Screen Time Exchange

Last Monday was the last day of the 2012-13 school year for our children. Giant exhale. We survived. They are another year smarter and we are another year more weary. Thank goodness for summer break! Unfortunately for my children we are "those" parents, the ones who make them keep their brains engaged for the 2-1/2 months they aren't in school.

I gave them last week as a total break from all that is normal and expected. They had no bedtime, free reign of the electronics in the house, and friends rolling in and out our front and back door at a speed I could no longer track. I was just hoping all three of my children were here when i thought they were. It was a fun week.

Today starts real summer. The summer when they are expected to do chores and use their brains before having screen time. This is the second year in a row that we've done a screen time exchange and it was much better received this year. Anything that doesn't receive any complaining is a win to me and this was a total win.

Screen Time Exchange

How it works.
The child does something that engages their brain for15 minutes and they receive 15 minutes of wii or computer or iphone or 1 short television show. I am not anti electronic media but I have seen a positive difference in our children when we limit screen time. It doesn't matter if it is education screen time or not. The days they have less screen time are the days they are kinder and more fully engaged in the relationships in our lives. Brain time is only good for one day. It does not roll-over. If a child has read for 30 minutes that day but only used 15 minutes of screen time too bad for them and win for me!

What counts as brain time?
This would be different in each home but in our house brain time is anything that engages their brain and makes them think actively. Today, for example, our children did the following to earn screen time: practiced the piano, did a science experiment, wrote in their journal, added to a fiction story they are writing, read to each other, listened to an audio book, read quietly to themselves. They earned a lot of screen time today! But they are currently outside playing ball and at a friends house playing Barbies. I am so not worried about it today.

The result.
My children are left in charge of how much screen time they have. They really like feeling in charge, especially our oldest. They are in charge of how they engage their brain. They learn something new, master a skill, develop their reading skills, escape to different worlds, get to be different people, have down time and build their relationships with each other.

What do you do to keep the balance between lazy summer freedom and continuous learning?