Susan Swartz wrote an insightful article, "For kids, what's the right amount of screen time?" in Sunday's Press Democrat that brought up concerns about the amount of time kids spend engaged with screens. I agree with the concern but was disappointed that the article did little to provide solutions to the problem.
Let me offer a suggestion...
Make something and play with it.
This suggestion applies not just to kids but to adults too. Even better, parents should make something with their children.
As the owner of a hobby, game, and toy store I readily admit to being biased. However with very little effort, you can find many studies that describe the benefits of bulding things and playing games. Creative hobby and game activities can help children improve social skills, problem solving, and math literacy. Hobbies and games help adults relieve stress and improve their sense of well-being; these same activities can also help to ward off mental decline as we age. Getting yourself and your kids involved in hobbies and games will deliver life-long benefits.
Here are a few examples:
We host many game days at Fundemonium and I often find myself explaing all the activity to our customers. I stress that beyond the fun of playing a miniatures or collectible card game, players are learning strategy, tactical execution, and calculating probability of complex dice rolls. In the case of miniatures games, players are also assembling and creatively painting their game pieces.
On model building days, I am encouraged to see adult model builders helping younger modelers with their kits. We also have parents show up with their children to work on models together. Scale model building develops hand-eye coordination, problem solving regarding assembly methods, and creativity for painting and detailing. A model project can be as simple as quickly snapping together a kit that to play with all the way to researching the history of a model subject and modifying a kit to enhance its accuracy.
Model railroading and radio control hobbies involve additional skills like wiring, tuning motors, programming radios, and making repairs.
I have many great family memories of sitting around the table playing a game, building models together, and racing slot cars on our home track. I remember giving a radio controlled truck to my son one Christmas. He broke it the next day but then we fixed it together. He quickly progressed to enjoying the disassembly, customization, and reassembly of the truck almost as much as driving it. Later, he applied those skills to mountain bikes and his own full-size car. Just try to get that experience from a screen.
Parents concerned about reducing screen time for their children should get them involved in making things. Don't just buy a model or construction kit for your child, sit down and make it together. Don't just go to a big-box toy department, go to your local hobby, game, or toy store and talk to people who are eager to help you.
Below I've listed some links to local Sonoma County hobby clubs, as well as local hobby, game, and toy stores. (I apologize to those I will surely miss.) Of course I hope you will also check out the many activities on our Fundemonium calendar and visit our store.
Thank you for reading. Now turn off the screen and go make something.
Clubs:
- International Plastic Modelers Society
- Wine Country Modelers
- Fundemonium Petaluma Wargamers Group
- Coastal Valley Lines
- Redwood Empire Garden Railway Society
- Wine Country Flyers
- Liberty Flyers
- Quad Flyers Group
- Redwood Empire R/C Ground Pounders
Local Stores: