12 virtual schooling strategies for parents
The current restrictions on schools and the workplace have created a situation at home that none of us were prepared for. It’s not like staying home with our preschool-age children. Nor is it like summer vacation. It’s not even like homeschooling (in the truest definition of homeschooling.) This is “emergency virtual schooling,” and let’s admit […]
What parents should know about anonymous apps
The rise of anonymous apps reminds us that kids today are just like we were: there are some things we want to keep from our parents. Before smartphones, kids used to write their private thoughts in things like diaries (remember those?) They would have been mortified if anyone read their secrets. Now, they can share […]
[Book Review] Someone Should Have Told Me
There is a need for good children’s books that tackle digital age subjects (like online safety, pornography, predators, etc.) head-on. Someone Should Have Told Me, by Holly-ann Martin, is a needed addition to that small but growing library of resources for parents to read to their kids. Martin is the founder and director of Safe4Kids, […]
2018 Year in Review for ParentingDigital (and Me)
Early in every new year, I join the majority of the population in getting reflective about the past year and what I did (or didn’t) accomplish. I look at areas that need improvement and set goals for the coming months. I no longer do resolutions, as I think they are beautifully-worded and useless statements. I’ve […]
How to set up your kid’s first smartphone
So, the time has finally come to set up your tween or teen’s first smartphone. Maybe they’ve been hounding you for months or years, and you are finally trading in that dorky flip phone for something with an actual screen and real apps. Gulp! This is one of those moments that gives us, as digital […]
Big Tech has crossed a line, and that’s good news for parents and kids
Remember Joe Camel? In the 90s, the cartoonish character was the face of Camel cigarettes. It was a blatant campaign to market tobacco products to a young population, which the industry dubbed “replacement smokers.” And though these questionable marketing tactics had been used for decades, the use of Joe seems to be the straw that…well, […]
What Red Riding Hood teaches about online predators
When the first storytellers began weaving the tale of what would become Little Red Riding Hood, as early as the 10th century, they certainly had no idea what online predators were. Neither did the Brothers Grimm as they put the story down on paper in the 1800s. Nor did Stephen Sondheim and his team when […]
5 TED Talks to help with digital parenting
I’ve been a sucker for TED Talks ever since they started publishing them online. I’ve found some of them particularly valuable in parenting members of a digital generation. TED (Technology, Education, and Design) is an organization dedicated to “ideas worth spreading.” Through a series of international conferences and inspired local gatherings (called TEDx events), organizers […]
Parents have good reasons to ban phones from bedrooms
As parents, we spend a huge chunk of our lives trying to protect our kids. We put bumpers on the corners of the fireplace when they start toddling. We keep a watchful eye when they are playing on the playground. We send worry-filled notes to teachers expressing concern for our child’s social or academic welfare. […]
Facebook launches new Messenger Kids, but is it a good idea?
Facebook recently (and rather quietly) rolled out Messenger Kids to a U.S. audience. The new app, which appeared in our own Facebook app on our iPhones, is targeted to 6-12 year olds. Not surprisingly, it’s created quite a stir among parents and internet experts. The big question: Should I let my child use it? How […]