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How an Aussie Dad Stopped his Kids from Spending Hours on the Computer

A dad managed to get his children off screens and outside cleaning up beaches and parks in a manner that 'immediately increased their 'activity and engaged'.

Sydney father Jon Owen, 47, had the idea while watching a documentary on nature with his children Molly 10 and Eve 8.

He started by taking his children and their friends to the beach and then they would work on various projects.

The kids went to Bondi one day and picked up trash from the basketball courts.

'They got so excited, it was fierce, with the goal of seeing who could pick up the most, and they had a lot of fun and had a blast,' Mr Owen said to Daily Mail Australia.

Mr. Owen said that his children, Eve, 8, (pictured left, at the far left of Bondi basketball courts) and Molly 10, (pictured, second from right) go 'so excited and competitive' about the projects he gave them.

The app lets kids tackle real-world challenges, like gardening, creating worm farms, bird boxes and even frog hotel.

Two-time dad said he saw the difference in his children 'absolutely instantly after he began to give them mini-projects.

Mr Owen also gave the kids tasks like making a meal using leftovers and making crafts using old clothes.

He noticed positive changes in his children "instantly". This was in addition to the enjoyable benefit of teaching responsibility and making them more aware of their environment.

Jon Owen (pictured) stated that he hopes to make it fun for children to learn to live sustainably.

Mr. Owen decided to invest in enabling Aussie primary school children to have the same experiences.

Genus was founded by him in collaboration with other entrepreneurs. The tech startup created an app that 'enables children to undertake real-world missions and learn valuable life skills.

The Genus app has been tested in 40 schools across Australia. It can be used as a launching point for students to take on environmental projects.

Some of these include building Frog hotels, worm farms, bird boxes and doing arts and crafts with the app demonstrating to how to do it.

After completing the task after which they upload their photos to the app, and move on to the next level.

Mr. Owen created the app as an environmentally friendly and educational alternative to the popular games that kids are engrossed in, like Minecraft and Fortnite.

It also provides word searches and quizzes that incorporate environmental themes. There are also activities where students can utilize math to determine how much soft material they can save from the landfill.

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Owen stated that it was all about taking children on a thrilling adventure that has a tangible benefit.

'Saving the planet has always been seen as hard and boring... Genus is making sustainability a fun activity for children", Mr Owen stated.

Owen acknowledges that today's children are being raised in the digital age. However, it is important to maintain a balance that allows kids to be more active and get dirty. Premiumebooks

Schools can utilize the app for free, but it will be charged to students beginning in 2023 for two dollars per year.

Genus's goal is to use technology to solve real-world problems. Genus's app will be crowdfunded to help fund its development.