| MediaSmarts

Tablet Parenting Fail

Well, it happened: we had a parenting fail when it comes to technology.

The Spotify Problem

We have a few smartphone rules in our house: no phones after 9:30 p.m., no phones at the dinner table or other family events, and no phones in bedrooms.

Cell Phones and Texting, Digital Health, Excessive Internet Use, Instant Messaging, Music, Parents, Social Networking

Withholding screens as punishment

Digital Health, Parents

Defeating Distraction

Here are some tips to develop a healthier relationship with technology:

Digital Health, Excessive Internet Use, Internet & Mobile

Outcome Chart - Alberta - English Language Arts 10 (10-2)

This outcome chart contains media-related learning outcomes from the Alberta, Grade 10 English Language Arts curriculum (ELA 10-2), with links to supporting resources on the MediaSmarts site.

Parent Tip Sheet: Surviving the gimme season

For parents, this time of year can feel like walking through a minefield, with ads, decorations and music all aimed at getting kids excited about the holidays. Every year children eagerly ask Santa for the “hottest,” “must-have” toys – and then turn that “pester power” on their parents. Of course, few parents want to be Grinches – we all want to make our children happy – but there can be a middle ground between giving in to pester power and canceling the holidays altogether. Here are some tips on how to control holiday consumerism:

Events, Marketing & Consumerism

In time for Safer Internet Day, new resources to fight cyber bullying

Today is Safer Internet Day, an annual international event sponsored by Insafe to promote a safer Internet for children. Recent research on Internet life has shown that the greatest threat to kids online comes from kids themselves, both in the form of risky behaviour and online harassment, or cyber bullying. Cyber bullying can take forms such as harassing e-mails or text messages, social exclusion and spreading private photos and videos, among others, and presents a particular challenge for parents and teachers because it often happens outside the home or classroom. Because the Internet has become an essential part of kids' social lives, cyber bullying can also have more devastating effects as youth feel they have no escape.

Cyberbullying, Events, Internet & Mobile, Professional Development, Resources

Outcome Chart - Ontario - Working With School-Age Children and Adolescents 12 HPD4C

We are all broadcasters

Here are three tips to make sure you share good information and stop the spread of hoaxes, rumours and scams.

1. Watch for your own bias

One of the hardest things about being a responsible sharer is to be aware of the reasons why you might be more likely to believe something without evidence. Before you share a story, take a few minutes to see whether you’ve fallen into one of these common biases:

Authenticating Information, Internet & Mobile