“For our family of four kids, screens are an easy fallback.  The kids are happy being entertained by videos and games. And I get moments of peace and quiet and a chance to accomplish some work. That’s a win/win situation. But last summer, we tried something new. We decided to make a plan to help us be more intentional regarding our summer screen time…”

We often get asked what makes START special. Our answer? The way our community has pressed in and grabbed hold of our vision: to raise kids be captivated by life, not screens. Last night, we got to see that vision come to life in a magical way, when we linked arms with an awesome local nonprofit, Kindcraft.

When you feel like your kids know more about tech than you do, it can be easy to throw your hands in the air and give up on digital parenting. But we want to encourage you that you might know more than you think about technology. Just ask these preschoolers!

As a single mom, my relationship with my daughter is my top priority in a long list of to-dos everyday.   I would do anything for her well-being, and I try to be intentional about giving her my best each day but like most parents, I make mistakes along this journey…

Neurotherapist Susan Dunaway shares that over and over, parents come to her with the same plea for help: “Our kids are great kids, but it seems all their worst behaviors come out when we tell them it’s time to get off their screens. What do we do?” Check out her suggestions for helping your child stay in control when it’s time to hop off the screen time merry-go-round!

As screens—movies, TV, video games—present a world far more colorful and energetic than the created world itself, they not only ratchet up our expectations for what is significant and entertaining; they also undermine our ability to enjoy what we could call the abundance of the ordinary.  Andy Crouch, author of The Tech-Wise Family, shares more.

Not sure whether or not your kid is online at night? In this study, an astonishing 80% of both boys and girls admitted to being frequent vampers at least sometime during high school. They spent an average of 1-2 hours per night awake while their parents thought they were asleep.

Published recently by JoCo Magazine, this article takes a close look at the link between electronic device use, depression, and impaired executive functioning in teens. At START, we are proud to be part of a community that is coming together to tackle digital health, and excited to include Johnson County Government on the list of leaders helping raise awareness. Device addiction might be one of the biggest issues our community is facing, but we believe that—together—we can create new norms that promote healthy tech use.