YouTube videos, games, and social media can be an easy way to keep kids entertained during the summer, but local educators are sounding the alarm and saying time spent on screens can be detrimental to learning and development.
Luckily, those same educators have alternatives to offer kids and parents tired of the “I’m bored” and “There’s nothing to do,” mantras.
Rich VanTol and Scott Biskup, who both work at the Bay-Arenac ISD, have several easy, low-cost suggestions for parents looking to engage with their kids.
While time spent on computers, tablets, and phones isn’t all bad, Biskup encourages parents to limit how much time kids spend looking at screens. A recent study by child media use expert and child psychologist Dr. Sarah Domoff shows that excess time spent on screens can have long-term effects.
Biskup cites Domoff’s work done while she was at Central Michigan University. Biskup says the Director of the Family Health Lab at the State University of New York, Albany reported problems other than simple learning loss
Playing in the park is an inexpensive activity for families. This nature-based playground at Discovery Preserve, 1701 S. Euclid Ave., gives kids a unique play space.
“I think a lot of it’s taking away from kids engaging in reading, engaging in coloring, engaging in cutting, engaging in craft. If that screen time is taking away from those experiences, I think that’s where you kind of see it really start to add up.”
Biskup says kids miss out on developing motor skills such throwing a ball or riding a bike. If kids are on screens, they often aren’t playing outdoors enough.
To combat the problem, local educators have launched several different initiatives to help parents engage with kids in productive and healthy ways without spending a fortune.
“We’ve got a platform that’s called Great Lakes Bay Parents,” says VanTol, who coordinates the Great Start Collaborative. “That platform is like a one-stop where families can go and there’s a calendar there, and there are things to do literally every day across the Great Lakes Bay Region.”
Another platform, STEM Pipeline, also offers activities to keep families busy, including “staycations.”
“There are things to do throughout the summer. There are incentives and prizes for families to win. It’s really intentionality. We’re trying to provide parents awareness around all of these alternatives to screen time by giving them all of these other opportunities to go out and engage.”
Photo courtesy of Rich Van TolRich Van Tol of the Bay-Arenac Great Start CollaborativeLocally, there are activities at both the Sage and the Alice & Jack Wirt branches of the Bay County Library System, Delta College Planetarium, and the Historical Museum of Bay County.
“I just did the program “Magic for Beginners,” at the Auburn Library,” says Biskup. “My kids loved it. I mean they’re doing all kinds of programs,” and most of them are free.
The STEM Passport staycation started in early June, but it’s never too late to pick it up and get started. The calendar has not only activity options for Bay City but throughout the Great Lakes Bay Region.
Filling up the Passport gains entry for prizes, including Great Lakes Loons baseball tickets in Midland, passes for mini-golf, batting cages, and ice cream at Dutch Village Adventure Park in Bangor Township, and a gift card for Rooftop Landing Reindeer Farm in Clare.
Summer camp programs are available too. Throughout the region, there are dozens of camp opportunities for all abilities are listed on the website.
“We’ve aggregated all of the summer camps across the Great Lakes Bay Region,” he says. “So not only is there a daily calendar there, there are summer camps.”
Biskup says not all the summer camps will break the bank either.
“I just signed my kids up for the free golf camp through the Dow Invitational.”
And there are camps for nearly every interest, including interest-based camps like Dance, Boxing and Fitness, Hockey, and STEM.
Don’t forget the power of classic activities such as coloring or making crafts using scissors and glue. Kids learn from these fun activities.
Don’t forget the classics, Biskup reminds parents. Coloring books and crayons, scissors and glue, construction paper and glitter are all options for summer fun. Biskup says arts and crafts are important in keeping kids engaged.
“I think we’ve kind of lost sight about how important play is,” he says, and creative play such as arts and crafts, outdoor games, and engaging in anything other than a video screen is important. “I think we’ve seen a drastic decline in play. It’s been replaced with the technology type of play, which isn’t the same.”
During play and engagement with others kids do more than exercise their motor skills. They also learn to “get along with each other, and how to regulate their emotions. It’s just such an important skill and I think we’ve lost sight of how important free play is and kids being creative.”
Simple things mean a lot, Biskup says.
“Any time you can just get kids to color or cut or do crafts or just get them outside, take them to the playground. I mean, the more you can just do those kinds of things and just have a balance.”
That doesn’t mean they have to be engaged every waking moment. Biskup allows his kids a certain amount of screen time and he keeps an eye on what they view.
“I mean, there’s certain YouTube videos, like, I know a lot of kids are watching something called Skibidi Toilet, which is not great content. So first thing is the content really matters. What are kids engaging with like a kid engaging with a few hours of Skibidi Toilet versus a few hours of PBS Kids.
“Everything in moderation, right? My kids still get technology but I keep limits on it and I try to make sure that they also have experiences as well outside of that. So trying to balance the technology experiences with getting out there in the world and just doing things, riding your bike, going to the park, playing, engaging in sports, and things like that. Just trying to have that balance.”