to inappropriate content. By setting limits, we can help children understand what is and isn’t right for them, but is most often a challenge.

Boundaries are an important part of any parenting - kids benefit from having guidelines to follow. Clear rules and limits around screen time can include time limits, what trusted channels and devices they can and can’t use. If you want to really enhance the way boundaries around screen-time are set, then involve children themselves in the making of these rules. They will value and respect the rules, and you, more. Involving children in the conversation about what is reasonable helps inform them about developing healthy digital awareness, routine and safety. It also develops a sense of responsibility and independence around screen time they will carry with them in later life.

We know that a regular routine is key for children’s healthy sleep, neurological and physical development. What we consume and when is also a key part of our routine. Content that is selected for a certain time of day and integrated into regular routines, can help children regulate their natural rhythm better. Setting an allotted time for regular screen-time in moderation can help contribute to a healthy routine. This can also be part of how you integrate limits around screen time use. After-school TV programming, playing games or apps allow kids to unwind during a key transition period of the day. By taking time to have child-appropriate entertainment, this lets children reset and get ready for evening activities such as tea-time, extra-curricular clubs and homework. Another key time of day that can often be tricky for us to settle children is bedtime. Specific bedtimes with some pre-bedtime specific content can help when children won’t settle. The BBC provides specifically designed content, such as In The Night Garden which was developed by sleep specialists to help calm children for bedtime.

Passive screen time with repetitive content is not the best brain food, but feeling comfortable with what your kids consume on screens becomes a lot easier when it’s been designed with children's development in mind. Particularly if your little one needs additional help, making sure content sources have specialist credentials means the content can be trusted and in line with key child development milestones. There's a plethora of content on BBC that has been designed by specialists and experts in child development so that you can take a step back and feel reassured by the quality of your child's screen time. For example, Yakka Dee was designed by Speech & Language experts and Love Monster was developed by child psychologists to help children process emotions. Screen time can also provide practical information, to help children prepare for unknown experiences, such as learning about medical emergencies with Operation Ouch! By engaging with content first, this can help reduce children’s anxiety and stress when faced with the real thing e.g a medical emergency, starting school, going to the doctor’s / hospital.

With the BBC, there's always something for the adults too. The BBC and CBeebies websites have a ton of advice on making positive screen time choices and helping children make the most out of engaging with safe screen time and getting the most from their content.

There is increasing evidence on how important play is to maximise our learning and developmental potential. Digital play is now recognised as its own classification of play which can provide a host of benefits such as strong language, problem-solving and even social skills. Children can now learn through play in ways previously impossible before technology. Credible apps and games are fantastic sources for kids to learn while having fun. When we introduce playfulness into educational contexts, studies have found that we actually learn better! BBC Education provides a variety of fun and educational games in line with the UK curriculum. With BBC Bitesize there is fun content for every subject. The CBeebies app and website have fantastic games which are tailored for families to enjoy and to develop children’s specific skills, such as learning, bonding, self-expression and discovery.

When produced well, digital play can provide excellent developmental benefits. We all learn differently and technology provides the opportunity to have educational fun for children who would find traditional classroom settings tricky or who need to supplement their learning at home. Research has demonstrated that digital play such as maths games and apps can even help with the engagement and comprehension of reluctant learners. Games and apps could therefore be particularly helpful for children whose learning has been affected by home circumstances, the pandemic and those with additional needs.

Most of us remember a special show we couldn’t wait to stay up late and watch as kids on a Saturday night. As with everything in moderation, letting kids enjoy screen-time as treats not only leaves fond memories for a lifetime, but even a bonding experience if watching a show socially, with family and friends. Most of us recognise that while sometimes screen time isn’t ideal for developing social skills, there are also many occasions when it connects people from near or afar. For example, favourite weekly shows unite friends and family over content which is loved by all ages. Weekly shows are a favourite point of discussion and connection with others. Walking into school or work on Monday morning and saying “Did you watch Strictly this week?” or “I couldn’t believe that play on Match of the Day!” is always going to spark some fun conversation with someone. Keeping weekly special showtime traditions is a fantastic way to give children a long-lasting enjoyable experience. Another idea is making their favourite weekend show an event. Make a homemade pizza before watching the latest Strictly Come Dancing episode or invite friends over to watch Nadiya Bakes in the morning and then make the delicious food together.

A great benefit of BBC content is how much can be enjoyed by the entire family. Co-viewing helps parents take an active role in selecting appropriate content and create positive connection between parent and child. BBC shows such as Top Gear, Doctor Who and David Attenborough documentaries all cater for a diverse audience of any age and can create a special co-viewing experience. Post-pandemic, we also all appreciate the power of video calling. Creating a video meet party to watch the show with family and friends who live far away means the weekly tradition with family can even happen at a distance. Family content can unite us across the nation.

When we’re young, our interests can spark into lifetime careers, hobbies, and healthy habits. Positive affirmation and reinforcement about an activity they’re watching on screens can be all the encouragement children need to try a new hobby and maybe even a lifetime passion. Child development theory advocates that children are their own agents of choice. When given the right resources and then allowed the control and autonomy to make their own decisions, they will become independent and resilient adults.

When children are watching their topics of interest on screens, by remaining neutral and non-critical of the screen time itself, children are allowed the space to develop their own likes and dislikes. Small and simple observations are enough to show you’re engaged and supportive. For example, if your child is watching Horrible Histories you can observe, “That seems interesting”. Or if they’re watching Match of the Day you could say, “That looks fun”. They might never become historians or footballers themselves, but their fascination could help grow a group of friends, further education or even a career inspired by their childhood content.

Stories, metaphors and content are powerful resources to elevate children’s development. Metaphors create dramatic distance for us to help process scenarios and develop our emotional intelligence. Dramatic distancing through stories can also help children understand their own lives, through imaginative play and projecting feelings towards them. Research has shown that stories, on screens or not, have a strong effect on increased vocabulary retention and memory retrieval – we remember our favourite fictional friends throughout life!

Children can further develop their own story telling skills, comprehension and creativity. Try asking children questions such as predicting what comes next and what they would do with the story if they were writing their own episode. They might even be inspired to start writing their own stories or storyboard after watching an animation show. The BBC celebrates young creativity and involves children in lots of creative processes, competitions and Awards they can look out for online.

Studies have shown that diverse and inclusive representation in the media for children plays an important role in their development, growth and positive self-image. Children model themselves based on the people they see around them. We all idolise certain figures as children, fictional or real, which drives our external motivation. If children don’t see those who look like them in inspiring roles, they will struggle to emulate and relate to an aspirational role model. On the other hand, if children aren’t used to seeing people who are in different circumstances, they’ll struggle to develop empathy for them. The BBC holds itself to high standards, representing diverse and inclusive communities across its services and content for children, such as JoJo & Gran Gran or The Dumping Ground. On CBBC, children can watch the documentary series My Life which explores the highs and lows of children across the world, such as Ukraine refugees, children with additional needs or those following their passions and dreams. Exploring other children’s unique stories gives children the opportunity to grow compassion and understanding for others.

Watching positive role models or talking about how their favourite characters behave can help children think about and develop positive behaviours. Watching a show such as Hey Duggee, can help children learn how to share and develop empathy skills. By seeing others do important work or acting out scenarios such as helping others, children can learn positive values and life lessons.