Epoch Times - A Smartphone-Free Childhood Is Possible. Here’s How.

Sept. 13, 2025 - Epoch Times

03:45

A Smartphone-Free Childhood Is Possible. Here’s How. | Clare Morell

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	I wanted to talk to parents of teenagers who had successfully actually made it through the tween and teen years resisting these devices.
	And I found a couple kind of common principles.
	And so that's what then makes up really the body of the book is walking through.
	We talked about detoxing.
	I call that part of the book fast.
	So we first have to kind of fast from these digital technologies, but then how do you sustain this over the long term?
	And I use the acronym feast to describe these kind of core principles that these families all had in common.
	And so I'll just briefly go through that acronym.
	So F is find other families.
	E is educate and explain and exemplify.
	And so that's about educating your children on the harms and explaining the rationale behind these restrictions and exemplifying a healthy use as we were discussing as parents to our children.
	A is adopt alternatives.
	And that's what I was explaining in the beginning that there's alternative phone options available.
	And so these families really delayed the age of first cell phone until it was like absolutely necessary for a child to have one.
	Often that was when they started driving, like they genuinely needed something for communication.
	And then they adopted an alternative to a smartphone instead.
	And then S is setting up digital accountability in the home and family screen rules.
	And so a lot of these families, what they explained was that no communication channels of a child were private, that if they had an email account or they had uh even a dumb phone with texting, that there was this understanding of transparency that it didn't mean a parent was going to be constantly surveilling or snooping on what they were doing, but just that if a parent had a concern, they could check these commu channels of communication.
	And that expectation of digital accountability was itself the protection.
	Just a child knowing that a parent could check this, you know, communication channel really protected them from getting into harmful things in those in those contexts.
	And then um because the book, I think people think, oh, the tech exit, and it's just it's a shorthand for really talking about smartphones, social media, and these kind of interactive screens that are incredibly addicting.
	It's not anti-teaching children how to use technology truly as a tool.
	So how to use a computer as of the tool it was meant to be.
	And so these families then they use computers um in ways that are very purposeful and public.
	So the very public screen in the home where a parent can see what a child is doing, and they're going on for a very specific purpose, which is not entertainment, but maybe they're gonna practice computer coding skills or they're gonna do a research project for school.
	No, that's using the technology properly as a tool.
	And so that's something all these families had in common as well.
	And then if they did use any screen entertainment, it was always sparing and shared.
	And so again, I'm not anti-television ever, but really thinking intentionally about how you're using that, if you're watching a family movie, doing that as a it's a rare occasion, not a daily habit.
	And it's something that is a shared experience.
	It's not dividing the family, every person on their own individualized screen, but it's a communal screen that's actually bringing the family together around a shared experience.
	So those were some key principles of as to how they thought wisely about what tech use would look like in the home, particularly around computers and television.
	So public and purposeful entertainment sparing and shared.
	And then the T, this was my favorite chapter to write, was that they trade the screens for these real life responsibilities and pursuits for their kids and things that will actually help them progress towards adulthood.
	So as they restrict freedoms in the virtual world, they are opening up more freedoms for children in the real world in ways that will help them progress towards adulthood, like allowing them to take on more responsibilities initially just around the home, like taking on more adult-like chores or tasks, and then gradually allowing them more independence outside of the home, the ability to ride their bike to the neighbor's house or starting a first job, like mowing people's lawns or babysitting, things that actually help them progress in their skills towards adulthood.

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