Navigating Parents’ Digital Dilemma: Balancing Technology and Education
Whether it’s a video game, smart toy or cell phone, chances are your child’s Christmas list includes technology. For parents hesitant to cave in for fear of exposing their children to the dangers of the digital world, Tampa Bay mom and digital media expert Natalie Zfat says there’s a safe, balanced solution.
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Tech gets a bad rap when it comes to children. Can it be a good thing?
Natalie Zfat: 57% of kids (and also 41% of adults) want to be an influencer for a living. Rather than fight the tide, it’s on us as parents to approach technology and social media from a balanced perspective.
I know young women who have put themselves through college by publishing makeup tutorials on YouTube. Other young folks I know have developed unbridled confidence – and public speaking skills – by learning how to film and edit videos of themselves online.
So whether your kid is virtually assembling Legos or filming a tutorial of how they paint a pumpkin (hopefully not in your living room), the confidence they can build learning to speak to a camera is priceless.
What are your top tech toy suggestions for kids this holiday season?
Natalie Zfat: Ditch the latest and greatest robot ball or video game apparatus that your kids will love (and leave) within a week.
Instead, give your kids that old iPhone you’re about to trade in – internet disabled if need be – and let them take a pass at taking photos. Or filming a play in your living room. You don’t need the phone, and your kid will be overjoyed. Throw in a tripod for an older child, and let them start messing around with framing and composition.
Even if your kids never make it as influencers (which, let’s face it – most won’t) – in 2024, it’s not a bad thing that your children learn how to speak directly to a camera and develop a modicum of photography, video and editing skills.
Please share your tips for making sure your child isn’t glued 24/7 to that new video game or whatever the toy is?
Natalie Zfat: I got my first computer at five and built a six-figure-dollar social media business by 25. These facts are mutually exclusive.
My advice to parents is to spend less time policing the quantity of technology time your kid has, and focus more of the quality of what their kids are doing during their technology time.
Learning how to code or play video games focused on problem solving at an early age can only enhance a digital career path.
The risks associated with social media are well-documented and cause many parents to hesitate to allow their children to join that world. What’s your advice?
Natalie Zfat: It’s a matter of when – not if – your child joins social media. It’s our job as parents to help them navigate it safely.
Talk to your children about the dangers of social media before they join. This includes catfishing – a predator pretending to be someone they aren’t – and cyberbullying, which can often have the same effect on your child as in-person bullying.
Educate your kids about the types of things that are appropriate and inappropriate to post. Remind them that posts and pictures can be stored on the internet forever, even if they are deleted. And something that might seem benign to post now could feel very different in 10 years.
Finally, teach your kids to be aware of their lived experience. If a certain person made your kid feel bad about themselves, you’d encourage them to take space. The same advice can be applied if certain app or platform doesn’t make them feel good, either.
Keeping kids safe on social media
- Check your children’s social media settings.
- Keep pages private (for kids under 18).
- Make sure kids are not accepting follows from people they don’t know.
- Ensure their location is set to private.
- Ensure that a parent has every login and password to every account for their child under 18.
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iStock-1500076836 | Originally published in the December 2024 issue of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine.