Help a mama out and respond anonymously on our forum. I had a question about introducing your child 4-8 to electronics? - Mamas Uncut
My five year old is more reasonable about respecting screen time than my 11 year old. She understands when it’s time to put it up and moves on easily. The 11 year old? Nuclear lol.
My littles are 2 yes amd 3 months. We do screen time via tv. It’s the I my peace I get sometimes and both littles get glued. I’ve never had an issue with my 2yr old being mad when tv get turned off and we have play time. She actually enjoys when we sit together and play. I’ve tried recently to get her interested in my Nintendo switch so she can watch educational videos on YouTube but she has no interest in it nor knows how to navigate through it yet. She will take a phone and watch educational things and I have no issue with taking it she knows her limit.
Don’t do it keep them Out of their hands as long as possible to cultivate their mind their creativity their imaginativeness their ingenuity giving them devices only stifles the development of all those things I have a page technology is giving your children of personality disorder and watch 10 more years they’re gonna be coming out with a crazy ass studies I guarantee
I personally waited till age 9.5- Christmas gift old ps3- then she was only allowed with adult supervision with limited games and time frames. She’s now 11.5 and only uses it for Netflix n plays games here n there when schoolwork n chores are finished. I think with very limited use, kids can be ok- I know some kids that take their tablets/ portable game systems everywhere and are horrendous when told to put it away or put it down for a bit. I mean, definitely don’t use it to occupy your kids cuz you need alone time- give them books
My first child we introduced in that age range, and it’s one of the worst decisions I’ve ever made as a parent. It slowly turned him away from naturally having fun with toys, make- believe, learning. He’s six now and we do absolutely no games Monday through Friday, with limited on weekends. He now plays with toys again and uses his imagination.
You are doing great I would keep the tv,let them play.
My baby is 3
Plays on a tablet
Baby games / learning games
He’s very smart for his age
And his older brothers
8 and 12
Play
Playstation
They both are very smart to
Sometimes it causes issues but iv learned to give them 2 choices
When it’s time to get off games
We give them warning on its almost time to get off and finish what they are doing
If they are not done by the time it time to get off
And they refuse to
Then it’s rather they save what they are doing and log off
Or I count to 5 and if I get to five I turn it off my self
And summer time they play out side more then in the winter time
Schedule and choices help alot
My oldest is 15, then 12, 11, 10. My kids only get T.V., But there is NO T.V. Sun-Thurs. I only give them about an hour.
I sure some mamas isn’t going to agree with what I am going to say and that’s okay… My son got a tablet at 6 months old for car rides when he hit a year old he knows how to video chat our family in NC and he knows how to choose YouTube videos and plays matching games… With that being said I choose to let him explore technology beaches it is now a basic required skill for almost any job especially with good paying jobs. I feel not letting him aquire and master the skill will hinder his ability to be successful. Everything is based in technology however I do encourage him to play with toys and his sister and his uncle that I care for.
My son was always hyper and I struggled to find something to calm him. The playstation helped. He’s very smart. And I put him in a timer. If he got frustrated and started throwing a fit I would take it away for the rest if the day. I would also give him a chance to calm down if he didn’t then it was done.
My Mom kept him in the weekends and she had computer games. She played Star Wars Galaxy and trained him to play starting at age 3. By the time he was 4 he was creating his own characters and joining teams. By the time he was 6 she got a letter from them asking to TEST a new format called OLD REPUBLIC. So he tested it and told her the problems while she wrote them down. When the game was done he was mailed the game for free of charge for doing the work.
He now wants to be a Video Designer. He’s 20 now and Ive never regretted getting him started. Just be sure to schedule game times and outside time.
My son when he was 8 played games on his Xbox and he still played outside with his friends. I had no problem with him playing with his electronics.
My kids are 5 and 3 and don’t use electronics besides watching tv some. My 8 year old bonus son on the other hand is soley dependant on games and tablets and has 0 social skills because of them. Always lashes out if he’s told to out it away or play with the other kids, etc.
My teens were introduced around kindergarten. My youngest was probably 2 or 3. They are 15, 14, and 9 now and I don’t think they’ve ever acted out specifically die to technology. I also don’t think it matured them. My 15yo looks like a teen but still prefers cats over boys, just like when she was little. My 9yo still watches paw patrol and has most the interest she did when she a toddler. My son (14) has matured faster than my other 2 but I dont attribute that to technology. I’ve never set time limits, I don’t monitor my teens, and I rarely take devices as punishment.
I gave my kids iPad and I think it was a bad idea, I had to deal with tantrums. I do take the iPads when I think they have it for too long but they want their own way, I know we are the parents and we shouldn’t let them have their way but just talking about the tantrums we have to deal with. Everyone has different mind but to me it was a bad idea 
but on the other hand it does help when you have visitors. They don’t annoy you and let you have a talk with them!
