Screen Time Without the Guilt: Our House Rules

If you're negotiating screen time every single day, the problem isn't the screen. It's the ambiguity.

The system

We keep three rules; agreed with the kids:

1. Screens come after things, not instead of things — homework, tidying, playing outside
2. The dining room is always screen-free— meals are where we catch up
3. The last screen closes one hour before bed — tired brains need runway

That's the whole system. No apps, no charts, no bribery.

Rules agreed together are followed. Rules imposed are negotiated forever.

The guilt, meanwhile, is optional. Screens are part of childhood now — our job isn't to delete them, it's to teach children to live well with them.