Printable template
Family screen agreement
Print it, argue about it over dinner, cross things out, sign it, fridge it. The arguing is the point — rules people helped write are rules they keep.
Our family's screen agreement
We, the family, agree that screens serve our family — not the other way round. Starting , we will keep the rules below. They apply to everyone, including the adults.
Places
- No phones at the table — meals are for faces.
- Phones sleep outside bedrooms, charging at .
- The car's front seat is a phone-free zone. Navigation lives in a mount.
Times
- Screens off minutes before bedtime.
- No screens before school / work on weekdays.
- One screen-free block every weekend: .
Daylight (the health rule)
- Kids get two hours outdoors on as many days as we can manage — eyes need daylight to grow right.
- Outdoor time comes before recreational screen time, not instead of promised activities.
Repairs
- If someone slips, we say so — no sneaking, no shaming.
- Repeated slips cost a chore chosen by the rest of the family, payable within the week.
- We renegotiate this page every months. Anyone can call a review.
Signed
Signed
Signed
Date
Invite another family (WhatsApp) Rules hold better when a friend's household runs them too.
Making it stick
Three things separate agreements that last from ones that die in a week:
- Adults sign too. Children treat asymmetric rules as illegitimate — accurately.
- Charging happens in one public spot. Most night use dies when the charger moves.
- The outdoor line is non-negotiable. It's the one item backed by randomized-trial evidence on children's eyesight.
Pair it with the 7-day reset if the adults need a running start.