The best way to break kids' screen-time rules when you need to

The best way to break screen-time rules for your kids when you need to Mon 6 Jul 2026 at 4:30am Too sick and couch-bound to entertain my young son I recently resorted to letting him watch what felt like full day of television to pass the time. We are not a household with strict screen-time rules, but anything more than a couple of hours total for the day is an unusual occurrence. Like many parents I clock a lot of scary headlines about the damage screens can cause. Screen time robbing toddlers of language-building interactions with parents and how high screen time is associated with social, emotional problems in children are to name just two recent examples. But how detrimental is a full day of screen time on the odd occasion? Getting the balance right Screen time has become a phrase that makes "parents feel instantly guilty", says Joanne Orlando. She's a digital wellbeing researcher at Western Sydney University and author of Generation Connected. Dr Orlando says while parents want their kids to be skilled with technology they are "overwhelmed" by how much screens now play a role in our lives. "We keep seeing a lot of headlines in our social feeds around a lot of issues with screens," Dr Orlando says, including about children being "glued to screens" and having "tech tantrums". "Parents feel the push and pull. They feel quite defeated." How worried parents are about screens varies on where they live, says Dr Orlando, who undertook a national study of 500 families for her book. "If you live in the suburbs of Sydney you like the idea of your child having balance — some time on screens, but lots of time outside playing and doing sport," she says. When speaking to parents in more remote areas Dr Orlando says they are more "pro-screen". "They see being online as a way to help their kids see outside perhaps that low-employment area. That screens will give you skills and help you see your potential." What are the screen-time guidelines? The Australian 24-movement guidelines include recommendations on physical activity, sleep and screen time for children and young people. These include: - Children younger than two years: no sedentary screen time - Children aged two to five years: no more than one hour per day. Less is better - Children and young people aged five to 17 years: no more than 2 hours of sedentary recreational screen time per day. This does not include required schoolwork. Less is better. However, Dr Orlando says focusing only on children's time spent on screens is an outdated approach. "The hard and fast rules just don't really work in families. We have all these ideas of how many hours a child should be on a screen every day, but they have mostly been scrapped because they just don't work in families." Strict screen-time rules are important for young children. "If a two-year-old is on screens day after day that can really affect their language, social and cognitive development," Dr Orlando says. When should you worry about screen time? Michael Noetel is an associate professor from the University of Queensland's School of Psychology. He says while some concerns over screen time are "overblown" there is validity in parents' worries. "The biggest concern for children in having too much screen time is that it takes away from them doing other stuff that we know is important for development." Physical activity, socialising or reading are some examples. "The technical term is the opportunity cost of screen time," Dr Noetel says. Social media and gaming are particularly problematic. "Social media has a unique problem in that it promotes this social comparison that is really unhelpful," he says. "Video games are just too good at hooking us in a way that makes everything else boring by comparison." But according to both experts, the occasional break from routine, such as on a sick day or travelling long distances, isn't going to be detrimental. "That's something we should really not worry about too much," Dr Noetel says. Quality over quantity What your kid is viewing or doing with a screen is more important than the time they're spending on them, says Dr Orlando. "Any parent would see the value in a five-year-old watching some videos about a science experiment. It might be entertaining, but they are also learning." Dr Noetel says focusing on quality screen time rather than quantity is a better way for parents to think about the issue. For example, Reading Eggs is more valuable than video games. "We should chill out a bit more about letting a kid watch a movie for an hour in the car. The opportunity cost is them looking at sheep out the window" as opposed to taking away from something like physical activity, Dr Noetel says. He says using parental controls can help parents avoid being the "bad guys". "Our TV doesn't have Netflix, only ABC Kids. It also locks after 15 minutes unless we unlock it." Sign up to the ABC Lifestyle newsletter Dr Orlando says parents should be mindful about how often screens are being used for "emergency" situations and the message that sends. "If a child is school aged and mostly pretty good [with screens] but some days go off the rails, and you allow it just because you need that time, using a screen like that is fine," she says. "But if it happens regularly … using a screen as a babysitter constantly sends your child particular messages." For example, giving a child a screen to "keep quiet" might cause them to believe using a screen is how you calm yourself. "That sets a foundation for unhealthy tech habits," Dr Orlando says. Parents also need to be mindful they are the role models for screen-time use. "Your child will copy [your screen-time habits]. Even when you think they're not looking, they always are," Dr Orlando says.