Sometimes the hardest part of any conversation is where to start! Open communication about social media with adolescents is important, but where do you start the conversation? Here’s just a couple of suggestions from the American Academy of Pediatrics:
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Share a bit about your daily social media use as a way to facilitate daily conversation about your kids’ online habits.
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Get your kids talking about their social media lives if you can just so you know what they are doing.
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Talk with other parents about what their kids of similar ages are using for social media. Ask your kids about those technologies as a starting point for discussion. If they are in the same peer group, there is a good chance they are all using the same platforms together. Sometimes a good way of starting the conversation is to ask your teen to show you how to use yours. For example: For teens: “Mrs. Smith told me Jenn uses Instagram. Do you use it? I wanted to know how it works – can you help me set up mine?”
If you are interested in getting some conversations started around social media, you can also see some of our previous blog posts: Tips for tough topics, helping teens understand how social media impacts mood, and social media privacy.
Do you have any tips or tricks for starting conversations with adolescents around social media? What do you think about these tips? Let us know in the comments!