The Screenagers Blog

The home of "Tech Talk Tuesdays"

Screenagers Blog Tech Talk Tuesdays

“Having calm, consistent conversations has greatly improved screen balance in my home and I have written hundreds of articles to help others through my weekly Tech Talk Tuesdays newsletter and blog.”— Delaney Ruston, MD Physician/Filmmaker"

all posts

(
500+
)
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Thank youpre! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
January 15, 2019
Healthy Romantic Partnerships

Co-parenting tech time, working through differences

In a world where parents can't always agree on what's best (let alone couples who are divorced or separated), an unwavering joint effort can be harder than it sounds. Thankfully, there are a few methods that can make calm compromise more likely.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
January 9, 2019
Screen Time Rules

Creating Consequences, Hard but Necessary!

I recently worked with my teen daughter to set up a fair consequence around one of her screen time rules. I also include several examples of consequences from other parents.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
January 1, 2019
Screen Time Rules

Best Screen Time Monitoring Apps 2020

Happy New Year! I thought this would be a good time to revisit your plans to limit screen time this year and reduce struggles in your house. I’ve got a 3 part plan.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
December 25, 2018
Media Recommendations

23 Films to Bond Over this Holiday Break

All these films can inspire meaningful conversations with teens and a few of the suggestions are appropriate for younger kids.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
December 18, 2018
Screen Time Reduction Skills

$100K for No Phone? When does Bribery Work?

What incentives work to help decrease screen time for our kids (and ourselves)? Today we look at a contest a company is running that is offering 100K for someone to not use their smartphone for the year and whether these kinds of external motivations change habits.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
December 11, 2018
Screen Time Rules

Groundbreaking study discovers an association between screen time and actual brain changes

Big news has hit us today about brain morphology and screen time and I want to weigh in as we all try to make sense of the findings.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
December 3, 2018
Creativity

12 Screen-less gift ideas kids will love

Coming up with unique gifts for the holidays to help promote off-screen time for kids and teens is something I have enjoyed writing about in the past and jazzed to do again today.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
November 20, 2018
Creativity

Screen Alternatives for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is this week, and I have some ideas about how to support more face-to-face interactions and fewer retreats into all our individual devices.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
November 13, 2018
Social Media

Innocent (or not) flirting on social media

Often teens will say things online such as “hey you are cute” and other compliments. Teens tell me that they would not say these things face-to-face but online it is fun. I have tips and more to guide and support them.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
November 6, 2018
Away For The Day

Less is more, parents want to reduce tech in schools

Schools experience pressure to have tech on their campuses from tech companies, administration, and others. Schools want to do well by their students and tech has been sold as a quick fix.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
October 30, 2018
Challenging Conversations

How to help kids with scary and tragic news?

I encourage parents to share their feelings with their children. It is not about burdening them with one’s anxiety or sadness or other emotions. It is about naming feelings and discussing them. This approach has been shown to be highly effective in helping youth develop greater emotional intelligence.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
October 23, 2018
Social Media

How Teens Track Each Other on Snap Map

Last year Snapchat introduced Snap Map, a cartoon-looking map with Bitmojis of users positioned at their real-life locations. Did you know that It goes one step further than just showing where the kid is, it also can virtually show what they are actually doing?

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
October 16, 2018
Screen Time Rules

Tell Them You Love Screen Time!

Spending more time talking with youth about all the cool things on screens paradoxically makes them more receptive to talking about ways to limit screen time.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
October 8, 2018
Away For The Day

Hold that Text

I am a big believer in working hard to teach my daughter and son, and myself, to continually be better planners. The less we rely on the phone as the escape route for changing plans, the more we work together to get our plans organized outside of school time. So I have really started to “HOLD THAT TEXT.”

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
October 2, 2018
Creativity

Help kids become creators instead of consumers

Thinking about the apps that people develop for social good is a great topic to discuss with our kids and students. The more we can help them think of tech as a tool, (rather than just an entertainment and social center) the better.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
September 25, 2018
Screen Time Reduction Skills

Finally, Apple Releases Screen Time Controls

Finally, Apple's "Screen Time" controls are here!! Read about how to use them how they can help manage kids' time on screens.

READ MORE >
Speech Bubble icon
tech talk tuesdays
September 18, 2018
Screen Time Rules

Siblings and Screen Time

I often see siblings in parallel worlds for hours at a time, each in their personal screen silos. “The only time my sister talks to me is when she bangs on the bathroom door telling me to get out.”

READ MORE >