Predictably, the media coverage of a new survey of parents on digital-age parenting focused mainly on their concerns about tech and the Net. We need to question that – question the value of repeatedly reporting about concerns if, as a society, we want parents to feel confident in helping their children navigate today's media. Here are some questions we might ask, for example: 1. UK psychologist … [Read more...] about Do surveys about parents’ concerns increase digital-parenting confidence?
teens
Perfect digital parenting doesn’t exist
I'm stating the obvious – that perfect digital-age parenting doesn't exist – but let me explain why it doesn't. Writer Heather Havrilesky got me thinking about this with her commentary "The 'Mommy' Problem" in the New York Times this weekend. She focuses on mothers (since our culture does so much) and on offline parenting. I'll add the digital part. She writes that "the current culture demands … [Read more...] about Perfect digital parenting doesn’t exist
Spoiler alert: Kid loves teaching Twitter to Dad
I never do movie reviews. But Chef is totally on-topic for NetFamilyNews, and not because some families have foodies in them. It's because there's a scene that illustrates better than anything I've seen on film how sweetly and respectfully social media can be folded into parenting. Sure, as in this scene, it can be a little bumpy and awkward at times (like parenting, like being a kid), but when … [Read more...] about Spoiler alert: Kid loves teaching Twitter to Dad
More clarity on teens’ ‘Am I pretty?’ videos
The thoughtful New York Times story begins with a 13-year-old New Jersey girl posting her "Am I pretty?" video on YouTube. I won't steal its thunder, so I hope you'll read it. But I do want to highlight the points most helpful to parents of young teen girls: Ages 13-15: "Nearly all the people in these videos" are in that age range. Developmentally normal: The videos' sources are in that age … [Read more...] about More clarity on teens’ ‘Am I pretty?’ videos
For our kids & ourselves: Presence in a digital age
Presence has never been harder or more needed – in this age of hyper transparency, connection, opinion and information, all in a media environment that's networked, so that "speed of delivery" is a calculation of the past (it's all just here already). Presence is needed by adults as much as children. It means different things to different people, including "attentiveness," "focus," and … [Read more...] about For our kids & ourselves: Presence in a digital age