Screen time, online safety, and tech rules for kids.
527 threads
So we caved and got Emma a basic iPhone for her birthday (she's 9, going into 4th grade). Main reason was so she could text us when she starts walking to her friend's house after s
Honestly tired of scrolling through the App Store looking for stuff that's both educational AND engaging. My 6yo has been using Duolingo (he's trying to learn Spanish to talk to my
Tried to have 'the talk' about online safety with my 10yo and it did NOT go how I planned. I was trying to explain that sometimes people online aren't who they say they are and he
My son is 11 and starting middle school in the fall. Like half his class already has phones, and his mom (we're split custody) is pushing to get him one so they can "stay in touch.
The great phone debate. My 13yo is asking for one because literally every single kid in her grade has one. We live in Boston and honestly it does seem like an outlier not to have o
Okay so this happened and I need to document it because it might never happen again lol. Signed him up for a robotics club at school and suddenly he's MORE interested in building a
He's been asking for weeks and I thought, "it's educational, it's creative, what could go wrong?" EVERYTHING, apparently. He's been playing for 3 hours straight and has that thousa
Been reading all these studies about phone addiction so we tried a "no screens Sunday" last month. First one was brutal - kids complained, I was twitchy without my phone. But we've
My 13yo got BeReal last month and it seemed harmless enough - these notifications at random times asking you to take a 2-second photo. Sounds dumb. But then I noticed she was getti
Not gonna lie, found out this week my daughter has been messaging people she doesn't know on Roblox. My stomach dropped. I had NO IDEA this was even possible since I thought Roblox
My son wants to join Discord so he can talk to his friends while playing Minecraft together. I know Discord has some safeguards but honestly it feels like he's a little young? Most
We're looking at: Apple Screen Time Google Family Link Bark Net Nanny Which one do you actually use? What works? What's the annoying part? We have a mix of iPhones and Android in
I'm actually furious. Found him scrolling through TikTok under his blanket at like 2 in the morning. We have a rule - phones stay downstairs after 9pm. Obviously that's not working
So I've been nervous about my kid spending 6+ hours a day on Roblox, right? Last month I finally bit the bullet and signed him up for a local coding camp at the library (it was FRE
My son wants to stream gaming. I know, I know. But he's actually pretty into it as a hobby and he's researched it way more than I'd expect. We set a budget of $1200. Anyone have ex
Didn't even know my 13yo had Discord til I accidentally saw it on his laptop. He's in like 15 servers with randoms. I'm not trying to helicopter parent but some of those communitie
Looking for actual educational app recommendations that my kids don't hate using. Khan Academy seems legit but wanted to know if any of you have experience with it for elementary/m
Okay so I let my 11yo get into Fortnite with his friends. Fine, whatever, right? WRONG. This kid wakes up at 6am asking to play before school. He's basically non-verbal until he ge
My 13yo is constantly asking for money for Fortnite cosmetics. Like $15-20 skins, emotes, battle passes. I don't get it - they're purely cosmetic and don't affect gameplay. But app
My 12yo has legit played 6+ hours on weekends. I know I'm the one who said he could buy the Battle Pass but I think I created a monster. He's sneaking downstairs after bedtime to p