“Children are like buds in a garden and should be carefully and lovingly nurtured, as they are the future of the nation and the citizens of tomorrow.”
In most countries, children primarily seek advice from their parents when they have issues regarding mobile phone use.
Nearly 70 percent of children thought that having a mobile phone makes them feel more confident. However, the majority feel insecure or bothered when they don’t have their mobile phones.
45 percent of children responded that they have spent less time than they should with either family, friends or doing schoolwork because of the time they spend on their mobile phones.
Nearly 70 percent of parents set rules on the timing and location of when their children can use their mobile phones.
Types of mobile phones used by children:
• Basic phones: Used to make calls and send messages, such as SMS, but cannot access the internet and have limited other functions.
• Feature phones: Have multiple functions in addition to calling and messaging, such as a camera and possibly internet access, however, the user cannot easily download apps.
• Smartphones: Highly sophisticated phones with access to the internet and Wi-Fi, where users can easily download and run apps. Examples of smartphones include iPhone, Blackberry and phones that use the Android operating system.
Use Of Mobile By Children:
• Entertainment: games, music, cartoons, funny videos
• Communication: a phone call and video calls with relatives and friends, social networking, instant messaging, photo sharing
• Education and learning: digital textbook, videos, learning apps, art, craft, drawing, robotics
• Information: news, weather, transportation, search tools, homework related search, assignment related search
The simple tips for parents to follow:
Set proper time:
Setting adequate time allows parents to keep a track and restrict the amount of time spending on gadgets and don’t let them use after their time is finished.
With that parents can improve the habit of routine which prevents the child from spending more time on screen.
Active supervision:
Children spend most of their time being online and don’t pay much attention to their posture, screen brightness, and screen distance from their eye. Active supervision not only helps the child to maintain a proper position at the same time it’s an excellent opportunity to co-engage with your children when they are using screen- it encourages social interactions, bonding, and learning.
Sometimes children can use the internet for seeing adult content, or they click on pop-ups. This practice leads to a lousy impact on a child’s character. This is the most significant problem in the growing world of technology. Don’t just monitor them online – interact with them, so you can understand what they are doing and help them to overcome.
Encourage playtime:
Encouraging physical, unstructured and offline play stimulates the brain. These include activities that use physical movements to allow children to use their energy and it gives children the chance to develop gross and fine motor skills, learn new things and socialize. It also benefits a child’s health. Make offline play a much priority, especially for very young children.
Avoid technology as an emotional pacifier:
Most of the parents use gadgets to distract children for example while feeding, dressing up and traveling. As we all know media can be beneficial in keeping kids calm and entirely, but it should not be the only way they learn to calm down and distract them.
Parents have to help the child how to identify and handle strong emotions, come up with activities to manage boredom, open communication to solve the problem, finding other ways to distract children’s and strategies for challenging feelings.
Educate the children about the importance of privacy:
Adolescence needs to know that once the content is shared with others, it will be able to delete completely. Avoid texting inappropriate pictures sharing personal details to the unknown. The child has to be warned that sex offenders often use social networking, online gaming to contact and exploit children.
Encourage face to face communication:
Research has shown that two-way communication with children improves language development much more so than passive listening or one-way interaction with a screen.
Encouraging the child to talk back in case of language delayed kids. It helps to stimulate the brain by reducing nonverbal communication.
Parents have to set a proper time for face to face communication or if necessary by video chat with far-away parents and grandparents.
Be an exemplary:
Children are great observers, and they mimic the habits of parents. Limit your use. Find more time to spend with your children by interacting, hugging, playing with them rather than just staying at a screen.
Now a day’s media and digital devices are an integral part of the world today. It will be healthier if we use them moderately and appropriately.
Face to face time with family, children, and friends has a significant impact on children’s learning and healthy development.