The Oaks Academy asked kids to cut out screen time. Here’s how it went.
INDIANAPOLIS (MIRROR INDY) — The Oaks Academy is celebrating its students after surpassing a lofty goal: Spend 1 million minutes this November away from screens.
Not only did the students meet the goal, they doubled it.
Collectively, The Oaks’ 1,000 students spent more than 2 million minutes engaging in tech-free activities, such as baking cakes and selling lemonade.
Mirror Indy first reported on the school’s 1 Million Minutes Challenge in early November as students of the private Christian academy embarked on the monthlong experiment.
Teachers and staff encouraged students to use the challenge as a way to disconnect from the many screens around them and play games, read books, practice sports — pretty much anything not involving a digital device.
School leaders say kids’ developing minds benefit from taking a break from tech. Students today, they say, often carry shortened attention spans and social media distractions with them into the classroom.
“We really just want to start a conversation about this in our community and come at it from a way that’s really positive and empowering for parents,” communication director Brooke Reeves told Mirror Indy last month.
To encourage developing good tech habits, the school asked each student to commit to cutting at least 30 minutes of tech time out of their day.
School staff provided families with ideas on how to spend their time offline, and kids marked their progress on daily tracking sheets.
The challenge also served as a fundraiser. The school asked students to seek out sponsors for their tech-free time to help fund playground improvements and a new athletic facility.
Students in November raised more than $80,000 for their school.
The tech-free challenge is an idea school leaders say families can try on their own and is a habit they hope continues beyond the November event.
The Oaks has campuses in the near north side, Brookside and Martindale Brightwood neighborhoods. For more information on the 1 Million Minutes Challenge, visit the school’s website.
Mirror Indy reporter Carley Lanich covers early childhood and K-12 education. Contact her at carley.lanich@mirrorindy.org or follow her on X @carleylanich.