Tips media usage

On Thursday, March 7, 2024, Ivan Tijsmans gave a lecture for parents and teachers called: "Prikkelraad, about the mobile phone use of the pocket generation". The students of the 4th, 5th and 6th grades had already attended his lecture on Tuesday, March 5, slightly adapted to the audience so that both parents and children ultimately returned home with the same findings.

But many parents were unable to attend and because we consider this a very important topic, we have collected some tips here. Not all the tips below come from the lecture, we also got tips from elsewhere.

We have created an infographic with tips from Ivan Tijsmans that was distributed via the newsletter and you can find additional tips here.

Apps that help to reduce screentime

In the lecture, Ivan Tijsmans gave the following apps as tips to limit your screen time. We briefly provide some information about each app below.

You can also develop your own reward system.

Forest

When you want to focus on your work, plant a tree. This grows as long as you are at work (and therefore not using your smartphone). If you use your smartphone faster than you planned, your tree will die. The intention is to eventually have a large forest.

Meer informatie

Focus dog

Start a focus challenge with this productivity app that feels like a game and earn rewards like donuts, gems and coins.

Develop the habit of responsible phone use by feeding your virtual dog named Focus with donuts.

Meer informatie

Focus plant

Start your focus session and save the barren landscape by converting your focus time into raindrops and plants.

Flipd

Flipd is a time tracking app that encourages you to stay motivated towards your goals. The interface uses positive reinforcement and other motivational cues to make you feel good about your progress.

Meer informatie

More tips

Not all apps have to be on both the smartphone and the tablet. For example, only put the functional apps on your smartphone and the others on the tablet.

Join your child's social media, play a game together, ... Show interest in what your child does online.

Talk to your child about what is and is not allowed online and make agreements about this. Media literacy is important.

Unfollow accounts that don't make you/your child feel good.
There are also good examples on social media that you can follow, such as on Instagram, for example bookmark (for children's book tips). Remove or disable notifications from interfering apps to reduce the urge to use them.

Put away your smartphone! You can buy a bell jar online for this purpose, but an empty shoe box works just as well. This way you remove the visual stimulus.

Dare to break the circle of 24/7 accessibility.
With many (newer) smartphones you can set settings so that your smartphone, for example, turns off the notifications every night. You can of course also manually turn off notifications on your smartphone, for example at work, school or parties.

Do not put the smartphone and tablet in your room when you go to sleep and agree, for example, not to use them for the first hour of each day.

Find alternative activities. Replace your smartphone use with other activities you enjoy, such as reading, exercising, walking, or spending time with friends and family. Or start a new hobby!

Stop multitasking: do 1 thing at a time! Make an agreement not to watch TV and scroll at the same time, for example.

Make it a competition to avoid using media for as long as possible.

Sources

Tijsmans I. (z.d.). Prikkelraad. Kopjekop. Geraadpleegd op 9 maart 2024, van https://sites.google.com/view/kopjekopbe/lezingen/prikkelraad

The Green Guide (z.d.). Verslaafd aan je mobiel? (20 simpele telefoonverslaving tips). Geraadpleegd op 9 maart 2024, van https://thegreenguide.nl/telefoonverslaving/

Schuitemaker A. (2018, maart). Ook toe aan een digital detox? TvOO. Geraadpleegd op 9 maart 2024,

https://www.careerandlive.nl/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/TVOO-2018-01-12.pdf

MediaNest. (z.d.). 3 manieren om je kind te begeleiden op vlak van digitale media. Geraadpleegd op 9 maart 2024, van https://www.medianest.be/3-manieren-om-je-kind-te-begeleiden-op-vlak-van-media#:~:text=Moedig%20je%20kind%20aan%20om,een%20probleem%20op%20te%20lossen.