Finding Balance in Our Digital Lives: Teacher Material
Begin by asking students, “How can we make each day feel good for our bodies and brains?”
After students have made a few suggestions, ask them to think about all of the things that they do before and after school.
- This would include focused activities (piano lessons, hockey practice, homework) as well as more casual ones (watching TV, playing toys with friends, riding bikes around the neighbourhood).
Add a marble or block to the glass for each thing that is named. When you fill the glass or students finish listing activities, whichever is first, hold up the glass and tell them that it represents the time in a day: if they fill it up with one thing, there isn’t room for other things.
Now lead a discussion about the impact of different activities on a person’s life.
Make sure students consider the following questions:
Why might we sometimes not feel like doing
some things that were named, like going outside or playing with friends? Why might we sometimes not be able to do those things??
- Too tired, bad weather, etc.
Are there things about screens (tablets, games, phones, and so on) that might make us spend more time using them than other activities?
- They can be “easier” because in many cases all we have to do is watch; they often have a story that we’re being told or that we’re part of; a lot of times the things we watch lead to other things to watch – TV shows are on one after the other, online videos link to similar videos.
Are any of these activities better than the others?
- No – each one can give us different things: for example, playing basketball builds our strength and coordination, while playing an online game can build our reflexes or our thinking skills. However, it’s important that screen time be balanced by other activities.