# 1 Most Intelligent New Year's Resolution for Parents
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In 2026, so many parents have caught on to the dangers of screen use for their children, thanks to the work of people like Jonathan Haidt and his book, The Anxious Generation.
The Resolution
Consequently, many parents have made it a New Year's resolution to severely limit screen time and not just for their children.
For themselves too!
Each wise parent knows that her children will imitate her behavior.
If you are polite, your children will be polite. If you eat in moderation, your children will eat in moderation. If you read books, your children will read books.
Of course, this isn't a guarantee because there are other factors at play, but it's a good general principle to live by. As the saying goes: Monkey see, Monkey do—and this includes screen use too.
“Good wombs have borne bad sons.”
Habit is the Key
If you were not amongst the parents who resolved to reduce screen time for their children in 2026, do not despair. It is never too late to put good habits into place.
Good people are the sum total of good habits, as Aristotle taught us.
Instilling good habits in your children from an early age will make all of the difference. But again, there is never a guarantee. We do our best as parents, and we leave the outcomes up to a higher power, God, if I may.
Our job is to understand what we have to do. One of the things to consider today is the complete insanity behind AI and social media and how it will affect your children's lives.
“Boys are at a greater risk than girls of “failure to launch.” They are more likely to become young adults who are “Not in Education, Employment, or Training.” ”
An Amazing Woman Who Has A Lot to Teach Us
Now, I am politically neutral, as I think most politicians have their heads screwed on backwards these days, so what I am about to tell you is about the person, not the politics.
I watched the last interview with the beloved Jane Goodall, which aired after she passed, may she rest in peace. She tells her host that she would like to put Musk, Trump, Netanyahu, and a few others in a rocket and send them to the planet Musk is trying to inhabit.
I was surprised to hear her say these things, but then she knew she would be dead when her interview was aired.
As I listened, I have to admit that I was disappointed she hadn’t mentioned men, such as Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates, because they have definitely earned a place in that rocket.
I only mentioned the political part here because I did wonder why some of the men who are responsible for harming children through online learning and social media were not considered by Ms. Goodall.
Freefalling Madness
With AI and social media, we have to recognize that our ability to think clearly, rationally, creatively, and logically is at stake. I have watched the dumbing down of America during my lifetime—this stuff is real.
And don't be shocked.
The idea of controlling people is as old as mankind. How much easier is it to control a non-thinking, obedient people than a people who can't be fooled?
Jane Goodall said these were the darkest times she has seen, but she also said never lose hope.
Fight to the end because we must always keep up our fight for our children's sake and for our children's children.
Our precious ones do not need to be corrupted by this stuff. They do not need to be brain-damaged by this stuff. They do not need to be made soulless by this stuff.
People who can think creatively and logically will be the people who are in demand for the future we are facing. Life as we know it is changing, and it is changing fast.
It's up to you and how you raise your children.
Be brave. Go against the grain. Find like-minded people. And say no to screens.
If you haven't made zero screen-use for your children a New Year's resolution yet, right now is the perfect time. Raise them without it. It's so much easier.
I did it. My parents, for the most part, did it. Parents throughout history have done it. Many, many young parents are saying no to screens for their children, even today when screen avoidance has become virtually impossible for adults.
Because they know it is harming their children, and as mama bears, it's unacceptable.
“There is a “God-shaped hole” in every human heart. Or at least, many people feel a yearning for meaning, connection, and spiritual elevation. A phone-based life often fills that hole with trivial and degrading content. The ancients advised us to be more deliberate in choosing what we expose ourselves to. ”
Don’t miss your free download: 10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.
Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.
About Elizabeth Y. Hanson
Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.
As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.
Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:
Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.
One-on-one consultations available, too.
"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”
—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.
