The Screenagers Blog

tech talk tuesdays

IIn the president’s plan, the Department of Education’s total budget would be slashed by $9 billion. One of the hardest hit will be after-school programs, key support for families.

tech talk tuesdays

People often ask me about the medical risks that all this screen time is having on our kids—such as the development of eyesight problems or tendonitis. I get emails from ophthalmologists who are convinced that nearsightedness is increasing, but so far there are no long-term studies to say anything definitively.

tech talk tuesdays

How many times have you or your kids pulled out a phone at dinner to quickly get the answer to a question that comes up? Knowledge-on-demand is the norm now but I am concerned it takes away from interesting, deeper conversations and interrupts dialogue.

tech talk tuesdays

This recent UCLA study about what happens in a teens’ brain when they get a “like” on their photo showed that when the teenagers saw pictures that showed risky behavior, it decreased activity in the regions of their brain that are responsible for putting on the brakes.

tech talk tuesdays

A major study recently showed without question the negative effect cellphones have on the quantity and quality of children’s sleep. Why public health experts care is because things like accidents, obesity, mental health problems all go up with sleep deprivation – and grades go down.

tech talk tuesdays

The morning of March 3rd until the morning of March 4th, 2017 is National Day of Unplugging. This day is designed to help people of all ages to embrace the ancient ritual of a day of rest and we are so excited that Screenagers is a co-sponsor!

tech talk tuesdays

The 24 hours from sundown March 3rd until sundown March 4th, 2017 is The National Day of Unplugging. This day is designed to help people of all ages to embrace the ancient ritual of a day of rest and we are so excited that Screenagers is a co-sponsor!

tech talk tuesdays

We recently conducted a small survey of people from our Screenagers email list. From the responses I have come up with 4 rules that I think households should strongly consider implementing.

tech talk tuesdays

Have you ever heard the term “ghosting”? It happens to teens and adults alike and according to a Huffington Post poll, about 10 percent of Americans have "ghosted" someone to break up with them. Using avoidance as a coping skill is not new, but online communication has made that an easier way to deal with uncomfortable situations.

tech talk tuesdays

My own two teens both have rich emotional lives—full of ups and downs (like most of us on this planet). From this I realized I wanted to talk more with them about how they and their friends communicate on social media and via text about their mental health. What do they find helpful and what is not helpful?

tech talk tuesdays

Many people use the word “addiction” casually to describe something they do often and somewhat compulsively. Clinical addiction is a different, much more serious, matter.

tech talk tuesdays

"Why not just say 'no'?" I've had this question from other parents and thought about this issue while I was making the film.

tech talk tuesdays

Given this is the biggest parenting issue of our time, we knew that a movie is a great start but that a real movement is needed and thus we created Tech Talk Tuesday (TTT). TTT is all about giving ideas each week that foster ongoing calm, short conversations with between kids and their parents, teachers and their students, and others.

tech talk tuesdays

With 2017 on the horizon, the last few days of 2016 are resolution season. Are you considering making some positive life changes? Great, me too. But how can we make the changes stick…for real this time?

tech talk tuesdays

How comfortable are your kids talking to extended family and adult friends? One concern I often hear from parents is that they think screen time decreases face-to-face communication skills. I have not found any exceptional data around this issue. Families and friends will be together for the holidays and in these settings many kids and adults will gravitate towards their personal devices. When situations are uncomfortable or activity is slowed down this is accepted behavior these days. It upsets me when I see kids disappear into their screens when those special multigenerational opportunities for conversation are right in front of them.

tech talk tuesdays

How much time do you, the adult, spend on screens? This week Common Sense Media (CSM) released the results of a survey of 1800 parents that found that parents spend 7.5 hours a day of non-work time on screens, and 1.5 hours a day of work-related screen time.

tech talk tuesdays

13 great holiday non-tech gift ideas.

tech talk tuesdays

NBC's Today Show ran a piece this week where 10th grade students at a school in Tumwater, Washington watched Screenagers and then had the chance to do a one-week digital detox and be filmed for TV. Only some kids agreed to do it and the results were unexpected. Watch this with your kids! My kids thought it was really well done.

tech talk tuesdays

When my daughter Tessa, who is in Screenagers, saw the completed film, I was shocked by one of her first reactions. She said, ”I didn't realize so many other kids are dealing with all this rule stuff like we are." Of course, she had been with me over the years as I was making the film, and yet somehow, she did not know how common it is for families to struggle with setting limits. She went on to tell me how rarely any of her friends talked about their rules around screen time.

tech talk tuesdays

With Thanksgiving this week, it is a good time to think about the various practices of “unplugging." To help find times to unplug, a good starting point is to think more about when our kids are not on screens during each day, rather than when they are on screens. From there it's easier to set guidelines around unplugging. I’ve heard about many creative approaches to unplugging:

tech talk tuesdays

I sometimes get questions from kids and parents about whether reading on a Kindle or another device counts as screen time. I am not concerned about reading on a device, what worries me is when you read on a device that has wifi and apps, it makes it hard to concentrate and stay on task.

tech talk tuesdays

Candidates have used screens for good and for evil this election. They've used it to bully as well as to inspire. Talking to your kids about this issue is a great way to open up the conversation about how they define bullying. Talk your teens today about how they, and you, used social media, polling data and other ways to get engaged and informed about the election this year.

tech talk tuesdays

A new meta analysis published in Jama Pediatrics confirmed how portable devices like cellphones and tablets are seriously affecting our children's sleep. Sleep is one of the biggest pediatric public health issues of our time. I hear this firsthand when I ask groups in the post screening discussions "who sleeps with their cellphones their room?" Most hands in the room go up.

tech talk tuesdays

This week the American Academy of Pediatrics released new recommendations on screen time. They now recommend that children younger than 18 months “avoid digital media use (except video-chatting),” but kids 18 months and older can use digital media. They also say that children 2 to 5 years should limit their time to one hour a day and for youth 5 years and older they now don't really have a recommended cap on screen time.

tech talk tuesdays

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) just changed its recommendation of screen use for children. They now recommend that children younger than 18 months “avoid digital media use (except video-chatting),” but kids 18 months and older can use digital media. They also say that children 2 to 5 years should limit their time to one hour a day and for youth 5 years and older they now don't really have a recommended cap on screen time.

tech talk tuesdays

Finstagrams are “private” Instagrams meant only for your closest friends. Many kids just refer to them as their private Instagram account. Here’s the definition from the Urban Dictionary:

tech talk tuesdays

We, as a culture, are not only engaged in screens most of the day, but we are also often using multiple screens at the same time.

tech talk tuesdays

Cyberbullying is a big concern for parents, but how do we define it and do our children see it differently? The definition of bullying from StopBullying.gov is:

tech talk tuesdays

A recent article in the Washington Post about sexting and a podcast called Note to Self got me thinking about the subject. “Sexting” is the exchange of sexually explicit images between minors (17 years or younger) via tech, usually cells phones. A study from 2012 found that roughly 20% of U.S. adolescents between 13 and 19 reported having sent, or posted, a nude or semi-nude photo of themselves, and 28% said they received a sext message intended for someone else.

tech talk tuesdays

My daughter is in 9th grade in a junior high, and my son in the high school, and it seems every year they, and I, are not entirely clear on the rules at school around cellphones. Tessa tells me that one teacher has a zero tolerance policy. On the first day he told them that if he catches them with a phone, he will put it on his desk—In this first week, he has not confiscated one during her class. Another “more chill” (in Tessa’s words) teacher says if you finish your work you can be on your phone. He added that there are “appropriate times to be on your phone and non-appropriate times.” I’m eager to have a Tech Talk Tuesday tonight with my kids about how this is all working...the different rules, their desire to check their phones versus their need to pay attention, etc.

tech talk tuesdays

Screen time and homework can be a real problem. Our children often need screens to do their homework and then are automatically vulnerable to distraction when they need concentration the most. Famous research out of Stanford showed that when people multitask they feel as if they are doing better and better at the different tasks but actually they are doing worse and worse on all of them.

tech talk tuesdays

When I was young I saw the Truffaut film, Small Change, that made me want to be French. I started working at various jobs at 12 and by 16, I was able to pay my way to France for a summer to travel alone. Ok, why am I telling you this? Well, I remember trying to stay connected with people back home in Berkeley and spending a lot of time picking out postcards to send. I remember hoping the postcards would get home before I did—geez, did postcards to take forever back then, and even now they still take so long. I thought this would be a great conversation to have for Tech Talk Tuesday this week. Here are some questions to get the conversation going:

tech talk tuesdays

As summer break nears its final days and I see the fall frenzy of school-and-everything-else schedules coming my way, I am preparing for the transition. Amidst considerations around supplies, extracurriculars, transportation, and meals is of course…managing screen time.

tech talk tuesdays

When we screened Screenagers to employees at Pixar, the organizer Guido Quaroni, V.P. of Software R&D at Pixar (and also the voice Guido in Cars) and I talked about their recruitment efforts. He told me that the hardest people to find for Pixar were good story writers, animators, designers... not programmers. The creatives, however, he said ... "Ahhh, man, that is hard."

tech talk tuesdays

Today we are talking about exploring science through technology. There are many ways to spark a conversation with your kids about science including watching YouTube videos together. Tessa and I like watching “How It's Made" videos. We just watched one on how natural rubber is made and the images are incredible. And I just posted this interesting Ted Talk about using virtual reality to bring science to life in the classroom. In Screenagers we show researchers talking about the latest science around screen time and brain development, the social science around empathy and self-esteem, and the science of parenting.

tech talk tuesdays

A recent survey found that 76 percent of travelers post their vacation photos to social networks. People have different feelings about this--for example, some people love to see people on vacation and others may feel envious.

tech talk tuesdays

Pokémon GO is has taken the country by storm, and it's not just kids, adults are playing too. According SurveyMonkey, Pokémon Go has become the biggest mobile game in the history of the US. The app now has more than 21 million daily active users, which surpassed the very popular game Candy Crush when it was at its height in 2013.

tech talk tuesdays

Pokemon GO is sweeping the nation. Kids (and adults) are running around trying to spot imaginary characters floating in the real world. It’s getting kids outside and moving but they are still looking down at their screens. This is a highly seductive game that has found a way to tap into the reward centers of teen’s brains. Some things to know about teen’s brains...

tech talk tuesdays

This summer there are many opportunities for kids to be plugged in, but also many are getting the unique experience of unplugging because they are going to away to camps or in day camps that don't allow devices. There was a study done out of UCLA that shows that children who spend even 5 days without their devices, in tech-free camps, have restoration of the capacity for empathy.

tech talk tuesdays

It’s morning. You are snuggled under the covers, your eyes open, your brain registers that it’s a new day. Is your first interaction with the world an in-person one -- “Good morning, honey” – or a screen one – a text, FB post, or news and traffic update — quick, before anyone in the house says ‘hello’? How about for your kids?

tech talk tuesdays

According to a Gallup Poll, 70% of teens check their phone several times an hour. We know that is true for many adults too. Constant notifications from social sites, texts and more play a big part in this compulsion.

tech talk tuesdays

Check your phone while driving? 56% of parents say they do. Check your device during conversations with your family? 77% of parents say their teens do and 41% of teens say their parents do. Listen to music while doing homework? Browse online and text friends while watching tv? Check and respond on multiple screens and devices at once?

tech talk tuesdays

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) just released recommendations for the number of hours a night that kids and teens need to sleep, to function at their best.

tech talk tuesdays

Summer break is upon us and even though our kids won’t be on campus with their friends every day, they can keep the social scene alive on their favorite social media sites.

tech talk tuesdays

As we enter into the final weeks of the school year, we are all extra busy trying to fit it so much in. Summer break is right around the corner, and many of us are looking forward to having a little more free time. But what activities will fill that time? Screen-based activities will be more enticing than ever. Are you ready? Frankly, I know it will be a challenge in my home. I have been thinking of things I plan to do and have a few ideas...

