Screen Time for Kids: Age-Based Recommendations and Rules That Work

Dinner is ready, but your child says "just one more episode". Homework is done, but the phone never leaves their hand. In many homes, screen time is the number one topic of daily arguments. And parents themselves are often unsure how much is "normal".

In this article we summarise the age-based recommendations of international health organisations, then focus on rules that genuinely work at home and reduce conflict.

Why screen time matters

Screens are not bad in themselves. Talking to grandma on a video call, watching a documentary, learning to code or playing games with friends can all be valuable experiences. The problem is what the screen replaces:

• Sleep: Screen light and stimulating content delay falling asleep. Lack of sleep directly affects attention, mood and learning.
• Physical activity: The more hours spent sitting still, the less children's daily need for movement is met.
• Face-to-face relationships: Family conversation, play and time with friends are essential for social and emotional development.
• Being able to be bored: Filling every empty moment with a screen can weaken a child's ability to invent their own games and to daydream.

Expert recommendations by age

The recommendations of organisations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) can be roughly summarised as follows:

For children under 5, the WHO stresses the principle that with sedentary screen time, "less is better". For school-age children, what matters more than a fixed number of minutes is that screens do not crowd out the healthy parts of daily life.

"Which hours" rather than "how many": time-window rules

Experience shows that time-window rules cause fewer arguments than a total daily limit, because the child knows in advance when screens are on and when they are off:

• School hours: Entertainment apps are off during lessons.
• Homework time: No games or social media until homework is done.
• Mealtimes: No phones or tablets at the table, adults included.
• Bedtime: Screens go off at least an hour before bed, and devices charge outside the bedroom.

These four rules already limit the total naturally. Adding a reasonable daily cap on top (for example 1.5–2 hours of entertainment on weekdays) may be enough.

8 ways to enforce screen rules without a fight

1. Write the rules together

Children follow rules more easily when they have had a say in them. Talk about the rules at a family meeting and write them down. The sample family agreement in our guide to a child's first phone is useful here too.

2. Give a warning

Instead of switching the screen off suddenly, say "it's going off in 10 minutes". Letting them finish a round of a game or an episode noticeably reduces outbursts.

3. Make the transition easier

Switching off is easier when it is clear what comes next: "When the tablet goes off, we're going to the park" or "When the phone goes off, let's bake a cake together."

4. Be consistent

Something allowed one day and banned the next teaches a child that the rule is negotiable. Weekend rules can differ; what matters is that they are known in advance.

5. Let technology be the referee

Enforcing the rule out loud every day turns the parent into the permanent "bad cop". When the rules apply on the device automatically, that tension drops: it is not you who switches the screen off when time is up, but the system you set up together.

6. Leave a way to ask for more time

Sometimes there really is a good reason: a game planned with a friend, a project that is almost finished. Having a clear, calm way to ask for extra time reduces secret use and arguments.

7. Lead by example

Children copy what we do more than what we say. A parent who looks at their phone at the dinner table will not make the "no phones at the table" rule convincing.

8. Do not make screens the only punishment

Taking the phone away for every bit of misbehaviour turns the screen into an even more valuable reward and makes it harder for your child to tell you about their problems. In particular, never take the phone away when your child tells you about a bad experience they had online.

Screen addiction or heavy use?

Not all heavy use is addiction. But if the following signs appear together and over a long period, it is a good idea to consult a specialist (a child psychiatrist or psychologist):

• Intense, persistent anger or anxiety when the screen is taken away
• Regularly neglecting sleep, meals and personal care
• Losing interest in activities and friends they used to enjoy
• A clear and lasting drop in school performance
• Lying to hide their use

Short videos and social media: a separate topic

Short-video platforms and social media are especially hard to put down because of endless scrolling and personalised recommendations. For these apps:

• Consider a shorter limit, separate from overall screen time.
• Make sure they are completely off at night.
• Talk with your child about how algorithms work: "This app is designed to keep you on it for as long as possible."

Screen time rules with Koriva

In Koriva, daily limits and school and bedtime rules are enforced on the child's phone; you manage them from your own phone and can see that the rule is being applied. When time runs out, your child can ask for more time from the block screen, and you grant +15, +30 or +60 minutes or decline from the notification. Extra time ends at midnight, and the rules start again the next day. On Android you can also see how much time was spent in each app.

An important note: on iPhone, Apple does not share per-app usage time with third-party apps. That is why a detailed per-app usage report is only possible on Android, and on iPhone requests for more time may arrive with a delay. This is not a Koriva choice; it is a limit of the iPhone.

Conclusion

The goal of managing screen time is not to remove screens from life but to make them a healthy part of it. As long as sleep, movement, schoolwork and face-to-face relationships are protected, a few hours of games or videos is not a disaster. Clear time windows, rules written together and consistent enforcement are the trio that works best.

To learn about the risks in children's gaming world, have a look at our article on online gaming safety.