Do you know what Streaks are? Snapchat has something they call Snapstreaks that count the consecutive days you send a Snap to the same person. My daughter has some Snapstreaks that are more than 200 days long. To keep a "streak" going both people must send a Snap back-and-forth within 24 hours.
I've learned from the teens I've talked to that Snapstreaks don't necessarily signify a deep or special relationship. The number of "streaks" your kids have going at any one time may surprise you. This happened to me. Tessa (my daughter) and I were headed out on a week-long trip together and I asked that she leave her cellphone at home so as to mitigate some of the tension that sometimes arises between us around the phone. Tessa's first response was to be concerned about her "streaks" — it turns out she had 40 Snapstreaks going. I was shocked. I wondered how she had the time to communicate individually with 40 different people every day. So we discussed it and in fact, she informed me that she sends a Snap to all 40 people at once, sort of like a cc. My co-producer's 17-year-old has 5 Snapstreaks going and when she asked him if he just sends them all the same one, he said no, that he likes to send a personal Snap to each of his 5 friends. What some kids do when they are forced to part with their phones is they give a friend their Snapchat password to have them keep their "streaks" going. Tessa and I had a nice, calm discussion about all this and in the end, she easily agreed to leave her phone at home.
This week we are talking about "streaks' for Tech Talk Tuesday. Here are some questions to get the conversation started:
a snap picture from co-producer Lisa Tabb's teen daughter
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
Do you know what Streaks are? Snapchat has something they call Snapstreaks that count the consecutive days you send a Snap to the same person. My daughter has some Snapstreaks that are more than 200 days long. To keep a "streak" going both people must send a Snap back-and-forth within 24 hours.
I've learned from the teens I've talked to that Snapstreaks don't necessarily signify a deep or special relationship. The number of "streaks" your kids have going at any one time may surprise you. This happened to me. Tessa (my daughter) and I were headed out on a week-long trip together and I asked that she leave her cellphone at home so as to mitigate some of the tension that sometimes arises between us around the phone. Tessa's first response was to be concerned about her "streaks" — it turns out she had 40 Snapstreaks going. I was shocked. I wondered how she had the time to communicate individually with 40 different people every day. So we discussed it and in fact, she informed me that she sends a Snap to all 40 people at once, sort of like a cc. My co-producer's 17-year-old has 5 Snapstreaks going and when she asked him if he just sends them all the same one, he said no, that he likes to send a personal Snap to each of his 5 friends. What some kids do when they are forced to part with their phones is they give a friend their Snapchat password to have them keep their "streaks" going. Tessa and I had a nice, calm discussion about all this and in the end, she easily agreed to leave her phone at home.
This week we are talking about "streaks' for Tech Talk Tuesday. Here are some questions to get the conversation started:
a snap picture from co-producer Lisa Tabb's teen daughter
As well as our weekly blog, we publish videos like this one every week on the Screenagers YouTube channel
Snapchat has some pitfalls. I talked to two young adults about things to be aware of when using the app, including exposure to illicit content, the pressure of Snap Scores, and ads for platforms like OnlyFans. I also offer advice on how to help your teen manage their Snapchat usage.
READ MORE >In my latest Podcast, I speak with Anna Lembke, head of addiction medicine at Stanford and author of Dopamine Nation, as well as a young woman who was formally an aspiring influencer and driven by all the likes and such that come with social media. I’d love for you to listen to the podcast. OR, I’ve included the transcript here for you to read it.
READ MORE >While creating the Screenagers movies, I've been alarmed by the number of teens receiving inappropriate messages from strangers on social media. Thankfully, Meta has finally acted, barring 15-year-olds and younger from getting messages from unconnected individuals on Instagram. This long-awaited move is crucial for online safety. In today's blog, I discuss this change and offer essential parenting advice to help keep our youth safe on these apps.
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.