Tech playdates: Turning screen time into quality time

Gaming: It’s not just mindless shooting

For many parents, video games might seem like shallow entertainment or, worse, a waste of time. However, gaming can be much more than that – especially when you play together. By diving into your child's favourite games, you not only learn about their world but also open up new avenues for communication and trust.

Benefits for your child:

·       Teamwork and strategy: Playing co-op games together fosters teamwork, as you plan strategies, overcome challenges, and celebrate victories as a team. And, of course – it’s fun!

·       Understanding and trust: Stepping into your child’s gaming world helps build trust, making you more approachable for other, more serious conversations.

·       Skill development: Many games enhance cognitive skills, including problem-solving, planning, and even visuospatial processing.

Parental tips:

·       Discuss cyberbullying: Use gaming as an opportunity to discuss online safety, particularly the risks of cyberbullying. Make sure your child knows what to do if they encounter cyberbullying and reassure them that they can come to you if they face any issues online.

·       Monitor microtransactions: Talk to your child about in-game purchases and the importance of financial literacy. Make sure they know that while in-app purchases might be tempting, they should still approach them responsibly – just like they would in the offline world.

·       Talk about screen time: Engage in an open conversation with your child about the importance of balancing screen time with other activities. Together, set reasonable limits on how much time they spend gaming each day. Involve them in creating a schedule that includes both gaming and other responsibilities or hobbies, which helps them learn time management and the value of moderation.

Get creative together

Creativity thrives when it's shared. By exploring digital creation tools together, you and your child can turn screen time into a workshop for innovation and problem-solving. Whether you’re coding, designing digital art, or conducting virtual science experiments, these activities offer endless possibilities for learning and bonding. 

Benefits for your child:

·       Learning together: Platforms like Scratch, Tynker, or code.org offer beginner-friendly coding exercises that you can work on together, building your child’s problem-solving skills, context thinking and resilience.

·       Boosting creativity: Working on a common project, like programming a simple game or creating digital art, encourages innovation and persistence. Celebrate your achievements together, reinforcing the value of hard work and teamwork. And you can even use your work to participate in some competitions. If you win, it’s a win for everyone!

Parental tips:

·  Encourage persistence: Teach your child that it’s okay to struggle with a project and that persistence pays off. Explore strategies that can help your child cope with frustration and time management, such as breaking a project down into smaller tasks. You can easily draw from your own experience of what you do at work to be efficient. In addition to perseverance, you should also discuss that it's okay to let go of a project. Sometimes, it's best to step away and find a new, fresh approach.

·       Resource sharing: If you and your child hit a roadblock, explore online resources together, such as YouTube tutorials. While doing so, take the opportunity to discuss the importance of using our skills responsibly. For example, there’s a difference between learning coding for creative or problem-solving purposes and using those skills unethically, like hacking. Encourage open conversations about the ethical use of technology and how to stay on the right side of digital boundaries.

·       Explore AI together: Introduce AI tools in a creative context, like using an AI to generate art based on your descriptions. This can also spark a conversation about the ethical use of AI, including the importance of verifying information and being aware of AI's limitations. 

Digital education builds persistence: View of a specialist

As Alena Kanabová from Accenture, who specialises in children's digital education, said in a recent interview for Safer Kids Online: “Programming is an excellent way to develop problem-solving skills, analytical thinking, and resilience. It teaches children not to give up when something doesn’t work right away, encouraging them to find new approaches and collaborate with others to solve problems. These skills are transferable to many other areas of life. Programming also helps children build critical thinking abilities, which will be invaluable throughout their lives. They learn to independently research information online, verify its accuracy, and not blindly trust everything they see.”

Find out more about the importance of digital education in our new article!

Write your first collaborative novel

Storytelling is a wonderful way to connect, especially when you can create stories together. Using digital tools, you and your child can weave tales that reflect your collective imagination while honing their writing and creative thinking skills.

Benefits for your child:

·       Enhanced creativity: Platforms like Storybird, Plotagon, Toontastic and others help bring stories to life with visual elements, enhancing your child’s creativity.

·       Leadership and trust: Letting your child take charge of the story shows you trust their creative instincts, which can be empowering.

Parental tips:

·       Use stories to open up dialogue: Collaborative storytelling can help you approach difficult topics that might be hard to discuss directly. For example, writing a story together about overcoming challenges can start a conversation about resilience and problem-solving in real life.

·       Discuss misinformation: While using AI tools, explain how AI can sometimes create or spread misinformation. Emphasise the importance of verifying facts and encourage critical thinking when interacting with AI-generated content.

Going on vacation? Create a shared digital diary

Documenting your adventures through a digital diary can make your family trips even more unforgettable. It’s nice to have a memory to look back at in a year or two, remembering all the places you visited and fun times you had.  Not only do digital diaries serve as a creative outlet, but they also provide a platform for discussing online privacy. Apps such as Journey or Penzu offer secure, private journaling options.

Benefits for your child:

·       Shared memories: Creating a digital diary together – for example, writing a small entry for each day together, or taking turns in describing the adventures you had – allows both of you to document your experiences from different perspectives, providing a deeper understanding of how you and your child view the world.

·       Learning about privacy: Recording your adventures can lead to discussions and contemplations about privacy. What are some of our experiences that we would like to share with everyone? And which parts of our day would we only discuss with those we trust?

Parental tips:

·       Encourage reflection: Ask your child to share their perspective on the experiences you document together, which can deepen your understanding of their thoughts and feelings.

·       Talk about oversharing: Explain the dangers of oversharing online and help your child understand what information is safe to post publicly. You can use examples from your own online presence to illustrate the point.

Explore virtual worlds together

Technology can take you places you might not be able to visit in person. Virtual tours of museums, historical sites, or even outer space can be both educational and inspiring, sparking your child's curiosity and broadening their horizons.

Benefits for your child:

·       Digital literacy: Exploring new technology like VR together enhances your child's digital literacy while providing an engaging learning experience. However, keep in mind that VR might not be suitable for younger children, as it can sometimes cause confusion or even fear. When your child tries the technology for the first time, be there for them and make sure they feel comfortable and safe. For older children, however, VR can be a great way to explore new worlds and technologies.

Shared knowledge: Virtual tours offer a chance to discuss new topics, from history to art, making learning a shared journey. They also introduce your child to new cultures, broadening their understanding of the world. But, of course, nothing beats experiencing these places in person. Visiting cities like Paris, London, New York, Bangkok, or Tokyo is a vastly different adventure compared to a digital tour. That said, virtual tours can be a fantastic stepping stone, sparking curiosity and even helping you plan those future real-life adventures together.

Parental tips:

·       Discuss the experience: After each virtual tour, take time to discuss what you saw and learned. Ask your child questions to encourage critical thinking and further exploration of topics that interest them.

·       Learn about VR together: If your child is interested in how VR works, dive deeper into the technology. Research together how VR headsets function and explore other applications of VR beyond gaming, such as in education or medicine.

Tech playdates are more than just a way to pass the time – they are a gateway to meaningful family experiences that promote learning, creativity, and digital awareness. The fun doesn’t just start when the game or activity begins; the preparation is also a valuable part of the experience. Whether it's setting up a game server, configuring the equipment, or exploring new platforms together, these moments offer important learning opportunities for your child And, while tech playdates are a fantastic way to connect as a family, they can also include friends. Setting up a virtual playdate with other kids can foster teamwork and collaboration, as they learn from each other and work together in a shared digital environment. So, which tech playdate will you try next?