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.
Also, my co-producer talked today with a friend who runs a small firm and mentioned a client of hers who was fired via email with no notice and no apparent cause. The client was hurt and felt this was an inappropriate way to communicate that message.
As I am writing this post, my son Chase is literally standing next to me texting and he just looked up and started talking about a girl he's interested in. I asked if he was going to ask her out via texting or in person and he said: "Of course I will do it in person because you can read their reactions more" and then he added jokingly "and then you can spend the next 3 nights trying to make sense of their response, like their tone of voice, facial expressions, body language and stuff."
Then I asked, "why not text?" And he said with a straight face "it shows confidence when you ask in person."
When do you text versus call someone?
Do you make a distinction between texting and emailing? If so, when do you do which?
Do you text someone when you are angry or do you call them?
Do you text when you are tired rather than calling?
Do you text when you have something emotionally uncomfortable to say, whether it's negative or positive?
Do you have just "text-relationships" with people?
Share with us via FB or here. We really want to hear from you!
All my best,
Delaney
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Learn more about our Screen-Free Sleep campaign at the website!
Our movie made for parents and educators of younger kids
Learn more about showing our movies in your school or community!
Learn more about showing our movies in your school or community!
Join Screenagers filmmaker Delaney Ruston MD for our latest Podcast
Learn more about our Screen-Free Sleep campaign at the website!
Our movie made for parents and educators of younger kids
Join Screenagers filmmaker Delaney Ruston MD for our latest Podcast
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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.
Also, my co-producer talked today with a friend who runs a small firm and mentioned a client of hers who was fired via email with no notice and no apparent cause. The client was hurt and felt this was an inappropriate way to communicate that message.
As I am writing this post, my son Chase is literally standing next to me texting and he just looked up and started talking about a girl he's interested in. I asked if he was going to ask her out via texting or in person and he said: "Of course I will do it in person because you can read their reactions more" and then he added jokingly "and then you can spend the next 3 nights trying to make sense of their response, like their tone of voice, facial expressions, body language and stuff."
Then I asked, "why not text?" And he said with a straight face "it shows confidence when you ask in person."
When do you text versus call someone?
Do you make a distinction between texting and emailing? If so, when do you do which?
Do you text someone when you are angry or do you call them?
Do you text when you are tired rather than calling?
Do you text when you have something emotionally uncomfortable to say, whether it's negative or positive?
Do you have just "text-relationships" with people?
Share with us via FB or here. We really want to hear from you!
All my best,
Delaney
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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.
Also, my co-producer talked today with a friend who runs a small firm and mentioned a client of hers who was fired via email with no notice and no apparent cause. The client was hurt and felt this was an inappropriate way to communicate that message.
As I am writing this post, my son Chase is literally standing next to me texting and he just looked up and started talking about a girl he's interested in. I asked if he was going to ask her out via texting or in person and he said: "Of course I will do it in person because you can read their reactions more" and then he added jokingly "and then you can spend the next 3 nights trying to make sense of their response, like their tone of voice, facial expressions, body language and stuff."
Then I asked, "why not text?" And he said with a straight face "it shows confidence when you ask in person."
When do you text versus call someone?
Do you make a distinction between texting and emailing? If so, when do you do which?
Do you text someone when you are angry or do you call them?
Do you text when you are tired rather than calling?
Do you text when you have something emotionally uncomfortable to say, whether it's negative or positive?
Do you have just "text-relationships" with people?
Share with us via FB or here. We really want to hear from you!
All my best,
Delaney
Jared Cooney Horvath argues that the common defense of classroom technology — “there’s no definitive evidence of harm” — sets an unrealistic standard. Because ed tech evolves rapidly, product-specific causal trials are often impossible and ethically problematic. Instead, he points to converging evidence. In Utah, long-rising achievement scores reversed after digital tools became central in 2014, a pattern echoed in broader national and international data, raising concerns about large-scale tech adoption without clear evidence of benefit.
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Instagram’s new Teen Accounts are being promoted as safer for kids, but recent nationally representative data tells a more complicated story. This post invites families to take a research-based quiz together and have a calm, curiosity-driven conversation about what teens are actually experiencing on the platform — and what that means for trust, safety, and screen time.
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It feels like we’re finally hitting a tipping point. The harms from social media in young people’s lives have been building for far too long, and bold solutions can’t wait any longer. That’s why what just happened in Australia is extremely exciting. Their new nationwide move marks one of the biggest attempts yet to protect kids online. And as we released a new podcast episode yesterday featuring a mother who lost her 14-year-old son after a tragic connection made through social media, I couldn’t help but think: this is exactly the kind of real-world action families have been desperate for. In today’s blog, I share five key things to understand about what Australia is doing because it’s big, it’s controversial, and it might just spark global change.
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.
