Managing the amount of time your kid spends on screens is a challenge for all parents. That definitely has become even harder during the pandemic with all the time our kids are REQUIRED to spend on screens, activities being cancelled and more time at home – whether by our own choice or not.
Screens are particularly difficult to navigate with ADHD. ADHD brains are low on dopamine and screens provide a really quick fix. As a result, they are even more enticing for kids with ADHD, and can trigger long and intense bouts of hyperfocus where your kid is so engrossed with a video game he becomes completely oblivious to the world around him, loses all sense of time and space, and sometimes doesn’t even hear you when you call his name 3, 4, 5 times…
Then when it is time to turn it off, here comes the rebound. Dopamine crashes. Your child can’t control his emotions – he may bounce from rage, to extreme silliness, back to anger and sadness at the drop of a hat. While things had been calm and quiet in the house, now it is a storm of chaos, giggling, jumping on furniture, zooming through the house. Sound familiar?
We want to give our kids a break to do the things they like to do, and those periods where they are focused and entertained can bring some calm to the home – I have been lured into that trap many times. But we also want them to find joy in other things, to get homework and chores done and to interact with other human beings from time to time.
That’s why I came up with a system for managing screen time. It provides structure and a system for allowing screen time, AFTER basic daily responsibilities have been completed. And as a bonus, screen time can be used as a reward to encourage other desired behaviors. Catch your kids being kind, helping without being asked or without complaining when asked, for trying a new food or staying by you in the grocery store and reward them with some extra screen time tickets they can use later!
Sound good? Click here to download this system for FREE!
A few tips to make this successful:
- systems are only as good as you are consistent in implementing them. If kids think they can get screen time without earning the tickets, they lose their power
- set timers, give warnings and be flexible when the time they have cashed in comes to an end. If they need a few more minutes to finish a level, get to a save point etc. give a little bit of leeway. This will help eliminate any meltdowns if they are asked to transition and they aren’t ready for it.
- Give screen time tickets FREELY and FREQUENTLY at the start. Give them for every little good thing you see your kiddo doing. You will be amazed at how much your kids will start to seek that reinforcement. You can be a little stingy with them later and require more from them to be earned as time goes on, but start by being really generous with them so they can see success.
- I like to print each denomination on a different color cards stock so it is easy for everyone to count up the time they have earned.