Green Time Vs. Screen Time
Teaching the importance of walking away from technology
By Chad Hampsch
Photos: Kanakuk
It’s no secret that kids and teenagers are experiencing more anxiety than the generations before them, and at a younger age. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, the more technology we acquire, the more anxious we become. Social-media anxiety is a real mental-health condition that children are dealing with daily. From my 18 years of experience as a camp director at a large Christian summer camp, I have observed this growing anxiety firsthand. Technology and smartphones were adopted as a tool for the Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, but for the Millenials and Gen Zers smartphones have become an additional appendage. The need to be constantly connected is a technological burden. Notifications and texts can’t sit in an inbox unread; young people feel an urgent need to reply right away, which creates a constant sense of pressure. It’s no wonder youth are feeling anxious.
Our camp has a no-screen policy. We remind campers of the value of quality face-to-face relationships, as well as personal time to simply be still and quiet. Because ours is a Christian camp, we encourage campers to use the time with no distractions or buzzing in their pockets to dig deeper into their quiet time, study the Bible, and pray with diligence. Over time, other camp directors and I have adopted practices that help campers understand the benefits of putting down their screens. I have even taken a few of these practices into my home to teach my children the value of a healthy balance of screen time and authentic relational time.
Start At Home
I truly believe the process of limiting screen time and decreasing the anxiety that children are feeling starts at home. Kids can practice limiting screen time at camp because they are following the rules. Once they return home, it can be easy to fall back into the pattern of constantly checking their devices out of a sense of responsibility. Parents need to encourage their children to gain a deeper understanding of the importance of face-to-face relationships. We don’t have the willpower to simply limit ourselves throughout the day without setting clear, measurable boundaries. My family has a maximum amount of screen time per day and a time for all screens to be put away. Because of these boundaries, our relationships have an added richness that stems from quality communication and interaction.
You might think that teenage campers would show the most resistance to the no-screens policy, but the pushback actually comes from the parents. As a father, I completely understand wanting to reach my kids at any given moment, but camp is a place where kids have the chance to unplug, look up, and understand what true independence feels like. Counselors are always available, but the realization that Mom and Dad aren’t one text away encourages the kids to act with maturity and ownership. My fellow camp directors and I make it a priority to spend time explaining to parents the values of not having screens at camp. We reassure them that their children are in the hands of patient, kind, and well-trained counselors, but we also remind them that their children are very capable of being relational and asking for help when they need it, and we can see this capability in action if we give them the chance to show us.
Claim Responsibility
Another important aspect of creating boundaries for yourself and your family is open discussion about why the boundaries are being set. The idea of limiting screen time and promoting relationships begins in the home, so I encourage parents to include their children in the conversation. Allow kids to be a part of setting their own boundaries and even establishing consequences for not maintaining the set guidelines. I ask my kids to draft their own screen-use contract so they can think through what is healthy for their own lives. In this way, they can feel like they are investing in their own relationships and practicing self-discipline by choice.
Fill Empty Time
It has become so natural for us to pull out our phones when we’re waiting in a doctor’s office, waiting on a coffee order, riding in an elevator, or even stopping at a red light. Any time we have a free moment, we check social media out of habit. Our brains never get a chance to just be still. At camp we have a need to always be engaged with something, so a solution is to fill campers’ schedules. Focusing on the outdoors, team sports, and a healthy view of competition, activities encourage campers to interact. We purposely avoid a lot of downtime, eliminating the opportunity for them to miss their social-media connections. After the initial shock of being separated from their online connections, campers naturally re-learn how to connect with the people around them, and it is a joy to watch campers grow from strangers to best friends during their time at camp. Most of those relationships wouldn’t have grown into beautiful friendships if the campers were allowed to have their devices.
Find Purpose
In addition to filling the campers’ schedules, we encourage the kids to have purpose behind every action they take. Counselors encourage them to pray and read their Bibles, but asking campers to bring a book and a journal to enjoy a great read and to write about their experiences and making memories is a great way to wind down before lights out. When kids do have some downtime at camp, it is also great practice to take home. My hope is that campers think about this approach after they’re back into their daily routines. The next time they have 30 minutes to spare, they may write in their journal, pick up the Bible, call a friend they haven’t spoken to in a while, or enjoy quality time with their parents instead of wasting half an hour on social media. The fulfillment they can experience from investing in genuine relational time with people in their lives versus people on their screens is so rewarding.
The substantial benefits of summer camp last much longer than the one or two weeks at camp. After experiencing no screen time, kids have a better understanding of the value of investing in face-to-face relationships and maximizing family time by using self-discipline and intentionality to manage their screen time and act with purpose.
Chad Hampsch is the K-Seven Assistant Director and Vice-President of Operations for the Kanakuk Institute. He graduated from Greenville College in 1999 with a degree in Business Administration. He started working at Kanakuk Kamps in 1996 and moved into the Assistant Director role he now holds in 2002. He is married to Catherine and has four children. He loves to see Kampers and staff members become equipped to share the Gospel in all they do.