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Why Your Kids Need You To Stay In-The-Know With Tech Trends

With each new generation comes new waves of technological advancement. Generations before us watched the horse and buggy turn to automobiles, gramophones become radios, and black and white television became colorized. The idea of technological evolution isn’t new. What is new and unique to today’s generations is the rapid nature of our evolution. In 40 years, we’ve watched as PCs came into play and households worldwide began transmitting information over the internet. And now, we all carry supercomputers around in our pockets.

The reality is that technology will continue to evolve at this rapid pace, and the children of today will live and work in an entirely different landscape than we do today. Today, fluency in technology is necessary as most businesses move online. It’s possible that entire segments of the workforce will be absorbed by technology, and even more new jobs will emerge that require an understanding of how that technology works. The opportunities for change and growth are exciting and virtually endless.

The flip side of exciting growth is how technology exposes our children to more danger, delivered right to their devices. The urge to protect our kids from bad actors might cause some parents to pull their kids away from tech and limit their access. And while that may make them safer momentarily, it doesn’t teach them the skills they need to act safely online in the future.

Navigating technology with kids is a delicate balance, and we’re all trying to do our best. Here are 3 parenting tips that can help your family navigate the great tech debate.

Understand The Inherent Risks

There are inherent risks associated with increased technology usage. Research shows that too much time in front of screens has negative physical and emotional consequences. Technology can provide kids access to information they’re not mature enough to understand, and social media can open the door for unsafe people to access kids online.

As parents, we have some idea of the risks an unfettered relationship with tech may pose, but our kids may not. Spend time researching the specific apps and online practices to avoid and share that information with your kids.  If you don’t know what’s safe, they won’t either.

Allow Technology Access With Reasonable Boundaries

Rather than focusing on technology restriction, we want to reframe this process by providing access with boundaries. You may want your kids on social media, but limit who they can be friends with and what kind of information they can post. Perhaps you want them to have access to Google but want to block certain search terms. Another very popular boundary method is limiting screen time and only allowing it in public areas of the home.

Educate Yourself And Your Kids

As a parent, you may feel like technology is moving faster than you can catch up with. You are not alone in this process. We urge you to attend workshops and search for resources that will help you feel empowered and in charge of keeping your kids safe with tech. We encourage you to keep in touch with the St. Barnabas staff and other parents in our community. Together, we can stay informed and make healthy choices for our families.

Lead Your Family By Example

Our kids are always watching us, and they notice when we say that technology can be dangerous, and yet we spend hours of our day scrolling on our phones. As parents, we have the great privilege to set the tempo for our family. When we set an example of healthy technology use, our kids will notice!

Just remember you are not alone! We all want to create a world where our kids can take advantage of all the positive attributes of technology without the negative effects. If we join together, we can make a significant change. Contact us to learn more parenting tips about our approach to technology.

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