Parental Controls That Actually Work: Simple Rules for 0-5

Parental controls for toddlers are not filters and PINs — they are habits. Four rules cover 95% of what matters before age 5.

The 4 rules

• 1. You hold the device. Phone or tablet lives with you. The child uses it on your lap or beside you — never alone in a room.
• 2. One app, airplane when possible. Open only the teaching app. Airplane mode or WiFi-only removes ads, popups and purchases entirely.
• 3. Preview before paywall. Never buy inside a tantrum. Preview free blocks together, decide later, buy once from your own screen.
• 4. Timer you both see. Five minutes, then we build blocks. A kitchen timer beats an app lock — the child learns time ends things, not you.

Responsibility ladder by age

• 0-18 mo: you tap together, they watch and touch.
• 18-36 mo: they tap, you narrate. They choose the category.
• 3-5 y: they run the session, retell the story, and turn it off themselves.

Control the setting, share the choosing, celebrate the stopping.