Your children will be introduced to tablets and computers in kindergarten. Our parents generation was the start of electronics, so it was 90/10 - 10% being electronics. Our children will probably be 90% electronics in their adulthood. We were in between the two. So getting used to thinking and problem solving with electronics as well as learning how to properly use and care for them is a must, BUT on the same hand they need to follow the rules. My 11 year old is getting better, but would have sold his organs to get electronic and tablet time, where as my 8 year old can be somewhat obsessive but if I told her no tablet for a week she would just go outside and play. My 6 year old is constantly on the tablet if I let her, but if I give her a time limit or tell her to put it up there’s no issues whatsoever.
All children will be different, but set strict limits. If you’re talking about a tablet, put a parental app so you know what they’re doing and what they’re downloading. If you’re talking about a game console then set some time limits if you want. Or after a week and the newness wears off see if a time limit is needed so they dont obsess. Also charge in your room or somewhere you can make sure they dont sneak out to play with it. But as long as you set rules and stick to them it should be easier. If they break the rules, they lose the electronics.
Personal experience, no go. It made my son have more attitude/ frustration when asked to do something that required him to get off the electronic. Without a phone he’s an ideal kid, respectful, dose his chores plays pretend, builds his city and cars, involves his sister in play time, no problems with school work etc the moment he gets an electronic in his hands its all out the door and he turns into a little devil:rofl:
I personally think its a huge problem with this generation, its why so many kids from 8/17 years old don’t care about their life, all that matters to a majority of them is their social media and chat groups. I 10/10 don’t recommend.
My kids were all introduced to technology young. We have alot in the house. Ps5. Xbox. Tablets. Gaming computer. If they are on them they enjoy them. If I say time to do something else it’s never been an issue. They still spend alot of time outside but we have alot of stuff in the yard for them to do to. Trampoline, soccer goals, basketball ring, water play. I think it depends on the children . I’ve never said your screen time is 2 hours a day. It’s always been they go play on the electronics and when they’ve reached the amount of time im happy with I say finish up this game and let’s go do whatever it is I want them to move to. The only person who knew their screen time was being limited was me.
My kids use a tablet, ages 3&5, but they only get to play learning games, and it’s only for an hour a day. ABC Mouse!!! I think they have their $45 a year special going on right now, but you can track their progress, and as they start school, the games and learning content adjusts to their grade level!!!
My daughter is 6 and doesn’t really care for it. My boys ages 14, 11 and 10 no issues except the 11 year old tries to be addicted and acts out when I say enough time on it. Each is different. Good luck.
Every child is different. I’ve had 4 and they all reacted differently to video games. Everything from almost no interest to extreme mood swings. I recently had to permanently take the tablet away from my youngest because it turns him from a sweet child to a demon child instantly. He gets frustrated with the games, screams, throws things, cries, and this goes on for the rest of the day when the tablet is taken away. His sister 2 yrs older doesn’t have any of these issues when she gets tablet time. It’s crazy how differently that stuff affects my children.
I regret giving my 8 year old one! She’s so attached to it so I took it away
I let me 6 year old use the iPad on occasion around the house and I can see a huge different in her behavior (outbursts, attitude, anger) when she’s been on it too long. Just monitor the content and the time on the device and you can find the balance.
If you introduce electronics, do it as a reward. Homework done? Chores done? Room clean? You get an hour on the tablet/phone/computer/game. If you just hand them an electronic device and give them free reign, you’re not gonna see their faces anymore, it’ll be glued to their electronic. Believe me, I know. My kids were given free reign, and now their electronics are their life lines. My brother limits his kids screen time and they’re still active outside, in sports etc.
My son has unlimited access. He is such a good sweet boy. Most of the time prefers to be with me helping whatever I am doing
4 is too young. Little known fact: Steve Jobbs, Bill Gates, etc did not give their children electronics when they were young. Give them Legos and coloring books and other, tactile toys to play with. You g kids have amazing imaginations. Foster that. Encourage outside play. Limit screen time. At 8 this is difficult, due to peer pressure, but there are plenty of thinking toys and games on the market for kids that age. 8 year olds don’t benefit from iPads. Get him books from the library, easy model kits, Legos, art kits, etc.
I have 6 kids so my oldest 4 get the tablet after they complete their homework and after dinner but they are only allowed the tablet for two hours. Then bath and off to bed they go.
My girls devices are linked in with my Google account so I can monitor their activity. I have also set the parental controls to their appropriate ages so they can’t have anything that’s too adult for them.
From age 4-7 my kids didn’t like their tablet but now that they are older they do. I’m strict with the tablets. I go through them. They lose them if they don’t do chores or they aren’t doing great in school, etc…
Every kid is different though good luck.
They start teaching coding in the first year of school