SET HOUSE RULES
1 NO ONE IS GOING FULL S W I SS FA M I LY RO B I N S O N “Remember that forbidden fruit is the tastiest,” says Lucy Jo Palladino, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist in Encinitas, California, and the author of Parenting in the Age of Attention Snatchers. Don’t go crazy. (I’m throwing the iPad in the ocean! Long live summer!) “If you have unreasonable expectations and rules, you will simply double their desire,” says Palladino. To help them make good choices when they do get screen time, have a little back-andforth. You ask about their favorite shows or let them teach you a game. They feel heard and are more likely to get on board.
The no-screen summer OK, limited-screen summer. Banishing electronics completely may not be feasible, but free time can become a free-for-all unless you have a plan. Here’s how to power down realistically—plus creative ideas to keep ’em otherwise occupied. JULY 2015
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2 B U T E V E RYO N E I S G O I N G O U T S I D E . A LOT Get kids excited about all of the things they get to do—swimming, neighborhood soccer games, digging in the garden— that are pushed aside during the school months. And explain that being outside Written by
Elizabeth Jenkins Illustrations by
Christopher Silas Neal
THE GUIDE family
The first Monday morning you wake up and don’t have to scramble to get everyone out the door with packed lunches is… liberating. And also terrifying. So many hours to fill! Start the summer with a family meeting to address guidelines— these are for you as much as for your kids—so everyone is on the same page.
