Tips for Managing Summer Screen Time

A few weeks ago, I asked on Instagram about the hardest part of summer and one of the biggest answers was managing screen time for kids!

One mom said “we start with minimal screen time and then the summer screen time gets out of control!” Another said the hardest part was “kids only wanting screens!”

If screen time for kids is an issue at your home, the goods news is that you’re in good company – it’s hard for MOST parents!

There’s also no “right” way to manage screens for kids – it is so dependent on the ages of your kids, the number of kids you have, your work situation, and so many other factors.

And what feels like “a lot” of screen time will differ greatly – some families told me they limit it to 4 hours a day while others are doing 60 minutes once a week. You get to decide what is right for your family! (And what counted as screen time varied wildly – some people only count individual screen time while family movies or video game playing together wasn’t counted and others count computer games but not movies).

I asked what worked to manage screen time for kids and answers came pouring in – I hope you’ll find something helpful here to make your summer a little easier!

Talk About the Expectations or Make a Summer Screen Time Plan

Bart and I say all the time that expectations are the key to success and this is especially true for screen time. My best suggestion would be to sit down together as a family and get everyone on board before the school year ends (we did a similar thing when we launched our Year of Sleep for 2025). Spelling out what screen time will look like for your family makes it easier for everyone to know what to expect and get everyone bought in!

And then be consistent! The moment your kids know that whining or begging will get you to change your mind or they realize you aren’t very committed to you screen time plan, it’ll likely be an all out assault to get more screen time.

For me it works well for me to say aloud, “I hear your whining/begging/pouting/etc and you’re welcome to do it but know that it’s not going to change my mind and it is probably not very fun for you. If you’d like some help thinking of something else to do, I’m happy to give you some ideas.”

Saying that aloud reinforces to THEM that I’m not going to budge AND to my brain that I’m committed to this course of action.

Scheduled or Limited Screen Time

This was the MOST popular answer by far and also the way we manage screen time at our house – from 5-6p.m. while I make dinner is when my kids know they can play computer games.

We had one daughter who started CONSTANTLY asking for screen time and I sat down with her and made it clear that we had a set time for screen time and if she kept asking for it beyond that time, we’d have to get rid of screen time altogether for a while. Once she knew I meant business and wasn’t going to cave, there have been no more issues.

Here are how other families manage scheduled or limited screen time:

“We just do an hour a day whether it’s school time or summer break. And it’s after dinner, so I don’t have to decide when to do it and the kids aren’t asking all day if they can do screens. I will sometimes do screen time earlier if we have other things going on in the evening but my kids know it is usually after dinner so they usually don’t ask for it earlier. And if they do ask, it’s an easy “no, after dinner” answer.“

“The biggest thing in our house— is not starting the day with screens! If my kiddos have early screen time— they are less creative and can’t move on. When they have screen time later in the day it goes much better for us! “

“Waiting until the hottest part of the day helps – we never do screens before 2pm.“

“My solution is to build screen time into our routine in a way that helps ME. We have a certain time of day when my kids are allowed to do screens (typically while I make dinner). They know when to expect it, and so they don’t ask the rest of the day. Do we make exceptions? Occasionally, but for the most part, that’s when screens happen and it makes my life so much easier!”

“We made a chart. Everyone had 5 hours of screen time a week. They had to keep track of their own time. If they wanted to do 5 hours on Monday, fine by me. But there was no screen time the rest of the week. Except for 1 rainy week, no one ever used all their screen time.”

“For the last two years we build recreational screen time (video games/shows/movies) into our day. It’s an understood part of the day just like reading, chores, piano practicing. A non-negotiable time frame and kids can choose their screen preference. “

“Get a router that sets limits on devices (makes it so I do not have to tell them to get off, device just stops working) Google family is also helpful.“

“I feel like some sort of morning “expectation” helps with this. Our family does swim team, and the chores. This fills up our mornings, so then we just have afternoons to contend with. I said this last year, kids want some kind of responsibility like chores. They will be happier. They don’t know they want it, but some kind of work expectation (and I think swim team or exercise counts!) helps them be happier and more creative during their afternoon free time.“

“We set clear times and a schedule for them – it’s loose but an order for the day. Screens are about 1.5 hours a day – then I have a big BORED buster list in the fridge. If they tell us they’re bored – we’ll remind them once about the list and the second time is a chore – “Okay! I’ll fill your time!”

