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American Academy of Pediatrics

TECH NOW: Rules of the road for kids and tablets

Jennifer Jolly
Special for USA TODAY
As kids grow, so will the desire to get their hands on a tablet.

Most of us feel at least a twinge of guilt when we hand the kids a tablet at a restaurant or during a long car ride — but the payoff in peace? Totally worth it. Like binge-watching one more episode of Scandal, these stolen minutes are sometimes just what the mommy-doctor ordered. But is it worth it to temporarily zombify youngsters just to take a breather? In this Part 2 of our kids and tablets series, we look at the rules of the road.

KEEP AN EYE ON SCREEN TIME

Between the iPotty and the new iPad equipped baby bouncy seats, it's obvious slate time for the stroller set is soaring. Not only are more kids using mobile devices, but they're spending more time on them.

Some doctors now fear that too much time spent tapping and swiping could actually set back physical development in toddlers and young children. If kids aren't getting enough varied activity they could be missing out on activities vital to a healthy, growing body. "A child's brain develops rapidly during these first years, and young children learn best by interacting with people, not screens," warns the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). It recommends "no" passive screen time for children under the age of two. Ignore that guideline, it says, and you risk setting kids up for attention and focus problems, difficulty in school and issues with sleep, eating and obesity.

But when it comes to tablets specifically, the scientific community admits that tech's popularity is sprinting ahead of studies tracking its neurological and cognitive impact. "The bottom line is that it's so new we don't know if it's good, bad or otherwise," said Tovah Klein, director of the Barnard College Center for Toddler Development.

The official verdict: The Academy recommends that tablet time for kids ages 3 and under should be approached on a case-by-case basis, and that tablet time should be allowed "judiciously."

My advice: It's best to use the tablet as a last-ditch pacifier and save screen time for those "I-need-a-distraction-right-now!" moments. Supervise activity, limit screen time, and be sure to balance it all with a healthy dose of hands-on play-time.

PUSH FOR PLUGGED-IN BALANCE

As kids grow, so will their desire to get their hands on a tablet. Walk down the toy aisle at Walmart or Target and you'll see a slew of new, high-powered devices that sport kid-friendly content, thick plastic bumpers, and prices ranging anywhere from $60 to $350.

As powerful as today's tablets are, buying one isn't like buying a computer. This purchase is less about what the device can do than the content it can help your child connect with. Think carefully about how freely you want kids digging into apps, movies and the Internet.

Kid-specific tablets, like those from ClickN Kids, Kurio, VTech, Fuhu, or LeapFrog, are like tablets with training wheels, and a can be a great way for youngsters to cut their cyber-teeth.

These devices come loaded with varying degrees of age-specific games, educational apps, parental controls, content filters, and even timers — to help with that whole too much screen-time issue. We review these, and other "grown-up" tablets in part three of this series.

The "right" time to hand one over depends on you and your child. Are you ready to moderate, monitor and encourage healthy use of your child's new tech toy? If your answer is an enthusiastic "Yes!" then a tablet can be a fantastic first step toward the tech-savvy lives kids seem to adopt without even trying.

In kids' hands, tablets essentially become high-tech toys — and games are exactly what most kids are using their tablets for, according to a 2012 Nielsen report. Just remember, as engrossed and engaged as tots look using tablets, what little research exists shows that they're often more focused on interacting, rather than absorbing, processing, and actually learning something on them.

TABLET TIME FOR OLDER KIDS AND TEENS

The trick to steering older kids and teens toward slate-sanity is to focus on what they're using their tablets to do rather than the fact that they're using their tablets yet again. Tweens and teens will shrug you off as hopelessly behind the times if you decry their tablets as evil, brain-destroying devices appropriate in only strictly rationed doses. They know better — these are, after all, the same devices used as educational tools in many schools.

So don't muddy the waters by fretting about how much time kids are spending on them. Instead, keep an eye on what they're using them to do. Ask questions, review downloads, browse user profiles and stay engaged with the things that interest your child. As you build trust and communication, your child's tablet will become a source of things worth doing, reading and talking about — instead of a battleground over privacy and control.

Some kids need a stronger lead than others, and you may end up needing some hard-and-fast time limits, especially if your kids take their tablets with them on the go. Still, you don't want to be that harridan screeching "Your hour is up! No more tablet time!" when all your eye-rolling teen wants is an evening reading e-books on the Kindle. A lighter touch goes a long way in situations like this.

BUILDING GOOD TABLET HABITS

Your kids are going to mirror your best and worst tech traits. Are you setting them up with a healthy outlook on technology or simply encouraging them to use it as an escape? Are you spending quality time as a family "unplugged?"

It's the same fight parents have been waging for decades against TV and video games. As a parent, you might already have a gut instinct about building decent tablet habits, but if you're searching for validation, there are simple lifestyle habits you can keep an eye on: Does your child appear to have a healthy social relationship with peers, or are they skipping after-school play time in favor of the glowing screen? Are they able to put homework on the top of the to-do list, or is one last level in Candy Crush too enticing to ignore?

If the answers fall too often on the side of bad tablet habits, it's time to institute some rigid rules. If you're worried that your child is missing out on peer bonding, put a time limit on tablet use that promotes non-digital activities, and if responsibilities are being ignored, draft a rule that says homework and chores must be completed before any digital playtime commences. I'm sure you've heard it before, but it's worth repeating, keep the gadgets out of the bedrooms, especially at night.

Next weekend, in parts three and four of this kids and tablets series, we review a spate of kids slates and help you pin down the right tablet for your kids. We'll also tell you what you need to do, to keep kids safe once they're off and running with a tablet of their own.

Jennifer Jolly is an Emmy Award-winning consumer tech contributor and host of USA TODAY's digital video show TECH NOW. E-mail her at techcomments@usatoday.com. Follow her on Twitter: @JenniferJolly.

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