tech talk tuesdays

A friend recently told me that her son, whose middle school plans to show Screenagers schoolwide before the semester ends, is already feeling defensive about what he anticipates will be “another parent attack” on one more dreaded teen behavior that we parents have to “do something about.”

tech talk tuesdays

If you’re like me, you’ve become pretty attached to your device. I check it to find out where I need to be today, to text my friends and kids, to find out what’s up at the office, to record an idea I want to follow up on later … it is my portable office! I am working and parenting! I need to be updated all the time!

tech talk tuesdays

Who hasn’t been tempted every once in a while to be a little bit of something they usually aren’t? A little bolder, better, more opinionated or clever than we might appear in our everyday lives? I remember prank phone calls being a typical middle school way to get into a little mischief and “be” someone else.

tech talk tuesdays

If you’ve tuned into Tech Talk Tuesday before, you might already know that in my family, we have decided that the car is a “screens-off” space for all of us. It works great when it’s just us in the car. We talk, we catch up, we sit quietly.

tech talk tuesdays

As a doctor, I believe that while there is a true clinical internet/video game addiction, we must be careful about using the term addiction loosely regarding broad use of technology. For serious cases, Internet addiction is a real problem. But for the kid who just won’t put her phone down during dinner? Calling her an addict may do more harm than good.

tech talk tuesdays

Sometimes things happen in life that make you stop and take stock of who your “real” friends are. Like when I feel anxious and I call my friends to give me some moral support. If I need a hand with a ride somewhere for the kids, I call on my local parent crew. If I want to vent about the latest parenting issue, I might post on Facebook and get some reactions from my contacts around the world.

tech talk tuesdays

While I was making Screenagers, I became fascinated by the rapidly growing trend of schools deciding to give every single student on campus a digital device. When I learned that the Los Angeles Unified School District was launching one of these “one-to-one technology” programs and issuing an iPad to every student, I flew down to see for myself how it was going.

tech talk tuesdays

When I was a kid, screen and phone time existed, and kids and parents had conflicts over them. We played games, got our entertainment, gossiped with friends, and relied on technology and devices to do it. So how different was it?

tech talk tuesdays

Throughout the country spring break has just finally come to a close. But, summer vacation is coming up. What will that mean for screen time in your life? I have some rules to help my family manage screen time while on vacation. We set times that we are all going to check in otherwise we try to disconnect. I was recently in remote areas of Mexico with my family and it was both healing and at times distressing to be without cell service or a computer connection most of the time. I managed by setting expectations with the people I work with about when I would be able to check in and when I would be totally unavailable.

tech talk tuesdays

Teens who don't get enough sleep (less than 7 hours) are at risk for engaging in risky behaviors including driving with someone drunk and drinking and driving, according to a recently released CDC survey. Here's what they found...

tech talk tuesdays

I know often kids feel like we adults have double standards. We say one thing, but we don’t do it. We set rules for kids but don’t have rules for ourselves. In our morning drive, for example, my kids and I often notice adults texting while on the road to school or near a school. At restaurants, we see lots adults on their devices during dinner, not just the kids. I can be guilty of breaking my own rules, checking a screen to distract myself from a task I’m having a hard time completing, or staying up much later than I meant to, checking “just one more thing.”

tech talk tuesdays

In Screenagers, there's a scene that shows my family talking around the dinner table about Tech Talk Tuesday. My son Chase asks "when is a good time to text versus calling someone?" So, for this week talk to your family about that issue. My co-producer's 12-year old daughter just today was talking to her about how some people misuse texting. She was upset that a friend was saying mean things via text, things that he would never say to her on the phone. She adamantly said that it was not bullying, it just was a mean-spirited conversation. She saw a distinction

tech talk tuesdays

This week I want to talk about mindfulness and bringing it to our technology use. In Screenagers, there's a scene where I consult with a mindfulness coach, David Levy, who specializes in mindful tech. I reached out to him after my daughter Tessa said to me, "I'm really distracted by my computer at night."

