Happy New Year, San Diego!
8 VOL. 6 ISSUE 1
HOW YOUR FAMILY CAN ADOPT HEALTHIER DIGITAL HABITS IN 2021
MOM’S TIPS FOR DISTANCE LEARNING FROM HOME
By Sharon Sardina
(StatePoint) As we head into 2021, adults and kids alike may still be enjoying the excitement of digital devices received as gifts. The new year is a great time for a reset, so with those new devices, consider adopting some digital habits. Here are some great ideas for helping your family build healthier relationships with their digital devices: • Get healthy: Not all screen time is wasted time. You can use your device in positive, productive ways that help your family work toward improved physical health. For example, a steps counter might encourage your family to move more or even take up running, while a yoga app can help guide your family through quick routines you can practice from the comfort of home. • Get smart: Likewise, the members of your family can use their devices to exercise their minds. Encourage everyone to let their smartphones and tablets double function as e-readers, and to download apps that teach new skills and build knowledge. You can even try setting a goal as a family, such as learning a new language using the same app. • Schedule digital downtime: Too much screen time is associated with poor quality sleep, increased anxiety and a range of other health concerns, so be sure each day includes digital downtime. This is important if your family is working and learning from home. Make the most of these screen-free blocks by engaging in active play, moving, getting fresh air or spending quality time together. • Get assistance: Making sure every member of the family is using their device only in safe and healthy ways is easier said than done, however, a parental guidance app can help. Using OurPact for example, you can remotely establish automated schedules for when internet, apps and the device itself are unavailable. Features include URL whitelisting and blacklisting, daily screen time allowances and iMessage/SMS blocking, helping ensure device usage passes your approval. Available at the iOS App Store and Google Play Store, parents can also sign up for an account at www.ourpact.com. PHOTO SOURCE: (c) nd3000 / iStock via Getty Images Plus
Well, here we are, finally in the year 2021. The year everyone couldn’t wait to arrive. The year we all started counting down to in March and anxiously waited for the calendar to say-- January 1.2021. Many of us moms could have bet all the back-seat goldfish we found while we had all this time on our hands cleaning our car during the lockdown, that we would be back in school in October, then we thought November, ok maybe December? Come on!!! School has to go back in person, right?? We can’t possibly be online forever?? Or can we? Cue the dramatic music. We have been exclusively doing distance learning now since March. Our school has never returned to on-campus learning. We bought desks, chromebooks, put our Pinterest worthy organization skills to good use, made sure to set up a quiet space for our kids to kill this distance learning and set a billion alarms on our phone to remind us to log in and take a lunch. Some of us may be working from home alongside our children and some of us have become full-time teachers now whether it be lesson planning, to editing, to writing assignments, to doing art projects with our children all while making 32,167 breakfasts, lunches and snacks a week. Boy do these kids eat all the time! We literally have become the school teacher, the librarian, the attendance clerk, the lunch lady, the custodian and maybe for some the principal. Many of us are left wondering whether our kids will ever return to school like it used to be back in 2019. Ahhh what a great year that was. I really didn’t imagine we would be starting our 2nd semester of the 20/21 school year online. I keep reminding myself that nothing is forever...goodness I really hope this holds true. Here are a few tips that have helped me navigate three boys doing distance learning from home. Give them GRACE! Remember they are adjusting to the new normal like we are. Lower expectations. I don’t mean to give up on their good grades, I mean remember that learning online is not for everyone and if a A falls to a B, everything will still be ok. As long as they are moving forward, it is all good! No distractions. Set them up a space where they can focus and are free from distractions like the TV or siblings. Wi-Fi availability. We had to buy a 2nd router to maintain 3 kids online at the same time. There is nothing more frustrating for kids
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Sharon poses with her husband Brian.
when they lose connection. Give them praise and encouragement! No matter what school looks like, remind them that they, and we, are doing the best we can, and their effort and hard work does not go unnoticed. Have fun and laugh! Remember Mamas, we are all in this together, although some of our distance learning from home looks
different, but we shall conquer this together as one. Our kids are not so behind academically, they have learned to be resilient learners and that is gold. Sharon Sardina is a stay-at-home mom with three active active boys. She loves baking, decorating, exercise and motivating other moms to be their best. Stay tuned for more from this energetic lady!
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