Guest Book Review: The Art of Screen Time
Thank you to fellow STRONG MAMA, friend, (and Chelsea’s sister) - Mallary - for writing this book review!
The Art of Screen Time by Anya Kamenetz is an informative book providing readers with a breadth of information and strategies to use in their own home. How do I control mine and my children’s phone use, computer time for work or school, Netflix binge-ing, video gaming, educational tablet time, or scrolling through social media? Is the answer to limit all time? Set strict guidelines? Let all rules go and have no limits?
Readers can discover both benefits and pitfalls to screen time. Written in 2018, before our reliance on screens for communication, connection, education, work and so much more increased, Anya provided facts in a world of technology we do not have a controlled comparison for. This world of technology and our dependence on screens is one that has never existed, therefore has no evaluation.
As a mother of three under seven I am quickly approaching all of the screen time discussions. In a home where screen time is thought of and mostly followed through as an option only after play, outdoor time, reading and so much more, I found my children to be exposed to screens in so many more ways as they got older and their social bubble began to grow. With an age range from 4 to 7 years old, there was also quickly becoming a difference in exposure from my youngest and oldest children that I wasn’t quite sure how to navigate. What were the right choices? All of the information I was researching (via social media and peer reviewed articles) was overwhelming. I was looking for answers and Anya’s book jumped out at me. Something concise in a book format that doesn’t send me to the next person or page or topic. To my surprise, Anya says there is no right answer!
Anya’s facts give you the knowledge to make your own choices without making you feel bad for what you have already done or what you may choose to do in the future. She explains that all families are different. Regardless of what you value, what your family has time for, the size of your family, where you live, even the education your children have, we are all trying to figure out the right answers. What works best for one family doesn’t necessarily work best for all families. She takes a fresh look at how the world, and moms specifically, tackle the screen time conundrum. A fact that shocked me was “on average children between 3-5 [years old] spent 4.1 hours in the company of screens a day.” Anya opened my eyes to all the sides of screen time, even the bias I may hold. She gives you the tools on how to work with technology and your children of varying ages and abilities. She provides ideas on how to have meaningful conversations with your children around screen time and help set limits within your household. “Parents vastly underestimate their influence when getting involved [playing or watching] what their children are doing; positive effects go up.” Anya reminds us as adults and parents that our consumption in the presence of our children “may matter just as much as what your kids are taking in.”
Anya’s book was an easy read for someone who thoroughly enjoys self-help books and finding ways that I can make my life as a mother easier. Her chapters are fairly short, her information direct and to the point. I immediately put some of her suggestions to use and have found success already with my children and how we navigate our screen time based on a discussion my husband and I had with them after reading this book. A tip that she suggested was to include your children in the conversation. How do they value their screen time, and what suggestions do they have for you? Although written in 2018, I find the information still extremely valuable. Although she wrote a book in 2022 I would have loved her to revisit her facts in this book specifically to see how they hold up today. I highly recommend this book for any mothers who feel overwhelmed by the screen time debate and suggest it no matter what age your children are. Happy Reading!
