Screen time and digital technology use: how it helps with learning
When balanced with other activities, screen time and digital technology use can be good for your child’s learning and development. This can happen when your child:
- uses age-appropriate, good-quality media – for example, when your child plays a video game that involves critical or creative thinking
- uses digital technology with a purpose – for example, when your child goes online to find instructions for a craft activity
- gets new ideas for traditional play from screen time – for example, when your child plays Minecraft and gets interested in designing buildings with boxes, glue and paper
- uses digital technology to connect with people they know – for example, when your child talks with family using video-chat or plays multiplayer games with friends
- produces content – for example, when your child writes a blog, uses an app to create music, makes animations using images, or makes and edits short movies
- uses digital technology to solve problems and think creatively – for example, when your child programmes robotic toys.
Quality is key. Read more about good apps, TV, movies and YouTube for preschoolers, good apps, TV, movies and YouTube for school-age children and good apps, TV, movies and YouTube for teenagers.
Using screen time to develop new skills
Screen time and digital technology use can help your child develop many types of skills:
- Digital skills – for example, your child can learn video-editing skills by making a video about a school excursion or 3-D design skills by using Tinkercad to design an object they can build with blocks later.
- Creative skills – for example, your child can draw or create content like video clips, animations or comics.
- Problem-solving and planning skills – for example, your child can work out the most appropriate clothes for online characters to wear in rainy weather, or they can work on coding projects.
- Communication skills – for example, your child can learn another language by using an app, or they can chat to friends or relatives on video calls.
- Social skills – for example, your child can practise turn-taking or teamwork when they’re playing games, or they can show and help others to use digital technology.
- Goal-setting skills – for example, your child can set physical activity goals and track progress using fitness trackers.
Ideas for using screen time to help with learning
Here are ideas for using screen time and digital technology to help your child learn:
- Get your child to take photos or videos of things that interest them – for example, cars or things in the garden. Then your child could search online for information about these things and share the photos and information with others via a digital storybook.
- Encourage your child to use technology to explain something to others. For example, your child could watch you cut up fruit and then make a video about making fruit salad. Your child could also learn how to edit the video and add subtitles and credits.
- Search for an online map of a place you’re going to for an outing or a holiday – for example, a new playground or the beach. You could help your child learn about directions and distances by looking at the map.
- Help your child choose a game or an app that relates to something they’re interested in. For example, if your child loves painting or drawing, look for a painting app. Talk about the differences between painting on a screen and on paper.
- Encourage your older child to show a younger sibling or a friend how to play a new, age-appropriate video game or app.