Smartphones & Technology
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Has anyone read "The Anxious Generation" and if so, have you thought about holding smartphones from your kids til' 16? Tough topic, I know, but he talks about parents creating this community where it's more of a norm for a kid NOT to have a phone! Super interested to hear?
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Would love for an older mom to chime in here and get her advice!! Really scared of the whole phone era that’s to come for my littles!
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I haven’t read that book but I recently signed the wait until 8th pledge. The reason I signed is bc there isn’t a single piece of literature/research that supports smartphone adoption for kids. Curious to hear what others are experiencing!
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This is such a hard topic. My kiddos are 22, 20 and almost 17. I would say hold out as long as you can if there are people you can band together with that also hold out. We waited until 6th grade to give them phones, 7th grade instagram and 9th grade snapchat. One of my daughters was bullied in 6th grade and left out because she didn't have snap chat and was left out of social things. So that is something potential to think about managing if your child is the only one in the group that doesn't have a phone and/or the social media account they are communicating on for weekend plans, etc. Once you give them phones and social media, be prepared to manage it. It unfortunately becomes a part time job. We didn't allow them to be on their phones in cars and when they would have friends over, they all had to turn their phones in for middle school sleepovers. It helps to have other parents have the same policy on this so you're not the only one. Honestly, managing phones and social media was one of the hardest parts of raising teens but in the long run it's so worth it to have adult children who have social skills, can carry on a conversation, don't pull them out at the dinner table and know how to self regulate on their phones! Hang in there - this too shall pass and will just be a season! xo
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@WalmartGreeter I have it in-hand, just haven't sat down and started reading. We're already committed to delaying access to smart devices/social media knowing what we know, but I appreciate reading the continued research being done. I'm interested in what it'll have to say.
@Whats4dinner appreciate your perspective as someone who's already had to navigate this! What did you feel like was the hardest app, both to manage as a parent and how it affected/impacted your kid(s)? And did you feel like when you walked through this you had a solid group of parents who were phasing these at the same time/discussing together?
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