**Finally: an evidence-based, reassuring guide to what to do about kids
and screens, from video games to social media.
**Today's babies often make their debut on social media with the very
first sonogram. They begin interacting with screens at around four
months old. But is this good news or bad news? A wonderful opportunity
to connect around the world? Or the first step in creating a generation
of addled screen zombies?
Many have been quick to declare this the dawn of a neurological and
emotional crisis, but solid science on the subject is surprisingly hard
to come by. In The Art of Screen Time, Anya Kamenetz -- an expert on
education and technology, as well as a mother of two young children --
takes a refreshingly practical look at the subject. Surveying hundreds
of fellow parents on their practices and ideas, and cutting through a
thicket of inconclusive studies and overblown claims, she hones a simple
message, a riff on Michael Pollan's well-known "food rules" Enjoy
Screens. Not too much. Mostly with others.
This brief but powerful dictum forms the backbone of a philosophy that
will help parents moderate technology in their children's lives, curb
their own anxiety, and create room for a happy, healthy family life with
and without screens.
