I download and play with every social network I review. While I am there, I get a taste for what teens are sharing. What I see online is what I see at home with my teens. There are many moments where they are insightful, funny and kind. There are some moments where they are cutting, sarcastic…
These hot and hazy days seem to bring out the devices. In the afternoon, my worn out child plops himself in front of the fan, grabs his tablet and starts trolling for new games. Before downloading a new app, he has to ask me to enter a pincode. Most of the time, I have heard of the app…
One of my top tips for parents on how to manage and guide their family’s technology use is building a family phone contract. I am not talking about a list of rules. Kids will mindlessly sign anything to have that phone in their hands. I am talking about sitting down together and building a contract. By…
We decided she was ready. We picked a phone and plan. Now, she has a phone! My kid spent her first phone weekend searching for the perfect case and texting her friends. On Monday, she discovered her phone journey was not over. We sat down together to draft her phone contract. Her phone contract included rules…
This year, we have another child entering middle school. She vividly remembers that her older sibling started middle school with a phone and she is ready for her first phone. We had done this dance before so we thought it would be a simple trip to our wireless store to add another line and get a phone.…
I will admit that when our eldest got a phone we did not think too deeply about it. She was babysitting and participating in more after school activities and we wanted her to be able to contact us. We knew she would use it to text her friends, but we didn’t think that was a…
Last week, Dona Fraser the Vice President of ESRB Privacy Certified explained the new COPPA rules. This week, we continue our conversation with some tips for how parents can help their kids choose the right apps. KidsPrivacy: Will the new COPPA rules include apps like Instagram or Vine that currently restricts to users to over 13? Dona Fraser: Many…
When I watch my kids online, I often wish the internet was a bit more forgiving. I am not talking about the freedom to do whatever they want without consequences. I am talking about sharing a silly moment without it stalking them for they rest of their lives. The Snapchat app appears to promise kids this…
The start of school is no longer about having the right jeans or the new shoes. A new phone is the must have fall accessory. The phone most kids want and think they need is a smartphone. Smartphones are not really phones. Most kids will rarely use them to call anyone except for their parents. Smartphones are small,…
When packing for vacation, my kids throw their clothes and swimsuit in a bag then load up their devices with new apps for the long car ride. I check out all their apps by reading the description and looking at the age rating. Even after looking things over, I am often surprised by my kids…
KidsPrivacy 