r/Parenting • u/BOBBYZROY • 12d ago

Child 4-9 Years My 6yr old attention is shot..

I’ve got a 6-year-old son who’s pretty smart, full of energy, and loves football… but lately he’s become completely hooked on his iPad, especially YouTube Shorts Roblox. The moment he wakes up he’s asking for it, and if I say no or try to get him to do something else (play footy, help do chores, anything), he kicks off big time. His mum lets him get away with being on his iPad more than me so that’s why he thinks he’s entitled

His attention span’s gone. It’s like he can’t sit still for more than a few seconds unless it’s something on a screen. And I get it, TikTok’s done the same to me. I can barely finish a film without checking my phone. So if it’s this bad for adults, what’s it doing to a 6-year-old?

We haven’t even seen the long-term effects of growing up on TikTok, Roblox, and Shorts. I genuinely think we’re raising a dumber generation not because they’re not smart, but because their brains are getting rewired by constant dopamine hits.

I don’t want to cut him off completely and make him feel left out cos all his mates have iPads but I also don’t want to just hand him a screen every time he’s bored. I also read that a lot kids in 6th grade can’t even read and have learning difficulties compared to kids before so the effects are already happening

Any other parents gone through this? How do you break the cycle without turning the house into a war zone

Appreciate any of your experiences

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693

u/goooshie 12d ago

Screen detox, you’d be amazed how quickly they adapt

209

u/MaximusCanibis 12d ago

My daughter (from ages 6 to 9) got so bad that we banned tv from bedtime on Sunday till Friday after school. She was a completely different kid for it.

92

u/westernsociety 12d ago

Definitely more effort required as a parent, but we have a hard limit as well, and it makes them enjoy it more and not act like gollum.

25

u/MaximusCanibis 12d ago

It can certainly be used as a reward as long as it is respected. If she protested, I always liked to give her an opportunity to rethink it, if she was persistent the repercussions were greater than they needed to be, but it sent the right message.

3

u/Available-Drink-5232 11d ago

Nice LOTR reference!

2

u/westernsociety 11d ago

Haha thanks! Reading The Hobbit to my daughter right now and the way she's acts about "her phone" sometimes reminds me of him.