Kildare primary schools collaborate to encourage children off smartphones

In 2024, a survey carried out by Irish charity CyberSafeKids revealed that a staggering 94% of children aged 8-12 years old owned a smart device of some kind, and of these children 82% owned a social media or instant messaging account. A quarter of them reported being bothered or upset by something experienced or seen online.

Spurred on by the growing body of research evidencing the deleterious emotional, social and academic effects of early access to smartphones and social media, the parents’ associations, management and staff of 11 primary schools in the Naas area took action last year.

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They launched their GoPhoneFree initiative, which invites parents and guardians collectively to agree to no smartphones or social media while in primary school and to respect the age rating on video games.

The participating schools include Gaelscoil Nás na Ríogh, Holy Child Catholic National School, Killashee Multi-Denominational National School, Mercy Convent Primary School, Naas Community National School, Rathmore National School, Scoil Bhride Naas, Scoil Bhride Clane, St Corban’s National School, St David’s National School and Two Mile House National School.

Following this, a group of participating schools this year hosted a GoPhoneFree week in October which included educational and entertaining events to get children and their parents talking about the initiative and hopefully implementing it in their homes.

The programmes hosted by the various schools included informative talks and shows for children, such as Reuben the entertainer and his shows “Distracted” and “Fooled”, Stephen McGinley Entertainer and Juggler, and psychologist Paula O’Connor with “Don’t be mean behind your screen”. 

They also put on old-fashioned board games and Fuinseog Woodland Games, where children spent the day playing traditional games made from natural wooden materials, a dress-up day in the colours of the initiative, and a town-wide art poster competition, the winners of which are presently displayed in the Naas Library. 

The shared hope is that this initiative continues to gain traction with families in Naas and beyond and that together communities can foster a culture that prioritizes childhood and balances technology use in a mindful way.

To find out more information about this initiative and how to implement it, contact Mercy Convent Naas Parents’ Association, mercyconventnaaspa@gmail.com.