Culture Reframed: Healthy Screen Time Habits for Kids
In this webinar, our founder, Adrienne Principe, partnered with Culture Reframed for a conversation about what parents can do today to help their kids and teens reclaim childhood and prepare for a high-tech world.
Helping Families Safely Navigate the Online World A Conversation with Two Digital Wellness Experts
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Highlights from a Culture Reframed Webinar: Keeping Tech in Check
Phones, tablets, and other digital devices are part of daily life for young people. In the U.S., average daily screen use can reach as much as six hours for ages 8–12 and nine hours or more for teens. While these tools can provide entertainment, connection, and learning opportunities, research shows that excessive use and the content consumed can fuel anxiety, depression, and other harms. Helping kids develop healthy screen time habits is essential for protecting their mental health, fostering real-world skills, and maintaining a balanced life.
Two digital wellness experts shared practical strategies for parents and caregivers during a recent Culture Reframed webinar, “Keeping Tech in Check: Helping Kids Lead Healthy Digital Lives”:
Julia Storm is the founder of ReConnect, a whole-child and whole-family approach to helping parents prepare kids for life in the digital age. A Los Angeles–based Digital Wellness Educator and Screen Time Coach, Storm combines her professional background in film, television, and digital media with her certification from The Digital Wellness Institute and years of experience working directly with families. She is also a teaching partner with Common Sense Media’s Common Sense Schools Program and Sleepy Planet Parenting.
Adrienne Principe is the founder of Turning Life On, a movement dedicated to transforming societal norms around smart devices, social media, and technology use. A certified child and teen coach and founding member of the Children’s Screen Time Action Network’s “Screens in Schools” Working Group, Principe works with parents, educators, and legislators to promote balanced, values-based tech use at home, in schools, and in communities.
During their discussion moderated by Dr. Mandy Sanchez, Director of Programming at Culture Reframed, Storm and Principe explored the impact of screen time and online content on young people’s health and well-being and shared practical ways to help kids develop balanced, respectful relationships with technology.
From identifying the most significant risks to sharing everyday strategies, the following takeaways from their conversation highlight practical steps families and communities can take to keep technology in check.
Understanding the Risks Associated With Screen Time for Young People
Storm identified three main concerns about the impact of excessive screen time and online content on young people:
Dopamine overload from constant exposure to highly stimulating content, especially short videos, which can make everyday life feel less engaging. “Kids are living in this heightened state of dopamine, and the result of that is that everything else becomes a bit less interesting. It’s harder to engage. There’s a lack of motivation.”
Information overload, which contributes to stress and anxiety. “It’s so much, and I think that really contributes to a general sense of anxiety.”
Displacement of time away from real-world experiences and skill-building activities.
Principe added that addictive design makes self-regulation nearly impossible for children. “It’s just really hard to resist that addictive nature, and that’s why we need to start holding big tech more responsible for what they’re doing.” She noted that early overuse can delay the development of essential skills like empathy, self-soothing, and sharing.
Lead with Empathy, Not Fear
Kids didn’t choose to grow up in a digital age, and many adults also struggle to manage tech. Storm encouraged parents to shift from an adversarial stance to an ally and mentor role:
“Instead of feeling like we’re fighting them all the time, let’s come in with a different approach. Let’s be open-minded. Let’s be curious about this world that they’re embedded in. If there’s something that you don’t like about it, you’re going to have much more of a leg to stand on if you’re not constantly saying no and poo-pooing every single thing.”
Principe agreed, stressing that conversations about technology should start early and be grounded in the values of the family: “When you approach parenting from a values-based perspective, you’re not just preparing kids for the online world, you’re preparing them for the world in general.”
Use Core Values to Set Tech Boundaries
Principe recommends identifying core values and using them to shape tech rules. For example, “people come first” (devices down when someone is present). Storm suggests co-creating a family media plan so children can help set reasonable limits and understand the reasons behind them.
Practical Guidelines for Healthy Screen Time Habits
Delay smartphones and social media. “Waiting until at least age 14 before introducing internet-enabled phones gives you the ability to talk to your kid about how they’re experiencing technology before you just give them access to everything,” said Principe.
Enforce limits. Keep devices out of bedrooms overnight, collect them at agreed-upon times, and use downtime or app limits. “If I had to choose one boundary: keep them out of the bedroom overnight. Maybe even more so for your teenagers,” Storm advised.
Focus on balance. Look for signs of a thriving child: adequate sleep, regular physical activity, strong offline friendships, hobbies, school engagement, and family connection.
Community Support Matters
Principe’s Turning Life On helps grassroots leaders shift local norms — from “wait until eighth” pledges to phone-free school initiatives — so families can set limits without children feeling left out. Community-driven activities also give kids offline options that naturally reduce screen time. “When communities come together to talk about technology, they start to adopt different ideas around the way that we should live with technology,” she said.
Watch the full conversation to hear more from Julia Storm and Adrienne Principe, including how to talk to kids about manipulative online design, respond when they’re exposed to harmful content, and empower communities to promote healthy screen time habits and keep tech in check.