My office adjoins the reception area of the Medics USA Primary & Urgent Care Center in Purcellville. What comes through my door are the sounds from the other room. Occasionally, there will be a very young child with a painful ear-ache and powerful set of lungs. At other times, I can make out a youngster discussing with a parent how brave they intend to be. But mostly, I hear nothing – even when the room is full. Everybody, EVERYBODY, including the youngest kids, is on their devices.
I looked into this a bit and found that 44% of American kids 1 year or younger now use mobile devices, and that 77% of 2 year-olds use a mobile device daily. The Harvard Med School’s Health Blog has some pretty surprising new figures on electronics use by digital toddlers, as well as some interesting food for thought about the possible effect of media use on young children. That entry can be found here.