Why hire an E-sitter (virtual sitter)?

As COVID-19 continues to change our daily lives, parents working from home are still trying to figure out how to find a balance between caring for their children and their jobs.

When officials are asking everyone to stay put or keep their distance as much as possible, how are parents able to get the caregiving assistance they need?

With the internet possibilities are endless, especially when it comes to the ability to connect with Kone another from a distance – particularly through the video.  We talk to our loved ones, to our colleges, to our doctors through the videos so why not hire a virtual sitter? 

What is the e-sitter?

A virtual sitting is not the same thing as in-person babysitting. A virtual sitting is hiring a babysitter to engage children digitally for a short period of time. The sessions can be used to assist kids with schoolwork or facilitate an interactive game or learn new language. The possibilities are broad, of course it doesn’t replace physical care but it provides a solution to the problem many parents face during this time – productivity!

What are the benefits of the e-sitter? Besides the obvious benefits for the parents, it can actually contribute to your kids development. There is how:

1. Kids are spending a lot of time on screens anyway, making it worthwhile, making it educational, but some old fashion fun also couldn’t heart. 
2. E-sitter can teach your kids additional skills like language, craft, art, music, chess and more (remember those times when you really wanted your kid to learn how to play chess, well, this is a very good opportunity to explore this option). 

According to a recent study review, only screen time spent watching TV or playing passive video games has a negative impact on how children fare in school. Other uses of screen time (creative ones like drawing on an iPad app or Facetimeing with Grandma, or physical ones like playing active video games) don’t have the same impact.

Passive screen time (which includes activities like watching TV, playing video games that don’t require problem solving or physical activity) isn’t great for kids’ behaviour or cognitive development, but active screen time (playing educational video games or those that require physical action) is.

As Dr. Juana Willumsen, of the World Health Organization has said, “There is no denying that screens are part of the modern era. It is how we interact that matters.”

Passive screen time is likely to be sedentary time, whereas active screen time is, well, active. There is a big difference between a kid sitting in front of the TV for hours and a child dancing along to a playlist or playing Wii Sports with mom or dad.

Our take? This research is definitely worth taking into account. Screen time  that engages kids with people (like watching a movie with mom or dad, or having a FaceTime call with an online/virtual babysitter for example) is more beneficial than just binge-watching TV, and when it comes to screen time moderation is good.