To learn more about these gadgets, read my blog post at TODAY.com
Category: Kids & Family
iOS 8 is a big step forward for Families & Digital Parents
Attention Digital Parents! You’re going to love this one.
Right now, there are a few problems for digital parents and their connected families. From difficulties with sharing the things you’re doing and love, to managing apps, music and TV shows purchased on different people’s accounts, digital parents can often get overwhelmed trying to manage it all!
With iOS 8, coming to iPad, iPhone and iPod touch this fall, Apple is hoping to make things a little bit easier.
Motivate your kids to do their chores with free app Choremonster
The battle to get your kids to do their chores can be exhausting! Thankfully, I’ve found a great free app called “Choremonster” that will actually motivate your kids to want to do their chores. Keep reading to find out how it works.
What’s the appropriate age for children to join social media networks?
For decades, parents have attempted to make a point about peer pressure to their children with this tired old phrase: “If all of your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it?”. It’s a way to trying to help kids understand that while peer pressure can sometimes be good (like when friends pressure your child to try out for the basketball team), they need to think critically when peer pressure is threatening to lead them astray (like jumping off a bridge).
Today, I propose that we update the phrase for the 21st century, and ask our kids something new!
Can you believe it’s wedding season already? Upcoming Katie Couric appearance
On Tuesday, April 22nd, I’ll be appearing on Katie to show off some great apps and websites to help you with every aspect of putting together your wedding. I’ve found a great service that mails all of your wedding stationery for you, a website to help you with seating at your reception, a service that helps you create your own wedding website and app, and even a site to help you get a deep discount on the dress or wedding gifts.
Use the Katie Couric Station Finder to figure out when Katie airs in your market, and then be sure to set your DVR or tune in on Tuesday!
What should parents do when photos of their kids are posted without permission? (TODAY Show)
This morning on TODAY, I talked to Kathie Lee and Hoda about asking permission before posting pictures to social media. We try to answer the question, “What should parents do when photos of their kids are posted without permission?”
Let the Little Ones Go Online With These Kid-Safe Browsers
Every parent wants to make sure they are tech-savvy enough to make sure their kids are being safe, and behaving well, online. You have to be a digitally literate parent if you want to properly help to raise the next generation of digital citizens!
But the idea of letting your younger children go online without supervision should terrify you! That’s why I’m today I’m going to show you three kid-safe browsers. Each of these make it safe for your children to go online while still letting them have having some fun!
Boost Your Digital Parenting Skills With the MamaBear App
Smartphones are supposed to make our lives easier, but with children in the mix they can mean scary changes! With a computer, there are simple steps you can take to make sure your children are safe like placing the PC in a well-trafficked part of the house and installing software to limit when they can use the computer or what sites they can access.
With smartphones, your children suddenly have a private device that can quickly lead them into some dicey situations with friends, strangers, or on sites they shouldn’t visit but may still try to!
But smartphones also mean you have new tools as a parent, like location tracking or the ability to see where your child is checking in or what they’re sharing on social media. An app called “MamaBear” promises to help you manage your child’s behavior online and offline. How does it do it?
Create #DigitalParenting rules to help guide the next generation!
The average 8-10 year old spends nearly 8 hours a day using media. Thinking about your own children, how much of that time is being spent doing educational things with their connected devices and how much of that time is being spent on mindless entertainment?
Parents need to be savvy about how their children use their devices and setting smart parental controls. But parents also need to remember that children emulate their parents—if you’re on your smartphone throughout an entire dinner, how do you expect your kids will behave? On TODAY this morning I discuss these important #DigitalParenting issues, and offer advice for parents.
Kids and social media concerns: TODAY viewers weigh in (Mario’s Top 3)
This week on Mario’s Top 3, Emmy-award winning TODAY show contributor Mario Armstrong discusses the changing privacy settings on Facebook and how they affect teenagers, the new Microsoft Surface 2 tablets, and the new way to send cash from Square.