Homework and Screen Time Agreement

Who this is for

House rules both of you sign. It sets out homework, devices, promises on both sides and what follows if the agreement is kept or broken.

Parents of school-age children and teenagers who want the rules about homework and devices agreed once and written down, rather than argued about every evening.

What this helps you track

• The homework routine for each day of the week
• Each device, the times it can be used and the apps allowed on it
• Where devices are charged overnight
• What the child agrees to and what the parent agrees to in return
• The rewards and consequences you both accepted in advance

How to use it

1. Fill in the names, today's date and a date to review the agreement together.
2. Agree the homework time and place for each school day, and who checks in.
3. List each device with the times and apps you have agreed, and where it spends the night.
4. Go through the promises, cross out anything you have not agreed and add your own.
5. Write the rewards and consequences before anyone needs them, then both sign on the signature line.
6. On the review date, look at what worked and fill in a fresh copy if the rules change.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

How much screen time should we write in?

Whatever your family agrees. The sheet gives no limits or recommended hours; the times column is blank so the rules fit your child's age, school and week.

Why does the parent sign as well?

Because an agreement only one side keeps is really a list of rules. Children tend to stick to terms more readily when the adult has promised something in return, such as a warning before time is up.

What if we need to change something?

Wait for the review date if you can, then talk it through and write a new copy. If it cannot wait, agree the change together and both initial it on the sheet.

Can I use it for more than one child?

Fill in one agreement per child. Ages and devices differ, and a separate sheet avoids an older child's rules being applied to a younger one.