Social Media and Our Kids

by Sandra Telep
Today we are hosting a guest post by Amy Williams a social worker who specializes in helping parents understand how to navigate technology and the digital life that their tweens and teens are immersed in. This issue is fresh in our minds after last year’s conference theme was “Our Families and the Future” and there were many discussions about social media and their impact on our children’s futures. I hope our members find this infographic helpful. -Sandra Telep, Vice-Chair
Social media has been popular among teens for quite a few years now, but for LGBT teens and children of LGBT parents, the issues run deeper than that – one message copied and spread without their consent could reveal their orientation in front of their peers before they’re ready, and that’s a big problem. Unfortunately, many teens are exposed to shaming and gender stereotypes on social media everyday, and aren’t aware of the dangers until something goes badly wrong – but those who care are constantly looking for new ways of improving their privacy.
If your teen is worried about how they’ll be treated at school – which is perfectly understandable, given their increased chance of being bullied – you may want to keep a closer eye on what they’re saying and help them understand how a message they post without thinking could wind up hurting them. Effective monitoring software can help you keep an eye on what’s going on until they’re ready to handle it on their own.

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