Summer has a way of changing the rules.
Bedtimes get later. Mornings become less structured. Kids have more time for games, videos, group chats and whatever else happens to be glowing on a screen.
Then school starts, and families sometimes try to change everything at once.
Earlier bedtime.
Less gaming.
Phones put away.
Homework first.
And suddenly the freedom kids had all summer disappears in a single evening.
That abrupt reset may be one of the hardest ways to make the transition.
Recent CBS News reporting highlighted advice from Dr. Sarah Edwards, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the University of Maryland Golisano Children’s Hospital, who recommends that families begin discussing and adjusting screen habits before the night immediately preceding the return to school.
The goal isn’t necessarily to eliminate technology.
It’s to help children move gradually from summer freedom into a routine that actually works during the school year.
And there’s another part parents may not love hearing:
The reset may need to include our screens, too.
Don’t Wait Until the Night Before
Think about what the transition can look like from a child’s perspective.
For weeks, maybe months, the rules around gaming, television and phones have been fairly relaxed.
Then comes the announcement:
School starts tomorrow. Devices are going away. Bedtime is earlier. Everything changes tonight.
Even when those new rules are completely reasonable, changing them all at once can create unnecessary friction.
Edwards told CBS News that parents should begin talking about the transition ahead of time rather than suddenly removing devices the night before school.
That’s a small change in timing, but it can completely change the message.
Instead of:
“You’ve had enough screen time.”
It becomes:
“School is starting, so we’re getting our routine ready.”
The child isn’t necessarily being punished for how they spent summer.
The family’s routine is changing because the family’s season is changing.
Start With the Parts of the Day That Matter Most
Parents don’t necessarily need a complicated chart or elaborate screen-time system.
Instead, identify the times when screens cause the biggest problems.
For one family, that may be dinner.
For another, it’s homework.
And for many families, bedtime may be the battleground.
CBS News reported that families can begin establishing screen-free periods around meals, bedtime or after school and practice those routines before they’re absolutely necessary.
A family might decide that phones don’t come to the dinner table.
Another might establish one charging location outside the bedrooms at night.
Gaming might happen after homework and responsibilities rather than before them.
The specific rules don’t have to look identical in every household.
What matters is that children know what to expect.
Parents Have to Look at Their Own Phones Too
This may be the uncomfortable part.
Children notice when adults create technology rules they don’t follow themselves.
A parent saying, “Put your phone away during dinner,” while answering a text beside the plate is sending two different messages.
Edwards emphasized the importance of parents modeling the behavior they’re asking children to adopt.
That doesn’t mean parents and children need identical rules.
Adults may have legitimate work, family or household responsibilities that require access to a phone.
But there can still be moments when everyone participates.
Dinner can be phone-free.
Parents can put their devices down when a child is telling them about the day.
The television doesn’t have to remain on simply because nobody bothered to turn it off.
Children learn quite a bit about how important a phone should be by watching the adults around them use theirs.
Even a Small Reduction Can Add Up
Parents sometimes hear “reduce screen time” and imagine a dramatic household overhaul.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be one.
The CBS report cited a 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis examining parent-focused interventions and screen use among young children.
Across six studies involving 1,106 children, the screen-time analysis found an average reduction of about 38 minutes per day.
Thirty-eight minutes doesn’t sound enormous.
But over five school days, that’s more than three hours.
And the more useful question may be what fills those minutes instead.
More sleep?
Homework without constant interruptions?
Conversation?
Reading?
Getting ready in the morning without everyone rushing?
Time outside?
The objective isn’t simply to make a screen-time number smaller.
It’s to make room for things the screen may have quietly displaced.
School Rules Are Changing Too
Families aren’t the only ones reconsidering children’s relationship with devices.
Schools around the country are also experimenting with tighter restrictions.
CBS News reported that Maryland schools are preparing for restrictions involving student cellphones and Wi-Fi-enabled watches during the school day.
That means some children may eventually experience changes in two places at once:
Different technology expectations at school and different expectations at home.
That can create resistance.
It can also give parents an opportunity to explain why the rules are changing instead of treating the device itself as the problem.
Phones aren’t inherently bad.
Gaming isn’t inherently bad.
Watching a funny video isn’t inherently bad.
The problem comes when technology begins interfering with something that matters more.
Expect Some Pushback
Changing a routine rarely happens without resistance.
A child accustomed to gaming at a particular time may complain when that time changes.
A teenager who communicates with friends primarily through a phone may see a restriction very differently from a parent who sees only “screen time.”
That doesn’t automatically mean the boundary is wrong.
It may simply mean the transition needs time.
One way to reduce the daily negotiation is to make expectations predictable.
Families can decide ahead of time:
When devices can be used.
When they need to be put away.
Where phones charge overnight.
Whether homework comes before entertainment.
Whether weekends have different rules.
And what exceptions are reasonable.
When children already know what happens next, parents don’t have to renegotiate the entire technology policy every afternoon.
The Better Goal Isn’t “Less Technology”
Technology isn’t disappearing when school starts.
Students may need laptops for assignments.
Teachers communicate electronically.
Friends organize activities through group chats.
Parents coordinate practices, pickups and schedules through their phones.
Trying to create a completely screen-free household isn’t realistic for most families.
A more useful question may be:
When is technology helping our family, and when is it quietly interfering with something more important?
Maybe it’s interfering with sleep.
Maybe it’s homework.
Maybe it’s conversation.
Or maybe it’s simply the ability to sit through dinner without everyone reaching for a device.
The beginning of a new school year gives families a natural opportunity to reconsider those habits.
And the easiest time to begin isn’t the night before everything changes.
It’s before you get there.
Original reporting: CBS News, “Back-to-school screen time reset: Experts say start easing kids into a new routine,” published August 25, 2026.