Screen time and learning
When balanced with other activities, screen time can be good for your child’s learning and development. This can happen when your child:
- uses age-appropriate, good-quality digital media – for example, when your child plays a video game that involves critical or creative thinking
- has a purpose in mind when using screens – for example, when your child goes online to find instructions for a craft activity
- gets new ideas for traditional play from screen use – for example, when playing Minecraft gets your child interested in designing buildings with boxes, glue and paper
- produces content rather than just consuming it – for example, when your child writes a blog, uses an app to create music, or films and edits short movies.
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 can help your child develop:
- digital skills – for example, by learning video-editing skills through doing a video about a school excursion
- creative skills – for example, by drawing, or creating content like video clips, animations or comics
- problem-solving skills – for example, by working out the most appropriate clothes for online characters to wear in rainy weather, or looking at the possible results of virtual science experiments
- communication skills – for example, by learning another language or chatting to friends or relatives on a video call
- social skills – for example, by playing games that involve turn-taking, or playing as part of a team.
Your child might be using online education tools at school and home to do research, create content, work with others or work independently.