Losing the nomination for Parent of the Year since 2001
I’m a lousy parent.
No, really. That’s exactly how I sometimes feel trying to raise my boys.
When I let them have too much screen time. When I look over my own laptop screen to tell them to get off their devices. When I don’t filter the internet connection enough. When I filter it too much.
Worst part? I have over 25 years of experience as a classroom teacher, school librarian, and education technologist.
(If anyone should know better, right? Sheesh!)
Every day of my professional life, I’m immersed in the debates and studies and innovations about how tech should and shouldn’t be used, what it is and isn’t doing to our kids, websites and apps that are helpful or dangerous for our kids.
In short, I’m a geek.
But I often wonder about my non-geek parenting friends. If you are not up to your eyeballs in this stuff like me, I understand how concerned–maybe confused–you must be when it comes to technology and your kids.
- Do the sensational headlines about internet predators incite panic?
- Do you constantly wonder what game your son is using, what app your daughter is using, or what site your child is accessing?
- Have you ever been surprised by your credit card bill after letting your son play on your iPad? (Guilty.)
- Do you know just enough about tech to get online to check your email and Facebook?
- Are you still unable to program your VCR to anything other than 12:00?
(Actually, if you still have a VCR, you may need more help than I’m able to provide here…)
But I do want to help.
Through what I post, create, and share here on ParentingDigital, I want you to feel less overwhelmed and more informed and confident as you make parenting decisions regarding the role technology plays in your family.
I want to point you to great resources, including books, websites, apps, software, and people.
More than anything, I want to help you with some practical steps, plans, and ideas that you and I can put into place to help our kids grow into balanced men and women in an increasingly digital world.
So, who is Cory?
I’m a recovering English teacher, but I moved into my current role as tech integrator (like a tech coach) and a library media specialist. In all those roles, I’ve learned a lot about kids, technology, and the intersection of the two. I regularly teach good digital citizenship skills, including staying safe online, making good decisions about online sources of information, and finding a balance between online and offline worlds.
As a parent of two high schoolers (as of this year…gulp!), I’ve been through most of the “phases”. They are very different personalities and have their unique strengths and struggles (as do we all) and my wife and I have survived…so far. They are also tech geeks (Gee, where did they get that from?)
But as much as I like to geek out on technology, I also need to unplug. I practically grew up in the woods and love being outdoors, whether it’s backpacking, camping, kayaking, or hiking. We love traveling and seeing new places, mostly by car. We are also involved in various activities in our small church family.
(If you’re bored or curious, you can also click here to learn 10 things about me you don’t really need to know.)
With that, welcome to Parenting Digital! Let me know what I can do to help you.
Cory