Bring Living Back to the Living Room with Dr. Emily Greenwald

Is your family living in your living room, or just sitting together on screens?

When the clocks fall back, the sun sets before dinner and kids head inside. As we record this, Daylight Saving Time ends overnight on Halloween, and pediatricians know what usually comes next: less movement and more time on devices.

In this mini-episode, Marijo Tinlin talks with Dr. Emily Greenwald, a double board-certified pediatrician, mom of three, host of the Active Play Every Day podcast, and Chief Pediatric Advisor for NEX Playground. She shares the surprising number behind kids' daily movement, the big shift in how the American Academy of Pediatrics thinks about screen time, and a simple question you can ask every time your child asks for a screen.

What is "screen time displacement"?

Screen time displacement is the idea that the real cost of screen time is what it pushes out of a child's day: movement, sleep, play, reading and time together as a family. In January 2026, the American Academy of Pediatrics published a policy statement, "Digital Ecosystems, Children, and Adolescents," that moves away from counting minutes alone and asks families to look at what screens are crowding out.

By the numbers

• 1 in 5: Only about one in five U.S. kids ages 6 to 17 meet the national guideline of 60 minutes of physical activity a day (2024 U.S. Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth, Physical Activity Alliance).
• 60 minutes: The daily amount of moderate to vigorous activity recommended for school-age kids.
• November 1, 2026: Daylight Saving Time ends at 2 a.m., overnight on Halloween, so evenings get dark an hour earlier.

Key takeaways

1. Fall is a risky season for movement. When it's light late, kids play outside. When it gets dark early, the living room often becomes a "lifeless" room where everyone sits on their own device.
2. Ask "what is this crowding out?" Before saying yes or no to a screen, ask: Has my child moved enough today? Could we play a board game or do something together instead?
3. Not all screen time is equal. Screens that get kids moving and playing together crowd out less than solo scrolling or tablet time.
4. Look for screens that stop themselves. Active games tire kids out, so play ends naturally, unlike a tablet that can go on forever.
5. Match games to development. What a 5-year-old can do physically is different from a 10-year-old, so choose and hide games based on gross motor skills.
6. Gifts can bring living back to the living room. This holiday season, look for gifts that get the whole family moving together.

Chapters

00:00 Welcome and intro 00:47 Daylight Saving Time and kids' screen time 01:10 Only 1 in 5 kids move enough every day 02:05 When the living room stops being a "living" room 02:18 The AAP's new approach to screen time 03:33 What is NEX Playground? 05:12 Screen time that stops itself 06:01 Where to learn more: blogs, podcast and Instagram 07:24 Is it right for every age? 08:46 A holiday gift that gets kids moving 09:18 Thanks for listening

About Dr. Emily Greenwald

Dr. Emily Greenwald is a double board-certified pediatrician (pediatrics and pediatric emergency medicine) and a mother of three. She is the Chief Pediatric Advisor for NEX Playground and the host of the Active Play Every Day podcast, where she talks about getting kids moving, recess, risky play and building confident, resilient kids.

Links and resources

• Dr. Emily Greenwald on Instagram: instagram.com/dremilygreenwald
• NEX Playground: nexplayground.com
• Active Play Every Day podcast: