Pre-school tots spending more than FOUR hours a day glued to screens and an average of eight hours a week online
Kids of three and four are online on iPads and other devices 71 minutes per day
PRE-school youngsters are glued to screens for more than four hours a day.
Kids of three and four are online on iPads and other devices an average of 71 minutes.
It means they are spending an average of eight hours and 18 minutes a week online, Ofcom said.
And when gaming and watching telly is combined it makes a total of four hours and 11 minutes a day of screen time.
The figures also revealed youngsters aged between five and 15 now spend around 15 hours browsing websites, social media and using apps each week.
It is the first time online use has overtaken time watching TV.
YouTube has become one of the most popular online destinations for children to watch content, with 73 per cent of five to 15-year-olds and 37 per cent of pre-schoolers regularly using the video site.
Children have cut the time they spend watching TV from an average of 14 hours and 48 minutes last year to 13 hours and 36 minutes.
But nine in ten still watch TV, generally every day and between 6pm and 9pm.
Ofcom’s study found that 34 per cent of pre-schoolers own their own media device and 55 per cent use a tablet, with 16 per cent owning one of their own.
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But they prefer smartphones over tablets as they get older, with one in three eight to 11-year-olds and eight in ten of 12 to 15-year-olds having their own smartphone.
But a separate piece of Ofcom research shows reading is the third most popular activity among primary school children.
And many families still enjoy the traditional bedtime routine, with one in five children aged six to 11 reading at 7.45pm.
Ofcom director of market intelligence Jane Rumble said: “Children’s lives are increasingly digital, but families find time for more traditional activities, such as watching TV or reading a story.”