Is Turnoff Week the Right Choice for Your Family?

Turnoff Week is a plan created by the Center for Screen-Time Awareness to help build healthier and happier children, families and individuals. It offers a defined time to turn off the recreational use of electronic screened media, such as computers, televisions, iPods and electronic game systems, and instead turn the focus on becoming more active, building stronger 'real time' family and community relationships and using free time more effectively. Is Turnoff Week the right choice for your family?

Why Participate in Turnoff Week?

The amount of screen time families and individuals spend leads to a more sedentary and solitary lifestyle. We waste countless hours in front of screens. The biggest time gulping culprits are televisions, computers, iPods, video games, or mobile smartphone devices like the Blackberry and iPhone. Limited use of these devices is not the problem. It is overuse or using these items as a replacement for 'real' interaction may be harmful, whether to a individual's health or to personal relationships.

According the 2009 study conducted by the Nielsen-funded Council for Research Excellence (CRE), the average American's recreational use of electronic devices has reached between 8 and 9 hours each day. It is important to remember that figure does not measure screen time devoted to work... only recreation. That means, the average American spends one-third of his or her day on screen time! The magnitude of those figures alone should be enough to make all American families and community members pause and take stock in how they spend their free time.

How Can Turnoff Week Make a Difference?

Turnoff Week works because it helps parents, teachers, children and other individuals pay attention to how they actually spend their time. By reducing the amount of screen time each day, families and community members free up time which can then be better spent developing relationships, conducting important conversations with their children, building up communities, engaging in educational activities and participating in healthy exercise. Getting away from the lull of the screen encourages people to become more involved and active in the 'real world' around them. In fact, according to the follow-up surveys from past Turnoff Week participants, 90 percent of those who participated continued to reduce their screen time as a result of the event.

When Is Turnoff Week?

Turnoff Week is celebrated twice each year: in April and September. Turnoff Week 2011 will be held on April 18-24 and September 18-24.

How Do I Join in Turnoff Week?

First of all, Turnoff Week is an event open to all individuals, regardless of age, sex, race, financial income, or location. In fact, millions of people around the world have participated in past Turnoff Week events.

Visit the official website of Center of SCREEN-TIME Awareness to register your community, school or family in Turnoff Week, find out about Turnoff Week events in your state, or contribute to the cause. There are also additional learning resources and data for parents and teachers of children available on the site.

Resources:
Center of SCREEN-TIME Awareness
"Ground-Breaking Study of Video Viewing Finds Younger Boomers Consume More Video Media Than Any Other Group" by Council for Research Excellence (CRE)