dangerous hashtags can be easy to use accidentally

How can a hashtag be dangerous?

By putting a hashtag on your child’s photo, it makes it potentially accessible to a pedophile with one simple click.
Pedophiles and predators need not spend hours searching for scantily-clad children, when they can click #nakedbabies, #toddlerbikinis, or #bathtimefun for thousands of photos.

You may have created a unique hashtag for your specific child, but beware that if someone takes a liking to your kid…

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Summer sun!

Before you wake up on Day 1 of summer in a cold sweat, check out these 4 questions to discuss as a family that will really help give structure to those long school-less days.

Thanks to Andrea Davis of “Better Screen Time” who told our podcast that the key to a successful summer is…

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It’s just play, right?

“The first thing is for children to listen to what their body is telling them. That is so important because now you think of a teenager who is at a party who feels the pressure from a peer to have an experience that maybe they’re not ready for.
And if they can start to recognize in early childhood what that feels like, and how they get out of it, then they’re going to have that skill in adolescence and adulthood and all of the encounters we’re going to have as humans later in life,” says Sally Swaitek in Episode 5 of…

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Tessa Stuckey

In her practice, therapist Tessa Stuckey started recognizing a trend about 6 years ago.
“Kids would come to me with typical life stressors, mom got mad at them, they didn’t empty their dishwasher, or they made a C on a chemistry exam. Typical life stressors. But their go-to answer was always a dark, dark thought, whether that be self-harm or suicidal thinking.”

Tessa started investigating and found that “every single one of them had issues that were rooted back to an overuse of unhealthy screens or social media.”

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Ty Tashiro, author of Awkward and The Science of Happily Ever After

Screen Less Play More podcast Episode 4 is available now!

Tech and relationship expert Ty Tashiro talks about online dating, awkwardness, digital parenting, and what we can do to find true love in this tech age!

Ty is the author of “Awkward:  The Science of Why We’re Socially Awkward and Why That’s Awesome,” and “The Science of Happily Ever After: What Really Matters in the Search for True Love.”

His interview on the podcast helps us understand why we are awkward, how technology is helping and hurting that, and how to be less awkward! He helps us improve our friendships, and learn how we can use psychology to hack the online dating app system!

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Listen to Screen Less Play More on Apple podcasts

Kat Zilka was a high school teacher who realized that her students were in a real mental health crisis. She asked her students to write an essay about their relationship to their phones, and was shocked to read their confessions. “Honestly, if you were to read the essays and insert another substance, like alcohol or drugs into, in place of the phone or in place of social media, it would have been addicts crying for help.” She tells us all about it in Episode 1.

Episode two is a fantastic conversation with Erin Loechner, author of “The Opt-Out Family: How to Give Your Kids What Technology Can’t.” Erin teaches us how to be more engaging than the algorithm! She has tons of great ideas on how to use the tricks of big tech in a low-tech way to bring your family some fun, connection, and meaning.

Episode 3 helps us answer the question “What’s the best way for students to prep for the SAT?”
This episode should not be missed if you have a child in middle school or high school. Charlotte Winters has been an SAT tutor for 15 years, and teaches us that SAT prep isn’t as difficult or complicated as we think it is. Our talk explores the differences between the SAT and ACT, the significance of the PSAT, and how parents can…

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Kids books that promote imagination and play

“I’m borrrrrred!” screams your little princess. Quick! Grab these books!!! Not only will you and your child gain the benefits of reading together, but she will be inspired to delve into imaginative play that will nourish her mind, and give you a moment to fish the Legos from the toilet that just “mysteriously appeared.”
The landmark Becoming a Nation of Readers report from 1985 concluded that “the single most important activity for building knowledge for their eventual success in reading is…

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Hunt Gather Parent by Michaleen Doucleff is a game changer.

So you’re telling me that I’m supposed to parent like “Mister Rogers, stoned.”??? Go on…..

Author Michaleen Doucleff studied three ancient cultures whose children are still happy and helpful, and boiled it down to two important things:

Let your children help.

Don’t yell at your children.

And yes, she says you need to transform all of that bedtime rage into your best impression of our favorite PBS host, on weed…

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BAM Bad Ass Moms with Lori and Jenny podcast logo

Once upon a time I found a thank-you note from Tom Cruise on the Xerox machine at work. Listen to my interview on “BAM Bad Ass Moms” to hear the story, plus strategies for managing your kids’ screen time, and how to encourage creativity and outdoor…

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Barbie and Ken love to play!

Date ideas are everywhere. But not all are created equal.
The classic dinner date is overrated. Plus, you always devolve into discussing the tee-ball schedule, your mother-in-law’s antics, and how your spouse didn’t put sunblock on the dog.
Scientists tell us “Play activates the reward centers of the brain, floods the rest of the brain with feel-good chemicals like dopamine and oxytocin and triggers the release of powerful neural growth factors that promote…

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