“Everything has a timer at my house and once the tablet time runs out, it just shuts off. Same with video games. So they have to find other things to do, and if they tell me they’re bored, I have a chore chart! Also they do summer camps at the local rec center and they also do swim team so they get tired first thing in the morning.“

“Our kids know they get 60 minutes of screen time a week. They also know they’re not allowed to start any screen time until their daily privileges are accomplished (we call chores privileges because it is a privilege to own a dog and a natural job that comes with that privilege is poop scooping, it’s a privilege to sleep in a comfortable bed so making that bed each morning is a privilege, etc). I have cheap timers around the house that they set to manage their screen time. Once their screen time has been used it’s amazing to see how very capable they are of coming up with things to do. We started these things when my kids were young and as parents we hold strong to our set screen time limitations. Once the kids know you won’t budge, they stop begging for more. (PS that 60 minutes doesn’t include our Friday night family movie). As the parent you own the powers of screen time – so don’t let it overpower you!”

Do a Screen Time Detox

If the screen time is getting out of control at your house as the end of school approaches, a screen time detox can help reset things before summer begins. Here’s what how parents shared that they make this work:

“It is always an issue but last summer we did a “screen detox” at the start of summer – 2 weeks screen free. The only exception was an occasional family movie night. We printed off lists of things they could do if they got bored and they spent two weeks being creative and remembering how to have fun without screens! Then the rest of the summer it was much easier for them to figure out what to do when screen time was done.”

“This! We are currently detoxing till the end of school so that way hopefully we can introduce a controlled amount over the summer! But we have one kid that gets very addicted to it so we will see what happens.”

Go Screen Free

This may feel too extreme for some families but it is often easier to just not deal with them than try to manage them. Just know that if you do this, plenty of other families do too!

“Simple: zero screens except movie night on Friday. Extreme, but works and no whining because they know it’s not an option.”

“Start weaning them now!! Easiest way is to have dad take them away and he hides them without telling you where they are….then bam, you have no idea, so don’t ask me.”

“We do screen free summer. This means no screens ever unless INVITED by mom or dad. So they can’t ask for screen time, they can’t beg and whine for screen time. If it’s too hot outside and the kids need a break or we want to watch a movie as a family, mom or dad can invite them to enjoy some screen time. They can also ask for things like having a movie night with friends. It’s hard at first, but once they know they cannot even ask, they eventually find other things to do. The “I’m bored” complaints get fewer and fewer as the summer progresses. We’ve done this for 3 summers now and it’s been a game changer for our family.”

“This isn’t an issue for us, but it could be because I work remotely, so I’m home with the kids during the day. This summer will be our 3rd screen free summer. The kids know about it way in advance, we discuss ways to avoid being bored (even though I’m a firm believer that boredom births creativity) and come up with a huge list for them to reference. My kids are 10 and 6 and it works so well for us. Last year, we actually did 7 months without screens with minimal complaints.”

“I ban screens for summer and it makes our lives so much easier. We still do family movie nights and family switch nights, but no individual screens. Any type of limits, etc we made they always lead them to try and barter for more, or mope when it was don’t, so I nixed it. The first few days are tough, but totally worth it after that.”I ban screens for summer and it makes our lives so much easier. We still do family movie nights and family switch nights, but no individual screens. Any type of limits, etc we made they always lead them to try and barter for more, or mope when it was don’t, so I nixed it. The first few days are tough, but totally worth it after that.”

Physically Removing Them/Limited Devices

Out of sight out of mind works really well for some families when it comes to screen time!

“My plan – all handheld devices (and possibly the remote) will live in my room, so they can’t get on screens right away. A couple of my kids will wake up early and go right to a screen if they aren’t hidden. But if they are hidden, they’re usually pretty good at occupying themselves in other ways.”

“Physically removing the screens has been the most helpful for us. We put our TV on a rolling cart and keep it in our coat closet when not in use. We don’t have individual phones/iPads for our kids but I think a box/cabinet/basket would accomplish the same purpose. It helps soo much with not having them crave screens.”

“Mine are 5 and 7, just finishing kindergarten and second grades. One thing we do to limit screen time is that neither kid has an iPad/tablet. I am the only tablet person in the house and I don’t use it much (but use my phone). Sure, they get to use the tablet for about 20 minutes a week (if they ask), but it’s kind of out of sight, out of mind. They do watch about 20–30 minutes of TV some days, so we are not screen free. I think during the year I’m able to say, “did you use an iPad at school? No iPad/tablet at home.” We just started early with them not having access and making them choose playing with toys/reading/games/playing outside instead. Over the summer it may increase a bit, but not to everyday. They do get tablet time in the car and on airplanes because we limit it so much that those are “treat” times. Also to say, I teach preschool, so I am home with them all summer.“

Screen Time Incentives

This is a very popular way to manage screen time (although I’m wary of making screen time a reward since that makes it even more special and prized, so proceed with caution as you set up a system like this!).

