In this episode of Digital Dominoes, host Angeline Corvaglia, known as Data Girl, explores the reasons behind the difficulty in stopping once you start consuming online media such as videos or games. She is joined by a special guest, Digital Defender Stella, an elementary school student, who shares her experiences and challenges with online media consumption. The episode delves into the psychological and design aspects that make online media so addictive and offers practical tips for children and parents on how to manage and mitigate these effects. Techniques like breathing exercises, running, and engaging in offline activities are discussed as methods to cope with the emotional impact of stopping media consumption. The conversation emphasizes the importance of helping young people understand why they get ‘stuck’ online and encourages proactive strategies for balance.
00:00 Welcome to Digital Dominoes
00:28 Introducing Digital Defender Stella
00:49 Understanding the Struggle to Stop Watching
02:24 The Impact of Continuous Watching
03:33 Why Videos and Games Keep Us Hooked
09:12 Strategies to Break Free from Screen Time
12:16 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Special thanks to
Digital Defender Stella’s parents for letting her participate in this episode and for proactively helping her learn about these very important topics!
Episode sponsored by Data Girl and Friends
They are on a mission to raise awareness and foster critical thinking about AI, online safety, privacy, and digital citizenship. They inspire the next generation to navigate the digital world confidently and responsibly through fun, engaging, and informative content. They focus on empowering young digital citizens and their families through engaging and informative learning.
Find out more at: https://data-girl-and-friends.com/
List of Data Girl and Friends materials about some of the topics covered:
- Educational workbook, “Why can’t I put my phone down?” https://data-girl-and-friends.pagetiger.com/put-down-my-phone/1
Contact us for any questions or comments: https://digi-dominoes.com/contact-us/
Transcript
Her name is Digital Defender Stella. Stella is an elementary school student who loves learning all about AI and the digital world. Thank you so much for being here, Stella. How are you today? I'm good. How are you, girl? I'm doing great. Thank you. I'm so excited to talk to you. So what do you think about this topic that we're talking about?
so she said you're not ready [:it feel? Like you feel angry [:video games, and she watches [:et when you're there? I feel [:d she told me you do like to [:Yeah, I love doing that. Well, that's really good. Did you know that in a lot of places, even a lot of kids your age don't do that very much anymore? That they spend even more time on the phone? No. You're really lucky that you can spend time in the parks and there's a lot of people, even though it's hard sometimes that your friends are are putting their faces in the phone and not wanting to say goodbye.
But now I want [:You see, that [:ter. It just goes right from [:untdown is exciting for you. [:not the whole story, and it [:I used to watch shows with cliffhangers, and sometimes the cliffhangers can last years. They can keep you watching for years, waiting to answer some questions. That's one reason you're so excited, you want to know what's going to happen, but they can make you be there for a very, very long time waiting.
are beyond the phone. That's [:That's more work. And if you [:ired, yeah? So, is there any [:e, sometimes, he watches TV. [:he end. And I talked to your [:you make a video and enough [:And that way, the more money people can earn. So that's one reason why things are made that you can't even hear anything around you when you're watching or playing games. Yeah. So, my question is, do you have any idea how to help yourself or other people when you feeling like you don't know how to stop?
e you ever noticed what they [:ises. You can run around the [:successful is when you just [:before, it's a lot more fun [:Right? Yeah. This you can do. All kinds of stuff that is beyond your phone. That's right. You've really learned that really well. You've been paying attention to this, haven't you? Yeah. The trick is to help other people understand that too. And sometimes they won't understand if you use words. But they will understand if you show them, just do it right next to them.
be like, ooh, I want to try [:r invent a game and play it. [:ing forward to Stella coming [:Thank you so much, Stella. Bye everyone. Bye.
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