Screen-Smart Parenting: How to Find Balance and Benefit in Your Child's Use of Social Media, Apps, and Digital Devices

Even for today's most tech-savvy parents, managing kids' technology use is a huge challenge fraught with uncertainties. What kinds (and amounts) of screen time boost learning and development - and what kinds may be harmful? What is the right age for a game console or a smartphone? How can kids and teens be protected from cyberbullying and learn to be good digital citizens? What impact do parents' technology habits have? In her busy psychiatry practice - and while raising her own kids - Jodi Gold sees every day both the mind-boggling benefits and the serious downsides of technology. In a positive, accessible style, she gives parents a wealth of practical strategies for navigating the digital frontier and creating realistic, doable rules and expectations for the whole family. KEY POINTS *Child development expert, therapist, and media-savvy mom of three delivers informed advice. *For all ages: Gold offers developmentally appropriate tips on everything from tablets for preschoolers to teens' digital footprints. *A pragmatic antidote to scare headlines and an eminently usable guide parents will return to repeatedly. *Provides peace-of-mind safeguards while underscoring and promoting the potential cognitive, emotional, and social benefits of technology. *An insider's guide to raising responsible, creative, and secure digital citizens