Here are some ways that families shared that they do it:

“We do a mom store and it rocks our summer!! They have daily tasks that are required to get done, and if they finish them, they get a small amount of screen time. If they would like to earn more screen time, there are other things they can do to earn screen time like creative play, playing outside, reading a book (I make this task worth more screen time because it incentivizes more reading). I have a daughter who doesn’t care about screen time and so she can also choose to earn money or points that can be traded in for things like treats, mom and daughter date, pick the movie for a movie night, etc.)”

“We have a screen time chore list it’s not extensive but includes things like 20 minutes of reading, make your bed, get dressed/ready for the day, go outside for at least 30 minutes, create or build something, help parent with a chore, then they have earned 1 hour of screen time. Pretty simple and they don’t push back. Usually once they are outside they stay for much longer than 30 minutes and same with building or creating something.”

“For our household (since I’m home with the kids), I’m the giver of screentime. So, I can allow it or take it away. If anyone talks back, they will lose even more screen time. We have set screen time schedules, and I’ve set Alexa up to announce when it starts and ends. If they don’t listen to Alexa and turn off screens or argue, then we can just do no screen time (which at times is a punishment for me as well when I need to use it to distract the kids. ). I also set up optional chores or tasks and they can earn extra screen time. Screens are inevitable—might as well use them to my advantage when I can.”

“We started screen free summer last year the first week we paid $1 a day and then it went up 50c a week if you kept with it. We did do an occasional movie night with the fam but no individual screens and it helped me stay off screens too – best money I have spent all year.”

Be Prepared

This goes along with the first point about setting expectations, but being prepared for a summer without constant screens goes a long way to making it more doable to stick with!

Here are some of the ways parents set up their summers to not lean on screen time constantly:

“I know not all have this luxury, but my work schedule is extremely flexible so I’m able to get the kids outside to the mtns, etc quite often. And no screens in the car. Also, creating a culture in the home where screens are limited to certain days.”

“Screen free mornings here are often hobbies and audiobooks or podcasts. I intentionally check in and express willingness to buy supplies for their hobbies to support this! Also, an unpopular opinion, I feel like it’s the parents’ job to make sure we are building a life that is more interesting than screens sometimes.”

“When my kids were small we had themed days—movie Monday, Water Wednesday. Now we do time blocks: creative time, project time, screen time, outside, reading, outside, etc.”

“My best tip is to crowd out screens: library, pool, park, play date”

“I buy a few fun items on Amazon that I know my kids will enjoy and I bring them out at opportune times (a how to make balloon animals kit was one) We have had summer days where my kids spent HOURS several days in a row cranking out perler bead creations. We also try to work our way through all of our board games during the summer. And of course we read A LOT. I try to keep screens to a certain 2-hour block in the afternoon each day and then maybe a bit more in the evening, depending on things.“

“My favorite hack for that is to find a printable summer bucket list and pick something to do once a week. It’s visible and connecting and often free. It’s not on a screen.”

“Kind of like when you want to start eating healthier, and they tell you to ADD good stuff to your plate and focus less on taking things away— what can you ADD to summer that isn’t screen time? Family reading time? Coloring stuff? Sensory bin? Adventure walks?”

“Invest in a pool membership and go every day.”

Modeling

Modeling screen time is so important (and frankly, with a job like mine, hard for me every single day but I’m always working on it!).

One mom said: “I have to have screen rules for me, I’ve learned we do much better if there’s one time of the day that we allow screen time. Usually it’s right after lunch when the baby takes his nap. That way it doesn’t eat up our whole day. And each kid can pick one episode (2 kids).”

And a few book recommendations about screen time – if you need a little encouragement, try one of these books:

Reset Your Child’s Brain. One mom said, “this book has amazing tips that worked for us last summer!”
The Anxious Generation. This book took me months to get through (it’s not a sit down and plow through in one sitting kind of book) but it was super eye-opening and I still think about it all the time.
Stolen Focus. This book I DID blow through – it’s really about adults as much as kids and I found it absolutely riveting.
The Opt-Out Family. I’m reading this one now and absolutely loving it.

Any other suggestions for managing screen time for kids this summer? I’d love for you to weigh in!

Tips for Managing Summer Screen Time