Screenagers Blog

Many adults keep their phones by the bed — it feels harmless, even necessary. But what if that habit is quietly affecting our sleep and the example we set for our kids? In this week’s blog, Dr. Ruston shares two key things every parent should know about sleeping next to a phone, and how small nighttime tech changes can make a big difference for the whole family.

This week is Red Ribbon Week, the nation’s longest-running youth drug-prevention program — and I can’t think of a more important time to talk about a new, dangerous substance spreading fast among teens called 7-OH that's derived from the kratom plant.

I hear from so many parents who feel conflicted about their own phone habits when it comes to modeling healthy use for their kids. They’ll say, “I tell my kids to get off their screens, but then I’m on mine all the time.” Today I introduce two moms who are taking on my One Small Change Challenge and share how you can try it too.

Parenting in this digital age is full of challenges. I imagine many of you are nodding in agreement. And when we look for advice online, it can feel like a sea of perfect experts with perfect advice: “Just follow these three easy steps and everything will fall into place.” In this week’s blog, I share a story about a moment with my daughter Tessa that did not go quite as planned but ended up teaching us both something important.

So what is pornography, and how do we talk with our young people about this prickly topic? Every time I sit down to write about this, I feel a bit of sadness and, frankly, disbelief. It’s hard to accept that we’ve created a society where youth can be just a click away from all sorts of highly explicit sexual material. And yes, parental controls and blockers can help, but the internet is everywhere, and chances are, they will see things somewhere. But we have to talk about it.

I am super happy to share the news that our film, Screenagers Under the Influence: Addressing Vaping, Drugs, and Alcohol in the Digital Age, has been updated by the Screenagers team and I. In today's blog, I'll talk a little about this update, along with sharing a quick true or false quiz you can use to bring up substances and alcohol with your tweens and teens.

From Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto to violence and gunfire in movies and shows, aggression is a constant backdrop in boys’ media diets. And with various influencers and online personalities framing success through the lens of strength, competition, dominance and winning, boys are being handed a narrow script for masculinity. As parents, one of the most important things we can do is offer a counterweight. We can help boys strengthen empathy, compassion, and respect as core traits of masculinity, so they have a broader, healthier vision of who they can become.

This year, millions of students are experiencing a major shift: school days without phones, smartwatches, or other personal devices. Today we explore the wins, hurdles, and solutions helping schools succeed. We also share our resources that you can use to support technology policy changes in your schools.

We want our kids to be motivated to learn, face challenges, and generate their own ideas. However, school often assigns work that doesn't inspire interest, and now AI provides an easy shortcut. Instead of struggling through it, students can simply ask a chatbot for answers or even complete assignments. In today’s blog, I share five ways parents can help kids stay engaged in learning.

You might have heard about the tragic suicide of 16‑year‑old Adam Raine, who was talking with ChatGPT for up to four hours a day. His parents filed a wrongful‑death lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman on August 26, 2025, in San Francisco Superior Court. In this blog we talk about the immediate safeguards needed to fix these horrific risks of AI, and offer parents suggestions for how they can talk with their kids about these risks and dealing with strong emotions.

Last week we introduced you to our Screen-Free Sleep campaign! Since then, we’ve been flooded with emails and calls, and most are asking the same question: How can we get this spreading in our school? Today’s blog has the answers.

Finally, after years of wanting to do this, Lisa Tabb and I, along with our Screenagers team, have launched a national campaign to get devices out of the bedroom at sleep time for elementary and middle schoolers.