Screen Time Battles and Transitions Off Devices

By Laura Lurns · Reviewed by Philip Weaver · Last reviewed 2026-10-03

When the screen goes off

In our experience, the fight often starts when the screen goes off.

Our page on screen time limits covers how much screen time.

What one study of toddlers and preschoolers found

One study asked families of toddlers and preschoolers about screens (Hiniker and colleagues, 2016). Switching off screens was "often painful," the authors wrote. They found stops made by the show or app went better than a parent's. The study was a conference paper, and it was small. We hold no study of switching off screens in school-age children.

What we found no trial of

We hold no trial of warnings before screen time ends. To us, a warning before a switch is still worth giving.

What we suggest before the screen goes off

• Before the screen goes on, agree on where it will stop. That might be the end of a show, or of a level.
• Give a warning before the stop.
• Have the next thing ready, something real to do.
• Keep the same rule every day.

These steps are our own practice. We do not claim Hiniker's study tested them.

When to ask for help

Each of these is a reason to ask for help on its own.

• Little change, even with steady practice and good teaching.
• Schoolwork well below what school expects.
• A teacher who raises a concern about learning.
• Extreme upset about schoolwork.
• Complete avoidance of school or learning.
• Hopelessness about learning.
• Sadness or worry that lasts.
• Significant delays in speech, language or motor development.
• A skill that was there and has gone. Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first, not a tutor.

If no skill has gone, start with the teacher. Say what you are seeing at home, and what you have tried. Beyond the teacher, the right person depends on what it turns out to be about. If the work is too hard, someone who works on that school skill. If worry or mood is the thing, someone who works with children's mental health. In our view, delays in speech, language or movement are worth raising with your child's doctor. In our view, if you are worried enough to ask, a professional evaluation is worth asking about.

Any talk of hurting themselves is a same-day call to your doctor or a crisis line.