När barnen sover försöker jag låta bli att titta på mobilen hela tiden.

Barnen is the definite plural form, meaning the children.

A quick pattern:

• ett barn = a child
• barn = children
• barnet = the child
• barnen = the children

So När barnen sover means When the children are sleeping / asleep.

This is because Swedish follows the V2 rule in main clauses: the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

Here, the sentence begins with När barnen sover, which counts as the first element. That means the finite verb of the main clause, försöker, must come next, and the subject jag comes after it:

• När barnen sover | försöker | jag ...

If you started directly with the subject, you would say:

• Jag försöker låta bli att titta på mobilen hela tiden.

But once the sentence starts with När barnen sover, inversion happens:

• När barnen sover försöker jag ...

In Swedish, a comma after an initial subordinate clause is often optional and frequently left out, especially in ordinary modern writing.

So both of these can be seen:

• När barnen sover försöker jag ...
• När barnen sover, försöker jag ...

The version without the comma is very normal.

This is different from English, where a comma is often more strongly expected after an introductory clause.

Yes, medan is possible in some contexts, but när is the more natural choice here.

• när = when
• medan = while

In everyday Swedish, när often covers both when and while, especially when talking about something that happens during the same time period.

So:

• När barnen sover ... = When/While the children are asleep ...

Using medan would put a bit more focus on two actions happening at the same time:

• Medan barnen sover försöker jag ...

That is not wrong, but när sounds very natural here.

Swedish does not have a separate present continuous form like English does.

So Swedish uses the plain present tense for both:

• sover = sleep / is sleeping / are sleeping
• försöker = try / am trying

That means:

• barnen sover can mean the children sleep, the children are sleeping, or the children are asleep, depending on context.
• jag försöker can mean I try or I’m trying.

This is very common and normal in Swedish.

Because försöka can be followed by an infinitive with or without att.

So both are possible:

• Jag försöker låta bli att titta ...
• Jag försöker att låta bli att titta ...

The version without att is very common and sounds natural.

However, in låta bli att titta, the att is part of the expression låta bli att + infinitive, so there it stays.

Låta bli att + infinitive is a fixed expression meaning:

• to refrain from
• to avoid
• to not do something
• to leave something undone on purpose

So:

• låta bli att titta på mobilen = refrain from looking at the phone / not look at the phone

It is best learned as a whole expression, because the literal pieces do not help much:

• låta = let
• bli = remain / become

But låta bli att together is idiomatic.

You could say something like:

• Jag försöker att inte titta på mobilen hela tiden.

That also means I try not to look at my phone all the time.

But försöka låta bli att ... is a very common and natural Swedish way to express trying to resist doing something.

There is a slight nuance:

• försöka att inte titta = try not to look
• försöka låta bli att titta = try to refrain from looking / try to stop myself from looking

Both work, but låta bli att often sounds especially natural when talking about resisting a habit.

Because the verb is titta på, which means look at.

So the pattern is:

• titta på något = look at something

Examples:

• titta på TV
• titta på himlen
• titta på mobilen

Even though English sometimes says look at your phone, Swedish uses på after titta.

Here mobilen means the phone, but in context it is naturally understood as my phone.

Swedish often uses the definite form where English might prefer a possessive like my, especially when the owner is obvious from context.

So:

• titta på mobilen = look at the phone / my phone

If you want to be more explicit or contrastive, you could say:

• titta på min mobil

But the original version sounds very natural.

Hela tiden means:

• all the time
• constantly
• the whole time

In this sentence, it describes the repeated habit of checking the phone:

• titta på mobilen hela tiden = look at the phone all the time

So the idea is not just one glance, but doing it again and again.

Yes, slightly.

In context, hela tiden most naturally means constantly / over and over. So the sentence suggests a habit like repeatedly checking the phone.

Depending on context, hela tiden can also mean:

• throughout the whole period
• the entire time

But here the most natural reading is constantly.

Yes. Kolla på mobilen is very common in everyday spoken Swedish.

A rough comparison:

• titta på mobilen = neutral, standard
• kolla på mobilen = a bit more informal, conversational

Both are natural.
By contrast, se på mobilen would usually not fit as well here, because se is more about seeing, while titta på is about actively looking at something.

So in this sentence, titta på is a very good choice.