Saren’s sons, Ashton (15) and Isaac (13) with their phones and other devices
In this week’s Radio Show, Saren talks with her two teenage sons (ages 13 and 15) about cell phones. They discuss what they’ve observed regarding cell phone usage and share some points from the “Technology Contract” that their family has adopted to help everyone enjoy the benefits of phones and technology while avoiding the drawbacks.
Show Notes
The Loosli Family Technology Contract (from Saren’s family blog)
Getting Smart about your Kid’s Smartphone (great post by Allyson Reynolds)
Rethinking the Screen Time Battle (a later post by Allyson, offering further perspective as her kids got older)
Children, Happiness and Screen Time
Screen Time: How Much? (podcast by April and Saren focused more on screen time for younger children)
The Screen Time Dialogue (for moms of younger children)
Music from Creations by Michael R. Hicks
Your conversation with your sons is golden! It really cuts through all the rhetoric. As a mother of 5 kids, 2 of whom are in middle school, I love Ashton and Isaac’s perspective. Thank you for being honest in your answers, and for just being yourselves in the interview. Thank you, Saren, for sharing how your family is working TOGETHER to figure out how to navigate technology. I appreciate how you are never self-righteous about parenting topics.
This is definitely one of my favorite podcasts, one that I can share with the whole family!
Thanks Saren, Ashton & Isaac for sharing this conversation and for the great ideas you shared with the technology contract, using brick phones instead of smart phones and more. It truly was helpful for me as, just like you expressed, Saren, as this is super unknown territory for us as parents. Thanks Ashton for affirming how dumb it is for 6 and 7 year olds to have phones…as my 7 year old has asked before for a phone and it blows me away! I appreciate your insight and sharing your experience as you navigate through this issue together.
Jennifer and Andrea:
Thanks for listening! So glad you enjoyed the podcast and I’ll pass along your kind words to Ashton and Isaac who will really appreciate seeing your appreciation.
Thanks so much for sharing this! I have thought of several things I would like to do differently with our family since listening!
It was really powerful to have two teenage boys doing this particular show with you. I am 40 years old and got a smartphone a few years ago. I have really found that I need a contract. I have 2 young kids under 7 and they do not use our phones or Kindle, but I know in the very near future we will have to address these topics. I feel like I can learn to manage my technology so I can teach my children and begin to help them manage their technology too. As it is, I barely let them watch TV. They mostly listen to CD’s. This is a different world than how I grew up, but I’m thankful for good suggestions on this topic as it is a family issue.
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