Screen-free Play For 7-10 Year Olds

With the long winter months, we're spending a lot more time playing inside and as a result, I notice screens creeping into our daily rhythms more than usual. We have a Weekends-Only rule with television/films but we do allow the kids to play math computer games and do How To Draw videos on Youtube occasionally, that is to say, we aren't against screens, though we don't like to rely on them too much. Experts agree that excessive screen time can limit a child's ability to delay gratification, build strong interpersonal connections, and communicate and listen well, but I find as my children are getting older more and more activities tend to be centred around screens. This is worrisome for us and we're actively working against it with heaps of reading and our favourite board games, but those are both calm activities. What about kids who love to be loud and move? Video games are usually the answer, and not something we're choosing to have in our home in this season. To fill the gaming void, I've been on the look out for exciting games for our older two that allow for high energy and creativity and as a result we now have a new favourite new game!

HEXBUG is a STEM learning toy company creating amazing products for kids without screens! STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and maths for those who aren't familiar, and all of their games and toys reflect that focus. We have the HEXBUG Battlebots and the VEX Robotics Battling Robots and our older two are obsessed with playing with these! I love how interactive, intense, and fun these games are. More than once we've had friends over who have seen the kids playing with the Battlebots who have commented that they're "just like a video game without the screen!", which to us is high praise for an activity.

Come summer we'll be biking around our city and swimming in the local pool every day, but for now we really rely on creative games and toys like these. I highly recommend HEXBUG creations, in fact, we already owned several of their toys before we began this collaboration!  

This post was in collaboration with HEXBUG. 

All opinions are 100% my own. 

To book a collab, contact me.