BABIES NEED TOYS NOT SHINY THINGS!

Should Babies Have iPhones? By Jerome Skinly, Age 7

Hi! I’m Jerome and I’m seven! My teacher, Ms. Davis, asked us to write about stuff. I was thinking… should babies have iPhones? Like, the real little babies?

My mom says NO WAY! And she’s my mom, so she knows stuff. But I wanted to find out why.

I read some big kid papers (with help from my mom, 'cause I'm still learning to read all the words!). They said babies need to TOUCH things and PLAY with things. Like blocks and fluffy toys. If a baby just looks at an iPhone all the time, their brain might not grow right! That's like… if you didn’t eat your veggies, your brain wouldn’t get strong enough to build a really tall tower of blocks.

The papers said babies need to talk to people! Not just listen to videos. Talking helps them learn words. My baby sister, Lily, babbles a lot! It's super cute. And my mom and dad talk back to her. They say that's important! An iPhone can’t talk back the same way, even if it sounds like it is.

Also, the papers said too much iPhone time makes it hard to pay attention. If everything is super bright and changes all the time, your brain gets tired! That's what Ms. Davis says happens when we have too much sugar.

There's this guy named Vygotsky (it's a hard name to say!) and he said babies learn best when people are with them. Like, showing them stuff and playing with them. An iPhone can’t play with a baby. It's just… a shiny thing.

My mom said the doctors who know about babies (the ones in the AAP!) said babies under one and a half should not even LOOK at screens! Except for video calls with Grandma, which is okay 'cause you get to see Grandma’s face.

So, yeah. I think babies should play with toys and talk to people and eat their veggies. iPhones are for big kids, like me! (Sometimes. Mom says I can only have screen time after my homework.)