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By Mallory Mattingly
In a world where parents feel like they need to always reach their child, is it possible for your child to go to after-school activities or friends’ houses without a phone?
With the right community, you can do just that, which is what the Wyatt family discovered after joining The Balance Project, “a nonprofit with more than 160 chapters nationwide that brings together families who want to delay smartphone use for children,” according to CBS News.
After school, fifth grader Joy Wyatt walks to the library with her friend Emerson Kari to study. She doesn’t have a smartphone, but when her mom, Beth, needs to connect with her, she just calls the library.
Since joining The Balance Project, Joy’s parents, Jason and Beth, have felt more supported and connected to other families who feel the same about the dangers of smartphones as they do.
Related: The Pros — and Cons — of This Middle School’s Cell Phone Ban
“There’s like a half-generation of kids who just went through it. And those parents have said we didn’t know what to do or how to handle it. And luckily for us, we have a place of forum to go to and learn that I don’t think previously existed,” Jason told CBS News.
For example, The Balance Project educates parents on what goes on chemically in their child’s brain when they use digital devices.
“Giving kids access to technology isn’t just a tech choice — it’s a brain development decision,” The Balance Project explained on Instagram. “Screens, games, and notifications trigger dopamine — the brain’s ‘feel-good’ chemical. It makes devices hard to put down for all of us.”
“Kids, tweens, and teens’ brains are still under construction. That makes technology more compelling, and harder to regulate, than you might realize,” the organization added. “Learn how dopamine and brain development affect behavior, why habit loops form faster in younger brains, and how to introduce tech in a way that fosters balance, focus, and self-regulation.”
Educator Bethany Barton teaches children this as well — how smartphones overload their systems with dopamine and can affect the emotions they feel.
“I think I want to see kids walking away understanding how their brain works, recognizing what junk tech is so they can make a smart choice,” she explained.
“I’ve found, when we tell the kids the science behind their brains, they’re fascinated,” Barton added. “They want to put it into action. They want to see how they can sort of treat their brain right. See if it changes how they interact with screens and how they feel after using screens.”
HGTV stars Ben and Erin Napier started a similar organization called Osprey which connects families who want to delay smartphones.
Read Next: This Celebrity Shares Creative Plan to Keep Her Kids Safe on Cellphones
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