tech talk tuesdays

When I was a kid I used to play Pong and Pac-Man. The world is very different now. For today's Tech Talk Tuesday share with your kids what you played. Ask them about their favorite games and what they like about those games. Then, ask them whether they know about any games that are focused on helping people. If so, what are they? If your child were to design a game, what would it look like? We'd love to hear their ideas.

tech talk tuesdays

I used to think the ability to have self-control was determined at birth. While making Screenagers I learned that there are a variety of strategies parents can use to improve self-control. There are studies in which parents are trained to help their kids gain self-control, and researchers are able to measure actual improvement. A key way to teach kids self-control around tech time is to set up clear guidelines: State times the child should not be on their device and then give incentives for adhering to them. Their newly learned ability to self-regulate then flows over to other areas where will-power is needed.

tech talk tuesdays

Recently the AAP released an article in the AAP News with a preliminary outline of where the recommendations, which haven’t been updated since they were first released in 1999, are headed. Titled “Beyond ‘turn it off’: How to advise families on media use...

tech talk tuesdays

Well known author and psychologist Susan Stiffleman has some ideas for you to talk with your family around the dinner table this week.

tech talk tuesdays

This week we suggest talking with your kids about what they are creating through tech and in their screen time. Do you know that only 3% of preteens and teens are actually creating content on their screens as opposed to passively clicking, scrolling and gaming?

tech talk tuesdays

This week we suggest discussing writing a contract. What 5 things would you like to put into your kid's contract? What 5 things would your kids want to put in their own contract?

tech talk tuesdays

Each week we will share ideas for you to talk with your family around the dinner table--and if a family dinner won't happen due to busy schedules, try a 5 minute pow wow before bed. We'll have live chats, simple written tips, guest speakers and more coming soon.

tech talk tuesdays

Do you want to take a survey to see if you or your child has an internet addition? In Screenagers we follow a college kid named Andrew who drops out of college because he is addicted to playing video games. His addiction to video games takes over and he games until the middle of the night and stops doing his school work. His mom takes this survey below and realizes that Andrew is addicted to video games. Andrew's family ends up putting him in an internet rehab center to recover. Click here to take the test

tech talk tuesdays

This week, how about a tech inventory? Ask each other about what you are doing on your devices on a given day. It could be fun to have everyone write on a piece of paper their estimated use on things like email, Twitter, Snapchat, games, or Instagram. Then have the other family members guess what they think the person wrote down.

tech talk tuesdays

Teens spend on average 6.5 hours a day on screens of all sizes, according to a recent survey by the Kaiser Foundation. Kids spend an average of 9 hours a day on media--so this includes listening to music, which is not included in the screen time figure (Common Sense Media recent survey). To reduce screen time, the screen time hours need to be replaced with other activities. After school programs are one solution to helping kids find interests outside of social media, online content and video games.

tech talk tuesdays

Are you a good Digital Citizen? Are your kids? How can you tell? Digital citizenship refers to the norms of appropriate behavior regarding technology use. The terms has been used primarily in school settings where classes and workshops address issues such as email etiquette, avoiding online cruelty, device use during class, avoiding copyright infringement and other such topics.

tech talk tuesdays

The ding of incoming texts on your kid’s phone is more than an annoyance and distraction. It could actually be a sign of compulsive or addictive behavior. Here are a few indicators of compulsive texting from a study

tech talk tuesdays

Research on teen media points to a clear divide between boys and girls. Girls like to relate and boys like to shoot guns, crash cars and blow things up. In the digital world, this means girls spend more time on social media and boys spend more time on video games. A recent report from Pew Research, 91 percent of boys have a video game console. A recent New York TImes article references surveys that found

tech talk tuesdays

We know that tweens and teens love their smartphones, social media feeds and video games. But just how pervasive? Both Common Sense Media and Pew Research released extensive, in-depth research in 2015 that attach, concrete data to this social phenomenon. Here are high points of their findings.

tech talk tuesdays

From the moment I brought my first child home from the hospital, sleep, for both him and me, took center stage. We spent years with him, and then my daughter, working on getting to sleep, sleeping through the night, sleeping in a big bed, going to sleep alone, and more.