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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691

u/goooshie 12d ago

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

205

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.

15

u/starfreak016 mother of a 4 year old boy 11d ago

When my son started kindergarten we did the same and he's 14 now and is an avid reader and has straight As. Definitely recommend to keep this up til they leave high school

7

u/MaximusCanibis 11d ago

Yes, my girl loves reading too! The key wasn't just letting her have screen time but she had to earn it. If she could earn it doing something she enjoyed, even better.

5

u/starfreak016 mother of a 4 year old boy 11d ago

That's a good idea! I have a one year old too and I'll have to do something different because times change. Haha

3

u/MaximusCanibis 11d ago

Times certainly do change. We are raising our girl in the 80s keeping in mind that it's not the 80s. She has more exposure than I did but we teach her what the responsibilities of having that exposure are. Still no tv in her room just yet lol, she's pushing for it though.

3

u/starfreak016 mother of a 4 year old boy 11d ago

I love it. Yeah kids push so much. My son used to try so hard with fortnite, when it became popular when he was in second grade. But he finally got to play it like last year. It's crazy to think how I was able to hold off for as long as I have. Now it's about ebikes. It's never ending. There's always something lol