Does your family love to give and receive tech, devices, and media over the holidays? Are these things SAFE? What do you need to to consider before shopping? Tune in and find out!
Want to feel more educated when you’re shopping for tech? Not sure what’s safe for your kids–or how to make it safe? We know the feeling. We’re moms too. It seems like we’ve just gotten all our screens and devices figured out and protected … and then the holidays come around. Time to add more to the pile! And more to figure out! Ahhh!
That’s why we invited expert Sarah Siegand, co-founder of Parents Who Fight, to the show! So let’s chat. Get some tips. When those kiddos rip open their presents and pull out their new games and devices, we want you to feel confident that you’ve done your homework and everything is under control. This episode is a great place to start!
Sarah Siegand is a mom of two boys living in Nashville, TN. In 2015, she and her husband Jesse launched a grass-roots campaign in their community called Parents Who Fight, which holds education workshops at schools, churches, and community groups to help parents learn how they can better protect kids online. They also do in-home consultations helping families install filters and controls on all their devices.
Highlights from this episode:
-If you are considering buying your children tech, first research if the device is compatible with your family’s tech safety goals. (Caution: “on sale” can also mean out-of-date and possibly not supported by your monitoring software, like Bark or Mobicip.)
-Ask questions. Talk to real parents. Use parent groups on facebook to get answers, like the Parenting in a Tech World group we referenced in our interview with Titania Jordan from Bark.
-Take the tech out of the packaging. Set up your controls before you wrap it up as a gift.
-Be clear about your expectations (boundaries) in regards to tech over the holidays. Be mindful of unsupervised time and visits to extended family of different tech rules.
-”Instead of focusing so much on what kind of device to buy your child this holiday season, ask yourself if you’re ready to teach your kid how to use it well and to monitor the device regularly.” —Chris Mckenna, Protect Young Eyes
–Protect your kids with the Bark app! It scans all their devices and social media accounts and warns you about any dangerous content, just like a little guard dog on duty 24/7. Click here to sign up for a free 30-day trial (or go to the app store and use the code MEDIASAVVY at checkout).
Challenge:
Pick one device on your child’s wish list and research how to enable parental controls by Googling it or checking the step-by-step guide at Protect Young Eyes.
Links/Resources:
A Parent’s Guide to Holiday Tech Purchases – article from Protect Young Eyes
Parental Controls for Every Digital Device – guide from Protect Young Eyes
Common Sense Media – website for parent reviews on video games and other media
Parenting a Tech World Facebook Group – facilitated by Bark
You Have Options: Alternatives for Cell Phones – article by Parents Who Fight
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