Method / Process description

• Input: Start by introducing why digital media is so attractive to everybody (Module 6 > 6.2. Accompanying Children Using Digital Media > Age-Appropriate Media Usage > Digital Media and Human Needs):
  • It is not only attractive for children but also for adults. 
  • Emphasize that parents media consumption influences their childrens' behavior: If mum and dad constantly use their smartphones this thing MUST be interesting and important. So parents should be a good role model.
  • Introduce Maslow's pyramid of needs and give examples which elements of digital media address these needs. 
• Group discussion: What do participants think about their own media consumption? Is the amount OK? Is it too much? Are they able to control it? Do they neglect other things?
• Input: Most likely there will be participants in the class who admit that they think they are using digital media too much. Whether they neglect other things or just have the feeling that it's too much doesn't matter. To find out whether a child's media consumption is still healthy parents can monitor the following aspects:
  • Does not neglect commitments (school performance does not decline, homework is completed regularly, adequate personal hygiene and sufficient sleep).
  • Regularly spends time with friends and family.
  • Pursues other hobbies (e.g. sports or music).
  • Can accept rules for media usage (does not react strongly emotional when media time is over and does not suppress negative consequences for violations).
  • Is able to control the time and duration of usage
  • Does not show physical problems (e.g. overweight, headaches, back pains)
  • Media consumption is fun (does not cause negative emotions, like bad mood, stress or depression) 
• Exercise: Together with participants gather rules for digital media usage in families:
  • Occasions where smartphones should be avoided e.g. during meals, homework, in bedrooms (use an alarm clock instead of smartphone), while talking to other people, on the road, while using other media,...
  • Gather also measures that allow parents a better control over media devices, e.g. smartphones are stored overnight in the kitchen so that sleep is not disturbed. Gaming consoles or PCs are setup in the living room instead of the children's bedroom.  
  • Let particpants create a list which rules they want to introduce in their family.

• Input: Introduce participants to the technical aids to limit media usage and attention of digital services (Module 6 > 6.2. Accompanying Children Using Digital Media > Age-Appropriate Media Usage > Technical Aids).
• Group discussion: Let everybody who has a smartphone ring his phone with the normal settings in order to see which ring tones people use at which volume. Are there differences in the type of ring tones and volume? What do participants say about their normal phone mode? Is it set to silent mode or do they get every single notification from each app. Talk about the differences and also about other people's perception of the ring tones. Some people are bothered by loud ring tones, others don't even notice them. Sensitize the group that the constant signals the smartphone sends out can be disturbing for other people. 
• Exercise: Split the class into groups of 2-3 people. Let the groups exchange about settings on their smartphones to either limit usage or to limit the notifications of apps. Gather the measures afterward in the plenum. Some ideas:  
  • Do not disturb mode (or sleep mode): Does not send any audio or visual signals but the alarm clock is still working 
  • Silent mode: Turns off any audio signals and vibration
  • Keyboard click sounds: are often turned on by default but hardly needed by anybody
  • Screen time trackers offered by the device, e.g. iOS Screen Time or Android Digital Wellbeing (both can be found in the settings section  
  • App notifications: Check out which notification settings e.g. chat apps or social media apps offer. By default a lot of things are turned on that you don't really need.   
• Reflection: Let participants talk about the family rules they selected with their family and fill in together a media contract. Let participants report their experiences in the next lesson. 
  • DE: Mediennutzungsvertrag https://www.mediennutzungsvertrag.de/ 
  • EN: Family Media Agreement Printables For Your Electronics https://www.pandasecurity.com/en/mediacenter/family-safety/family-media-agreement-printables/  
  • ES: Pactos familiares para el buen uso de dispositivos https://www.is4k.es/de-utilidad/recursos/pactos-familiares-para-el-buen-uso-de-dispositivos