Digital Media & Technology News and Resource Guide

Many families know they would like to exercise more control over their family’s use of digital media and technology, but many do not know where to start. To help, Sparkler has gathered up some useful resources to help families feel more confident and take action to make technology and digital media work for them — whether they have young children, older children, or a mix of both.

Useful Guides and Resources for Families

There are many useful toolkits and guides, developed by experts, that can help parents/caregivers manage their children’s digital media and technology use. Here are some of our favorites:

Center for Excellence on Social Media and Youth Health (AAP): Building Healthy Relationships with Media: Essential Skills for Children 10 and Younger or Conversation Starters for Teens
Family Media Plan: Create a Family Media Plan with help from the AAP’s online tool, which is available in English or Spanish.
Digital Media Family Agreement: Internet Matters has created a simple guide to help families agree on rules for use of digital technology by your family.
Cell Phone Contract: Do you have an older child? Think about creating a “cell phone contract” with your tween or teen. Here’s a guide on how to do this from Parents.
Common Sense Media: Common Sense reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.
OK to Delay: an effort to protect middle schoolers from smartphones and social media.
Wait Until 8th: This is an effort to encourage parents to delay giving children a smartphone until at least the end of 8th grade. The hops is that taking the “pledge” will protect children from the distractions and the dangers of smartphones.

In the News...

Families’ usage of digital media and technology has transformed in recent years. With change comes an ever-evolving understanding of how technology and digital media are impacting parents’ and children’s brains, development, and wellbeing. We’ve gathered some recent news on media usage and how it relates to child development.

Teens Discuss How Social Media Reshapes Childhood (By Aria Young, Ashley Schwartz-Lavares, and Justin Green, ABC News, Sept. 25, 2024)

A historic new law would protect kids online and hold tech companies accountable (By Windsor Johnston, NPR, Aug. 3, 2024)

Instagram introduces mandatory ‘Teen Accounts’ with built-in limits, parental controls: Instagram announced the launch of accounts designed specifically for teenage users with built-in privacy protections. (By Katie Kindelan, ABC News, September 17, 2024)

The Youngest Pandemic Children Are Now in School, and Struggling: Teachers this year saw the effects of the pandemic’s stress and isolation on young students: Some can barely speak, sit still or even hold a pencil. (By Claire Cain Miller and Sarah Mervosh, New York Times, July 1, 2024)

Parents are key when it comes to limiting screen time for kids, study finds (Maria Godoy, All Things Considered, NPR, June 8, 2024)

Summer Unplugged: Navigating screen time and finding balance for kids (Harvard EdCast, April 17, 2024) Schools ban phones, but do the policies work? (Axios, July 5, 2024)

Get Phones Out of Schools Now: They impede learning, stunt relationships, and lessen belonging. They should be banned. (Jonathan Haidt, Atlantic, June 6, 2023)

Why Play Is Essential For Children: Psychologist Peter Gray Sounds the Alarm About Excessive Adult Oversight & What It’s Doing to Kids’ Mental Health: The Boston College professor praises unstructured playtime & challenges the conventional wisdom about screen time and youth anxiety (Kevin Mahnken, The 74, June 4, 2024)

What the evidence really says about social media’s impact on teens’ mental health (Eric Levitz, Vox, April 12, 2024)

The negative impact of social media and smartphones on children’s mental health: A fireside chat with NYU’s Jonathan Haidt (Brookings, April 9, 2024)