Sarah Michelle Gellar knows how harmful spending two much time looking at screens can be—especially for teens and pre-teens like her two kids.
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer star spoke about limiting the time hers and Freddie Prinze Jr.'s children spend on their phones, and encouraging healthier activities instead. As for how the mom of two gets her kids to comply with this, she shared how she does it in practice.
"We have all of the screen time limits on their phones, so they get whatever amount of time per day that we deem acceptable," Gellar told E! News. "And then it shuts off, and it's up to us to decide and say, 'Hey, you've really been on it a lot. Go outside and go shoot some hoops or go see your friends across the streets.'"
She explained, "The goal is that they will learn to self-regulate because they'll be used to thinking, 'OK, it's time to take a break.'"
Gellar has partnered with UScellular for the Global Day of Unplugging, on March 1, precisely because this all means so much to her.
The actress also addressed how she navigates talking to her 14-year-old daughter Charlotte about the pitfalls of the internet.
"I can't stop Charlotte, but I can teach her," she said. "I can teach her why not to look at that website, or not to believe everything that you see or maybe take a break from the Snap map."
Gellar explained that the four of them—the famous parents also share son Rocky, 11—especially like to enjoy meals together and play board games.
"I think having activities for these kids is really important because it does give them something outside where they're not on these devices," she said. "That's equally as important."
Gellar isn't the only celeb who's spoken out about the dangers of kids and the internet: For example, Pink has a strict rule for when her daughter Willow will be allowed a phone, and Prince Harry and Meghan are strong advocates for young people's online safety.
