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As a proud teacher, I attend seminars and training programs every year. Over time, we have begun to notice a disturbing pattern. More and more children are becoming academically, emotionally, and socially weak. Sadly, many of these children come from affluent homes.

Dear parents (mothers especially),

I know how exhausting parenting can be. Children can sometimes feel unbearably annoying especially when you are busy, stressed, or simply in need of rest. But before you switch on that data and hand over that phone or tablet to keep them quiet and still, so you can have peace, please consider the following:

1. Tech leaders protected their children from
smartphones.

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The late Steve Jobs, former CEO of Apple, did not allow his own children to use smartphones. Bill Gates, one of the richest men in the world, didn’t give his children phones until they were 14. He also banned phones at dinner so the family could talk. Here comes the big question. If the people who built this technology were strict with their own kids, why should any parent think that handing out unlimited phone time is wise or a show of love?

2. Screen time rewires young brains.

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Too much screen time can affect how the brain develops. It weakens language skills, slows reading ability, and reduces focus. Experts recommend that children under 5 should spend no more than 1 hour a day on screens.

3. Excessive phone use affects health.

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Heavy phone use is linked to anxiety, depression, loneliness and other serious health issues. Don't start complaining about village people when different illness and mental disorder begins to appear from nowhere.

4. Be mindful of what they watch.

https://ainhypho.sirv.com/br.jpg

Have you heard of “brainrot”? What may look harmless and entertaining can actually be training your child’s brain to crave distraction and reject learning. In other words, that cartoon you like giving your child to watch can turn him or her to a proper certified unadulterated OLODO.

5. Offer better alternatives.

https://ainhypho.sirv.com/brain.jpeg

There are countless engaging, brain-building activities children can enjoy instead:

Coloring books, storybooks, novels, drawing pads, lego sets, jigsaw puzzles, rubik’s cubes, chess, monopoly, scrabble, piano or guitar lessons, dance classes, voiceover training, acting classes, programming classes, graphic design training, video editing training, robotics kits.

Wouldn’t you rather see your child grow up smart, creative, and talented, instead of addicted to a glowing screen?

Phones are powerful tools, but in a child’s hands, without limits and proper guidance, they can become destructive. Parents please set boundaries because the future of your children depends on it.

I posted this on Facebook and some parents criticised me because of the sentence below. In fact the sentence below caused World War 3 in the comment section, thankfully no life was lost.

Sadly, many of these children come from
affluent homes.

To any parent who may feel the same way here, before you pull that trigger, understand that what I said is just the sad truth. I know it's bitter but try and swallow it.

I also forgot to add that prolonged use of phones can turn your child's bright promising future into what you see below. But I guess you all already know that.

https://ainhypho.sirv.com/fo.png

Imagine if they are always glued to phones and TVs, even before 5, when dem suppose dey play, dey throw stones, they break glasses

They are doomed for life

Brain rot is a thing

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

The fact that you can’t even monitor the type of content your kid consume is frightening
Even adults wallow in this social media rot
You need to see grown grandmas on TikTok going all sorts of immoral things

I don’t think phones make children slower, it’s all about how they’re used. With the right guidance, they can be powerful tools for learning, skills, and growth. The real issue isn’t the phone, but how we manage and direct its use.

Omo, see revelations. The damage phone and social media is doing to the society is not small deal

Top notch write up. I agree totally with all that's been said here, screen time has to and needs to be reduced for kids 9 and below. Serious pandemic upcoming if advice is neglected. God airpus

Very true.


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Don’t listen to all these capitalist.

They are looking for fools and future slaves.

The world is moving at a fast pace beyond human comprehension. Only IT tools can help kids get along and stay updated.

If you have parental control and firewalls, expose your kids to a laptop and tablet. Get them into programming languages and auto as young.

The future won’t be about those with certificates but those who grew up with tech and access to informations.

This is exactly the main reason why I'm angry with my daughter right now.

Smartphones in the hands of these kids(unmonitored) do more harm than good.

Many of them will be worrying you that they need it for assignments and all that but the moment you bought one for them doing assignment on that phone will be a "secondary thing" if not even a "tertiary thing".

It's also good to sign up for parental control on their phone.

NowYouKnow:
I posted this on Facebook and some parents criticised me because of the sentence below. In fact the sentence below caused World War 3 in the comment section, thankfully no life was lost.



To any parent who may feel the same way here, before you pull that trigger, understand that what I said is just the sad truth. I know it's bitter but try and swallow it.

I also forgot to add that prolonged use of phones can turn your child's bright promising future into what you see below. But I guess you all already know that.

https://ainhypho.sirv.com/fo.png

I don’t fully agree with this take. Phones themselves don’t make children slower what matters is how they are used. Just like any tool, they can either be a distraction or a source of growth.

When guided properly, smartphones open up access to knowledge, skill-building apps, language learning, coding platforms, and even financial literacy. A child can learn more in one evening with the right resources than we did in an entire classroom session years back.

The problem comes when there’s no guidance, no structure, and no limits. That’s when children waste hours on games or social media instead of learning. But when parents or guardians direct usage, phones become powerful educational tools.

So instead of blaming the phone, we should focus on teaching balance and intentional use. The device itself is neutral, it’s the usage that determines whether it slows a child down or accelerates their growth.

👉 What do you all think? Are phones really the problem, or is it how we manage them?

CoronaVirusPro:
Don’t listen to all these capitalist.

They are looking for fools and future slaves.

The world is moving at a fast pace beyond human comprehension. Only IT tools can help kids get along and stay updated.

If you have parental control and firewalls, expose your kids to a laptop and tablet. Get them into programming languages and auto as young.

The future won’t be about those with certificates but those who grew up with tech and access to informations.

agreed, but only from a certain age. Outright exposure is detrimental to general wellbeing.

The best you can do is to instill creativity in your wards. They will eventually learn to use the techs to create something beautiful for themselves.

Most elites that keep their children from social media or news are only controlling them so they won't be hated more than the one they are experiencing. It's all about keeping them away from negative public perception of them.

Tech has made people smarter as learning has become easier and accessible via the net and these videos that you consider as agent of brain rot.

The best anyone can do for their wards is to instill creative instinct in them and they will always chose to use the available techs for creative purposes.

It's common sense. Even early school did not allow calculator. The goal is first to figure it out using your own head. Self reliance in a sense.

This day everything is powered by artificial intelligence. Little wonder we can do much but with little intelligence

Goldbw122:
I don’t fully agree with this take. Phones themselves don’t make children slower what matters is how they are used. Just like any tool, they can either be a distraction or a source of growth.

When guided properly, smartphones open up access to knowledge, skill-building apps, language learning, coding platforms, and even financial literacy. A child can learn more in one evening with the right resources than we did in an entire classroom session years back.

The problem comes when there’s no guidance, no structure, and no limits. That’s when children waste hours on games or social media instead of learning. But when parents or guardians direct usage, phones become powerful educational tools.

So instead of blaming the phone, we should focus on teaching balance and intentional use. The device itself is neutral, it’s the usage that determines whether it slows a child down or accelerates their growth.

👉 What do you all think? Are phones really the problem, or is it how we manage them?

I learnt many things I know today from the internet than school ..internet gave me more exposure about the real world tbh

naturefellow:
agreed, but only from a certain age. Outright exposure is detrimental to general wellbeing.

Why I said parental parental control and firewalls. I can set time on an iPad and it will shut off after expiry, while I allow information tools like dictionary, Udemy, maps and co as infinite

Very valid observation. Another danger are all those cartoons that have hidden agenda message inside them, reindoctrinating kids in ways that even their parents can't even understand. That one is more subtle, but deadly.

Also because they can afford to make den enjoy life even without the phones... vacations at very interesting places all year round...u wey no get anything to offer pass the 50-100k iPad, still wan take away the cartoons u can afford 😹, naso una dey raised depressed potential serial-killers🥱

Tiktok children everywhere now.

When Peller is making millions on social media, there's nothing you will tell nowadays kids that they will hear.

Even Lagos state government won't advise Peller to go school as long as they are getting 30million Naira tax.

any parent who may feel the same way here, before you pull that trigger, understand that what I said is just the sad truth. I know it's bitter but try and swallow it.

Nigerian parents no go gree. They will still argue and add excuses.

There's no empirical evidence to back up your claim.

OK


Good


Its a big distraction to Them too




Princess Faith Chukwuamaka

The same as calculators which make adults less likely to think faster. Somehow, every accountant and engineer uses a calculator. The price of knowledge being ubiquitous is the physical degradation of humans. I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Take this advice at your peril,coming from someone who thinks the plural of information is informations.

Weldone Sir!

CoronaVirusPro:
Don’t listen to all these capitalist.

They are looking for fools and future slaves.

The world is moving at a fast pace beyond human comprehension. Only IT tools can help kids get along and stay updated.

If you have parental control and firewalls, expose your kids to a laptop and tablet. Get them into programming languages and auto as young.

The future won’t be about those with certificates but those who grew up with tech and access to informations.

True.. even me that is not a child.. since when they introduce AI .. I don't think with my brain again.

thats why their children are not as great as they are .

Nonsense.....Your child must not be the next Bill Gates or Steve Jobs in order to be successful, look at Nigeria, content creators are making more than doctors and scientists. The world has evolved beyond this 1970s thinking, knowledge can be gotten from traditional and non traditional means, don't limit your child based on your own mental stagnation!

Nowadays we have 2 to 3 year old reading and spelling thanks to Youtube videos, when I was 2 or 3, we no read shin shin, these kids are advanced because of technology, they are exponentially more thought provoking than previous generations and are able to multitask/think outside the box rather than behaving like zombies being led on a leash.......JI MA SUN!

Especially that coco melon thing these kids watch