A 24-HOUR screen break sounds simple enough until someone asks where the charger is… families will know all too well about the draining arguments over swiping, scrolling and the general attention sucking of phones, tablets and other gadgets.

Autumn and Halloween are good excuses to put them down.

There are pumpkins to carve, leaves to wade through, costumes to create and friends to visit.

A torchlight walk or ghost story don’t have an algorithm lining up the next episode.

And that’s the whole point.

Offline fun doesn’t need to be expensive or perfectly organised.

It just needs people present enough to enjoy it.

In support of old school, real-life joy, charity CyberSafeKids is encouraging people to take a cyber break on October 16 and 17.

The screen amnesty offers families a chance to discover what happens when the devices take a back seat.

And the figures show there’s a clear need: the charity’s survey of more than 7,300 children found that kids themselves believe they spend too much time online, with 49% of primary pupils aged eight to 12 saying so and 51% of secondary pupils aged 12 to 15.

Gaming takes up the lion’s share of younger children’s online time (56%).

But children need more than lectures about the long-term effects of screens or first-person shooter games.

Adults need to lead by example and put their devices down too from time to time.

The government has invested millions to fund efforts to keep teenagers off their phones at school, including secure pouches to store their phones in.

Are they really the solution to a complex problem, or do we need a more drastic approach?

Elsewhere on the planet, schools are trying to give students a real breather.

Australian state schools now have phone bans, although rules are different depending on the region and territory.

In South Australia, students have reported more face-to-face conversation and better classroom focus.

Still, we all know the school bell doesn’t switch off the internet.

Phones return home where habits are shaped by family routines and platform design which  can lead to addictive behaviours.

School bans can create space during the day, but conversations at home about boundaries, sleep, stress and everyone’s screen use remain essential.

Meanwhile, policy makers are playing catch-up and legislation alone is no magic wand.

Ireland’s Online Safety Code and the EU’s Digital Services Act aim to strengthen protections, yet CyberSafeKids reports that 70% of eight-to-12-year-olds still have accounts on social media apps intended for over-13s.

Rules need meaningful enforcement and tech companies need to start pulling their finger out and do more than ask children to enter a birth date when signing up.

A cyber break isn’t a demand to reject technology.

It’s a reminder that technology should serve our lives, not organise every waking moment.

So let the phones miss us for one day.

The pumpkins, fresh air and slightly chaotic family board game will do just fine.

Important memories

THE sun came out last Saturday as hundreds gathered at the Square in Bantry.

They assembled to remember the 16 West Cork farmers who walked to Dublin demanding better rights for farmers 60 years ago. 

At the time they were led by the NFA President Rickard Deasy and through all kinds of weather walked the 217 miles to Dublin to join up with other protesting farmers.

It was a monumental event which shaped Irish farming for decades to come and is remembered by many who took to the roads heading for Dublin.

What was particularly poignant at the commemoration event was the fact that five of those 16 men who are still alive attended the commemoration event.

It was lovely too see the five – Michael Keohane, Jim Morris, Jackie Sullivan, Johnny O’Sullivan and Tom Mullins – being acknowledged for what they did on that October day in 1966.

Some of them were probably only in their early 20s, but took on the challenge not knowing what the outcome would be.

And let’s not forget the family members of the other 11 other men who were also in attendance which gave them a chance to reflect on their loves ones who took part in that walk.

It was important to remember all those who believed in securing a better future for Irish farmers, and they should never be forgotten.