The Look Up, Joy! family tech-free challenge

At the end of Look Up, Joy!, Joy discovers that "the best thing about summer isn't on a screen. It's the friends and family beside you." This seven-day challenge helps your family find that out together. It isn't about guilt or perfection. It's about making room for the people and play that screens can crowd out.

Before you start

Read the book together. Then pick your family's "screen-free zones and times." The AAP's free Family Media Plan is a helpful way to choose them and write them down, and it includes rules for grown-ups as well as kids. The AAP encourages parents to role-model putting phones down at dinnertime, bedtime, and on car rides, so this challenge is for everyone.

Keep it realistic. Work, school, and video calls with Grandma can stay. The goal is to swap some fun screen time for together time.

The seven days

1. Day 1: The big tuck-in. Choose a "device bed," like a basket in the kitchen. All tablets and phones sleep there tonight, just like Joy's iPad takes a "summer vacation."
2. Day 2: Look-up dinner. No screens at the table. Each person shares one high and one low from their day.
3. Day 3: Outside hour. Bikes, chalk, a walk with the dog. Waffles would approve.
4. Day 4: Kindness mission. Like Joy helping Lily, do one helpful thing for a friend or neighbor. Make a card, share a snack, or invite someone new to play.
5. Day 5: Story night. Read aloud, act out a favorite story, or let kids "read" the pictures to you.
6. Day 6: Make something. Build a fort, bake cookies, or draw your own Cosmo and Nova adventure.
7. Day 7: Family celebration. Talk about what you liked best. Read Proverbs 17:17 together: "A friend loves at all times. They are there to help when trouble comes." Pray for your friends by name.

When it gets hard

Expect a few grumpy moments. Joy sulks and flops on the couch at first, and so does Waffles! The AAP suggests that when kids are upset, parents stay calm, name the feeling, and help them settle instead of reaching for a device. A simple script helps: "I know it's hard to wait. Let's find something fun together."

After the week

Keep the one or two habits your family loved most. Many families keep screen-free dinners or the device bed. Update your media plan, put it on the fridge, and try the challenge again next season.

Printable checklist: coming soon in the Parent Toolkit.

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