Screen Time vs. Music Lessons: What the Data Shows About Extracurriculars

By ABC Academy of Music teaching team · Updated August 2026

“How do I get my kid off their phone?” We hear some version of this question from almost every parent, no matter which instrument their child is learning. Screens are not going away. But real research gives us a clear picture of what happens when kids spend their after-school hours on an activity like music instead of a screen. See our full Music Education Research hub for every study behind our program.

A Study of Nearly 29,000 Canadian Teens

The largest study on this exact question comes from British Columbia, Canada. Researchers tracked 28,712 grade 7 students and asked how they spent their after-school hours: on screens, in extracurricular activities like music and sports, or both.

The pattern was clear. Teens who took part in extracurricular activities were far less likely to spend two or more hours a day on recreational screens. Teens with two or more hours of daily screen time reported lower life satisfaction, lower optimism, and higher anxiety and depression. Teens in extracurricular activities reported the opposite: higher life satisfaction, higher optimism, and lower anxiety and depression.

One detail stood out. The link between heavy screen time and poor mental health was stronger for girls than for boys. Extracurricular activities like music lessons did not just fill time. They were tied to real differences in how these teens said they felt, including lower anxiety, a topic our article on music and teen stress relief covers in more depth.

How Many Families Are Already Choosing Activities Like This?

A large US survey from the Pew Research Center asked parents directly what their kids did after school. The numbers show just how much screens already dominate free time, even in families that also sign kids up for lessons.

About half of these parents said their kids spent too much time on screens. Music, dance, and art lessons were far less common than screen time. Still, they reached over half of all families. So which of these two everyday activities does more for a child’s mood? That is exactly what the British Columbia study helps answer. A structured weekly activity also builds routine in a way idle screen time does not, a point we cover in our article on music lessons and discipline.

The Same Pattern Shows Up in Australia

Researchers in Australia track children’s screen time each year, through a long-running study called Growing Up in Australia. By age 12 to 13, kids average more than three hours of screen time on a school day. On weekends, that climbs to almost four hours.

The same data found something else. Kids who took part in activities like music or art spent less time on screens. This held true most strongly for boys. So here is the pattern, from three separate countries and three different research teams: kids in structured activities like music spend less time on screens. They also report feeling better. Our article on music and child brain development looks at what a developing brain gains from an instrument, beyond just less screen exposure.

What This Doesn’t Prove

None of these studies picked children at random for music lessons or for extra screen time. Families who already like activities such as music lessons may also set different screen rules at home. That is a real limit. Still, three large surveys, from three different countries, all point the same way. That is worth something, even without a trial that proves cause and effect directly.

Music Lessons at ABC Academy of Music

A weekly lesson will not delete a phone from your child’s pocket. But the research is consistent: kids with a structured, real-world activity like music tend to spend less time on screens and report feeling better. If you want to give your child that kind of standing weekly commitment, browse our class schedule for piano, guitar, voice, drums, and our Music Together® program. See our rates and payment page for current pricing, or contact us with questions about our Toronto-area locations.