Amazing image below A core parenting belief of mine: One of the most important things we can do for our kids is help them learn the power of their imaginations But you have to contend with the constant onslaught of overstimulating screens Here's 2 ways we beat screens: First: reading, every day, no exceptions In addition to the obvious benefits of being a strong reader, stories in books help open up the imagination and broaden our kids' worlds. They expand their ideas of what's possible. My advice is start the reading habit as early as possible, and let your kids see you reading as often as you can Second: audio stories As an alternative to screens, we listen to audio stories (I even create one for 3-8 year olds that I'll link in a follow-up post). We listen to them together with our oldest son. You can SEE him engaging with the audio in a way he never does with screens. You can see his brain working. You can see him filling in the blanks in his mind. Whereas if he was just watching a screen, there are no blanks to fill in. No imagining, no envisioning. Just consuming. "Imagination rules the world" - Napoleon Bonaparte This quote is more powerful than people realize It's impossible to build anything if you can't first imagine it Everything ever created by man first existed in someone's imagination Imagination is a muscle. And too much screen time just atrophies it.