For child-care providers and early-years teachers
What to take from chapter 25
- The standard already exists, and it is on your side. In the United States, the national child-care standards (Caring for Our Children) say none under two, and from two on at most half an hour once a week, for learning or movement only.
- A screen-free day has a shape, and the late afternoon needs a plan: a basket that only comes out then, a walk, water play, a story told rather than read.
- A screen that holds a room still can hide a staffing problem.
- Tell parents what the children did, show them the standard, notice what they may have missed, and ask the one question almost nobody asks: how many hours a day is a screen on at home, and when?
Do not diagnose. If you notice signs that worry you, tell the parent gently and in writing what you saw, and suggest a hearing test and a visit to the child’s doctor.
General information, not medical advice. If you are worried about a child, talk with the child’s doctor.
The full plan, the evidence and the letters you can copy are in the book.