Screen Time

Helping your child end screen time calmly

“Two more minutes” becomes twenty, and turning it off ends in tears. Stopping something absorbing is a self-regulation skill, not defiance.

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What your child may be practising

Noticing frustration before it takes over
Hearing a warning and preparing for the end
Saying “all done” as a shared signal
Choosing something else to move towards

How a Maple Kids story approaches it

1The story shows the exact moment the screen goes dark.
2The hero feels the frustration and finds a next step.
3The Parent Guide gives language that stays calm and firm.
4The practice rehearses “all done” before the next session.

Story preview · Page 5

When the screen went quiet, Alex's chest went hot and fast. “All done,” Alex said, even though it felt hard. The feeling started to shrink.

Parent Guide preview

What this page is doing

Helping the child notice and name frustration before choosing the next response.

Ask

“What is Alex feeling right now?”“What could Alex do with that big feeling?”

Words to repeat

“It's okay to feel upset. The screen can still be all done.”

Try it in real life

Practice saying “all done” together before the next screen session.

Why stories can help with this

Stories & Emotion Regulation
Structured emotion-themed picture-book activities have been associated with improvements in preschool children's emotion recognition, expression and regulation strategies.
Wang L, Cui R, Wan N, Hu W. “Reshaping the Ability–Strategy Link in Emotion Regulation: The Role of a Structured Picture-Book Intervention for Preschoolers.” Behavioral Sciences. 2025;15(8):1137.
DOI: 10.3390/bs15081137
Shared Reading & Behavior
Randomized research has found that interventions promoting parent-child shared reading and play can improve pathways associated with children's behavioral outcomes.
Weisleder A, Cates CB, Harding JF, et al. “Links between Shared Reading and Play, Parent Psychosocial Functioning, and Child Behavior: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Pediatrics. 2019;213:187-195.e1.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2019.06.037

These studies examine shared reading and picture books in general. They did not test Maple Kids. Maple Kids is an educational parenting tool and not medical, psychological, diagnostic or therapeutic care.

Read the Research

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