Do you sometimes find yourself mindlessly scrolling through your phone for longer than you want to? Almost unconsciously, you open app after app in search of some drop of dopamine. You desperately want to get out of the trance, but it feels almost impossible?
Now, if our seemingly mature and developed brains find themselves powerless to the screen’s clutches, our kids’ brains don’t stand a chance. For my 7 and 8-year-old, too much screen time makes them irritated and wired; simultaneously overstimulated and under-stimulated. It’s like I can see all the unused physical energy that’s accumulated, making their brains malfunction.
Any parent who’s witnessed the same, knows it ain’t pretty. And sometimes, you gotta call an intervention.
If you feel a tad overwhelmed at the thought of getting your kids offline (and yourself, for that matter) – read on for my screen-free, kid-approved, minimal effort-required go-tos.
Try a new sport.
If there is one thing on which most parents, parenting experts, and, well, humanity agree, it’s that sports are healthy for our kids.
But most sports require several other players, uniforms, rosters, and training, which can be a lot – so consider options that lighten the load instead of adding to it. Which is why my kids (and I) love tennis. Allow me to explain…
Tennis is a bit of a unicorn sport. First up, it’s got all your must haves for kids – it’s fun but still challenging; it can be casual or competitive. You get to smash a ball as hard as you can. But it’s the other benefits that make this sport a winner. The benefits outlast the game.