Hello!
If you’re in my neck of the woods, school is FINALLY going to start this week! If you’ve been putting off getting your digital house in order here’s a check list to get you going.
House Rules
Big Conversations & Hugs
Time Limits
Texting and Messaging Etiquette
Browser and YouTube Settings (for Tweens)
Smart Watches (for Tweens)
House Rules
Get on the same page! Whether you’re setting specific limits or operating from a broader philosophy, make sure everybody in your house knows the expectations around screens this school year and what rules and tools are going to support the plan.
Big Conversations & Hugs
There are so many big topics when it comes to kids and technology: Personal Responsibility, Stranger Danger, Bullying, Mature & False Content (including Porn), Screen Addiction, Anxiety & Depression. You don’t have to tackle them all and certainly not all at once but the beginning of the year is a good time to start or pick up conversations around big topics. What and when will vary depending on the age, maturity and interests of your kid. Go slow, trust yourself, use age appropriate language and include lots of hugs. Our kids need to know we’re here to support them!
Time Limits
On Apple
Go to Settings > Screen Time From there you have choices for > Downtime and > App Limits. Under App Limits, choose the apps or categories you wish to limit.
On Android
Go to Digital Wellbeing & Parental Controls from there you have options for > Downtime and > Set daily limits for individual apps.
On Gaming Consoles
Instructions for Xbox, Playstation and Switch here
Texting & Messaging Etiquette
As kids come back from summer and want to reconnect with friends, remind them to be kind online. Also remind them to think before they type. If they wouldn’t want mom or dad to see it, its probably a bad idea to send it. My post on texting etiquette here.
Browser and YouTube Settings
Have you set up Family Link yet? Are your tweens on YouTube Kids or Supervised Accounts? Do you have the right content setting (9+, 13+etc)? See how I set up Supervised YouTube Accounts for my tweens here.
Smart Watches
For those of you with smartwatch-wearing tweens, its time to turn School Mode back on. Or in our case, figure out if this bad boy is under warranty (yikes!). Also of note: I’m hearing some schools are now prohibiting smartwatches and phones during the school day. Make sure you know the policy is at your kid’s school. My review of smartwatches here.
You’re ready. You got this. You’re going to have a great school year!
Paid subscribers read on to hear what happened with that tragic looking SmartWatch and get an early heads up on a new Digital Mom program launching this week!
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