#87 Managing screen time (Med)
This lesson is suitable for intermediate-level learners. After listening, test your knowledge with our quiz.
Learning notes Lesson learning objective: Learn how to describe different ways you can manage screen time.
Different phrases you can use when talking about time:
People are making fun of me online
I need some time away from my phone
There's so much inappropriate content online
They're glued to their phones
I need to pull the plug on social media
I had to limit screen time
We need to set some hard limits
I'm losing them to a screen! Driving me crazy is a phrase used to say that something is making you very upset or annoyed. I get it means I understand. Same here means I agree and think the same way. If something is hard to keep track it is hard to follow or pay attention to. To make fun of someone is to tease them in a way thatis not very nice. To be in the same boat as someone is to be in a similar position or situation as someone. To bully someone is to be unkind and aggressive, often to get them to do something for you or to make them feel bad over a period of time. To harass someone is to continue to be unpleasant or aggressive to someone on a regular basis. Cyberbullying is the use of technology or the internet to harass or bully someone. Inappropriate content can be content that is upsetting, disturbing and is generally unsuitable for the audience or viewer.
If you want to stress that something is happening continuously and at this very moment , you can use the present continuous (am/is/are + verb + ing) instead of the present simple, as in:
Allan: My kids are driving me crazy.
we're losing them to a screen.
I'm thinking no social media
Practise speaking dialogue from this episode: SBS English
27/05/2025 04:00
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript) SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands, and waterways throughout Australia. Hey everyone, Kate here! Today we are going to be putting down our phones and getting away from the internet for a while. I need some space, that's for sure. We can say we need some time away or some space from something when we need to stop doing it for a while, normally because it has become unhealthy for us. There's so much inappropriate content out there on the internet, not to mention cyberbullying, that is people being very unpleasant or aggressive to other people online. It seems like everyone's talking about screen time these days — how much our kids should have, how much we should have, whether there should be bans for kids…It's one of those hot topics that keeps coming up in conversations between parents, carers, and adults in general. This episode isn't about how to talk to your kids about it — it's about how to join the conversation that's happening all around you. Allan and Claire have got some tips for us. Let's have a listen to how they deal with screen time in their homes.
Allan:
My kids are driving me crazy. They're glued to their phones all the time. Maybe I need to pull the plug on socials for a while.
Claire:
I get it. Same here. I had to limit screen time for my kids too.
Allan:
Yeah, I think it's time we set some boundaries. I feel like we're losing them to a screen.
Claire:
And it's not just the time they spend on-line—there's so much inappropriate stuff out there. It's scary. Cyberbullying is real. I don't know if I need to monitor everything they do.
Allan:
I know. And it's hard to keep track of it all. I'm thinking no social media during the week, and only an hour on weekends. Hmm... seems like Allan and Claire think that it is important to set some rules around screen time with their kids. Could you follow? Let's go through it together.
Allan said,
My kids are driving me crazy. They're glued to their phones all the time. Driving me crazy! If something is driving you crazy it means that something really annoys you, and when it comes to kids – leaving dirty dishes, leaving clothes on the floor, staring at their phones and not paying attention to anything else...We know that these things can really drive us crazy! Seems like Allan's kids keep staring at their phones, so it looks as though they are physically stuck there and are actually glued to them!
He continued,
Maybe I need to pull the plug on socials for a while. We can say we will pull the plug on something if we want to end it. Like literally pulling the electrical connection – the plug – from the wall. Allan wants to stop his kids using social media for a while which he calls socials for short. That will really drive his kids crazy for sure!
Claire replied,
I get it. Same here. I had to limit screen time for my kids too. Claires understands – she 'get's it'- and she says 'same here' which means that she agrees and thinks the same way. She's in the same boat as Allan, that is, she is in a similar position to him or is doing the same thing. She's not exactly pulling the plug on her kids' screen time, but she's at least limiting it or cutting it short it, and that's a start
Allan responded,
I think it's time we set some boundaries. I feel like we're losing them to a screen. Sheesh. It must be tricky raising kids in this generation when everyone is online. Allan even feels he's losing his kids to a screen! We can say we are losing someone to something if they are pre-occupied with it or we feel that it's taking over their life. I can relate to that. I feel like I'm losing my friend to Football because it's the only thing he ever talks about anymore! To stop losing his kids to their phones, Allan is going to set some hard limits on their screen time, that is, he's going to set some limits which he wants to be followed exactly. He does not want to be flexible, and only set soft limits.
Claire replied,
There's so much inappropriate stuff out there. Cyberbullying is real. Claire's concerned about the inappropriate, or unsuitable, content that her kids are viewing online. And she's also worried about cyberbullying, which is when people harass or bully other people on-line, because it is a big problem for kids online and can be happening without the parents' knowing anything about it. By the way, to bully someone is to be unkind and aggressive, often to get them to do something for you or to make them feel bad over a period of time. Setting hard limits on screen time and pulling the plug on their social media is a good way to prevent losing their kids to their phones, even if it will drive them crazy!
Claire also said,
I don't know if I need to monitor everything they do. To monitor someone or something means to watch or check regularly to see what is happening. You can monitor a person (for example, a child or a patient) or monitor something (like your screen time or your heart rate).
Allan replied,
it's hard to keep track of it all. I'm thinking no social media during the week, and only an hour on weekends. Seems his solution was a hard limit of socials during the week, so the kids aren't glued to their phones. He's not pulling the plug entirely though. He's letting them have an hour on the weekends. Allan Also said it's hard to keep track of it all, which is to say, he finds it difficult to follow all the rules and to know what to do about setting limits around his kids' screen time. We say we are keeping track if we are following along, particularly when things are changing. For example, I could say it's hard to keep track of all the work I have to do before I go on holidays, but I am definitely keeping track of what's happening in my favourite TV show. Well, I hope you guys have been keeping track of the dialogue but it's ok if you found it hard, because we can listen to it again! Sign up for previews, updates and to provide feedback.
A big thank you to our guest Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan voiced the characters of Allan and Claire, and Professor Lynda Yates was our educational consultant.
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