In our recent Straight Talk: Raising Digital Natives, we shared insights and recommendations to help you step into your iGeneration’s digital universe and parent in a world so different from the one you grew up in. Who is an iGeneration or Digital Native? The iGeneration was born after the year 2000 and is the first generation to never know a world without a smart phone, computer, or even a tablet.
Why are we talking about raising digital natives vs. just talking about technology, filtering, and monitoring?
Because technology plays such a big role in the lives of our children, and the stakes for them getting it wrong are higher than ever. The digital world impacts . . .
- Our Relationships: More and more relationships are conducted through the digital world. Does your digital native know how to navigate and build those relationships?
- Our Reputation: With every post and every share, your child is creating a persona while she is still experimenting with her own identity. There will be missteps that will need your help to repair.
- Our Time Management: Technology is always available. Your child needs your help to know how to balance digital vs. non-digital time.
- Our Mental Health: FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is a real thing. We are going to talk about this a lot today. But working through the anxiety of social media and the online world will be one of your biggest parenting challenges.
Join us as we talk about subjects such as:
- Who are these kids we are raising, and what makes them different from previous generations?
- The impact excessive use of technology has on our kids’ neurological and sociological development.
- The answers all parents want to know . . . When should I let my child have a_______? (social media account, phone, tablet, etc.)
- Your role as a parent, being the gatekeeper and the teacher.
- Resources and tools to help you stay current and set standards of behavior, including conversation guides and sample contracts.
Additional Resources:
If you were not able to attend, you can download our Family Media Kit that includes guidelines and recommendations for each stage of your child’s life. It also includes sample contracts for family media use, cell phones, and social media.
Books:
- Taming the Technology Monster, by Sissy Goff, MEd, LPC-MHSP
- Screenwise: Helping Kids Thrive in a Digital World, by Devorah Heitner, PHD
- iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood — and What That Means for the Rest of Us by Jean Twenge
Online Subscription and Websites
- Common Sense Media: Rates movies, TV shows, books, and more so parents can feel good about the entertainment choices they make for their kids. Common Sense Media has a huge library of content and a good weekly newsletter.
- Screen Savers and TechtalkTuesday: Weekly e-mail that focuses a lot on teenager issues, so probably better if your kids are a little older.
- Culture Translator: Axis.org weekly e-mail about all things culture and a little bit about technology.
- Raising Digital Natives has a regular subscriber e-mail with sociological trends and updates.
- ParentCue.org: The Phase Project
- ProtectYoungMinds.org: In addition to regular blogs and tech updates, they have two resource books to help you have conversations about what your kids might see online:
- Good Pictures, Bad Pictures: Porn Proofing Today’s Young Kids by Kristin A. Jenson, MA and Gail Poyner, PHD
- Good Pictures, Bad Pictures: Porn Proofing Today’s Young Kids Junior (targeted to parents of preschoolers) by Kristin A. Jenson, MA and Gail Poyner, PHD
