Rant: My kid's school assigned a project that requires Instagram

Jan 10·1 min read

So my 10yo's 5th grade teacher assigned a project where kids have to create an Instagram account and post daily updates. DAILY. An Instagram account. For 10 year olds. I'm trying not to be the parent who argues with teachers but this feels absolutely backwards. My kid isn't even supposed to have social media until like 13 according to most guidelines, and the school is literally forcing it. Am I overreacting or is this genuinely insane?

5 comments281 views

Comments(5)

HHank C.RegularJan 12

Did you reach out to the teacher yet? Because honestly this seems like a privacy and safety issue that the school needs to reconsider. You're not being overprotective here.

BBrandon T.New DadJan 12

This is wild. Instagram has a minimum age requirement for a reason. I would be pushing back hard on this assignment. That's on the school for not thinking it through.

PPhilNew DadJan 12

I would create a fake account in your name and have your kid use that instead of their own. Schools shouldn't be pushing kids to social media at that age.

PPabloNew DadJan 12

That's insane. What kind of project even requires Instagram specifically? There have to be other platforms that are actually appropriate for that age.

MManuelRegularJan 13

We had something similar happen and I went to the principal about it. Turned out the teacher didn't realize the ToS issues. They switched to a fake Instagram mockup instead and problem solved.