ScreenTickr Blog

In a Montessori classroom, a four-year-old carries a full glass of water across the room. A real glass, not a plastic cup, and a tray underneath. If it tips, the water pools on the tray and the glass survives. The tray is the whole point.

It's ten past eight. One child is dressed but can't find their shoes. The other is on the sofa with a book and has been asked twice. You're going to be late again, and the day hasn't started.

Setting up a board takes one evening. Here's how we'd do it.

The timer goes off. "One more video." "Five more minutes." "I just need to finish this level." You brace for the argument, because you've had it before and you know how it goes.

We spend a lot of energy on how children earn their screen time. The more interesting thing is what happens in the hour after it ends.

Your child has ticked off every task on the board this week. They've done the maths on their minutes, they're pleased with themselves, and then they ask whether they get paid as well.

It's a reasonable question, and the instinct to say yes is strong. You're already tracking what they do each day, so why not attach money to it too?

We thought about this for a long time. Our answer is to keep the two apart.