Technology is already so central to many of our lives. From white-collar workdays involving laptops to blue-collar jobs requiring heavy machinery, there is really no escaping tech in modern society.  

Increasingly, regular technology usage is starting at a younger and younger age.  

Much of the time, it is used for keeping the child entertained and "stimulated" while a busy parent is at work (even if that is just remote work in a living room) or doing chores or errands.  

Or, when the parents just want a quiet moment or two away from the child.  

The tech may be useful in such moments, but a visual timer for kids can be useful here.  

Visual Timers for Limiting Screen Time 

Yes, you can set the parental controls on the device to lock the child out of certain apps and websites like YouTube, requiring a password to get back in.  

You can even set timers on the device with a digital clock.  

These can certainly be useful, although watch out for clever kids who find ways to bypass these parental controls. 

Adding in a physical visual timer here can have many benefits.  

For one, it gives the child an "outside" off-device reminder that the screen time has definite limits.  

The design, too, can be a benefit for offering a quick visual reminder of just how much time is left. For instance, the Time Timer product line offers timers with colorful elapsing disks that indicate at a glance how much time is left for an activity. 

Having an ever-present reminder that there are time limits on tech usage can be useful for instilling in children the idea that time is a resource to use wisely, with a sense of how to allocate it.  

But of course this all begs the question of just how much screen time is excessive.  

How Much Screen Time Is Too Much? 

Yes, there is indeed such a thing as too much screen time. Just look at the phenomenon of "iPad kids" and the unease it causes in people.  

Some researchers indicate that excessive screen time can be a serious public-health issue as we continually find ourselves immersed in technology that grows faster and better seemingly by the day.  

Everything from poor critical-thinking skills to language development are consequences of screen time. 

"iPad babies" is another term, although be apprised that pediatricians recommend eliminating screen time outright for children under two years old. In other words, a screen is not a pacifier.  

And even from ages two to five, the recommendation is no more than one hour per day (incidentally, the 60-minute home timers from Time Timer can be of use here). In this case, there is also the pediatricians' recommendation to limit screen time to educational material, "quality content" for the parent to watch with the child and review the lessons of. 

But as children age, and especially into the tween and teen years, they will have access to more and more content. That, along with a presumably higher level of independence in what they watch and for how long. (Only the strictest household would impose the same screen-time limits on a teenager that were in place at two years of age).  

For this reason, visual timers can be useful for implementing deeper, foundational values about tech usage that can be more worthwhile in the long run than on-device parental controls that the kid, once a fully grown adult, will not be forced to have in place.  

Teaching Time-Management Skills with Time Timer Visual Timers 

Time management for kids can be a difficulty. In general, children tend to be more impulsive than adults (well, most adults).  

Mix that in with technology usage, where video games and sites like YouTube offer a virtual cornucopia of stimulating content, and it can be easy for a child to fall down a rabbit hole of watching video after video that are designed to capture the sensitive attention of children.  

Plus, kids generally have more free time to spend in front of a tablet watching cartoons. With less external pressures to set them in high gear or just pursue ambitious and rewarding projects, children tend to kind of just while the day away trying to enjoy themselves.  

As such, childhood is a crucial time to teach time-management skills. What makes visual timers so useful here is that the timers are very child-friendly.  

For Time Timer visual timers in particular, the elapsing disk offers children an easy reminder of just how much screen time they have left.  

This can be useful, because a child immersed in YouTube rabbit hole may forget at what time it started. A visual timer can offer that reminder.  

For parents, rewarding children for good time management can be useful. Creating a positive feeling in children when they stop screen time when the visual timer is done can be useful.  

So, visual timers can help instill values such as impulse control and seeing time as a valuable measurable resource that should be used wisely.  

Timers for Helping Children Thrive 

Beyond setting limits on technology use, Time Timer products can help with learning about time in general. 

Planning skills, organizational skills, and study skills can all get a boost from a timer. In particular, encouraging kids to stay organized in their daily routine can help in general with their executive functioning. 

Starting with a "homework timer" can be a good step in helping kids learn to understand time management can reduce stress. It can also help them in staying focused and stay on track with important tasks that need to be done efficiently and effectively in a certain amount of time. 

Since project management and completing tasks in a timely manner will always be relevant in a world where immersion in technology is only growing, it is important to teach children the importance of action plans and making informed decisions within a tight timeframe.