Whether it’s “Black Friday,” “Cyber Monday” or any other day during late November and December, parents and other adults are looking for holiday gifts to give to children and teens. And this year you’ll find plenty of tech gifts from tablets to interactive toys to smart phones or smart speakers. But just because you can get a tech gift for a child or teen doesn’t mean you should. Parents and family members need to think about what’s age appropriate and how these tech gifts will be used not just during the holidays but throughout the year.
There is a lot to think about but, fortunately, Larry Magid and Kerry Gallagher have given this a lot of thought. Larry is CBS News Tech Analyst and CEO of ConnectSafely.org and Kerry is ConnectSafely’s Director of K-12 Education and the Assistant Principal for Teaching and Learning at St. John’s Prep in Danvers, Massachusetts.
Family contract
At whatever age you give your child a phone, consider signing ConnectSafely’s Family Contract for Smartphone Use where kids and teens agree to safe and smart use of their phones and parents agree to be good role models and not overreact at the first sign of a minor problem.
Both Kerry and Larry are also parents. Larry’s “kids” are young adults and Kerry has two elementary school-aged daughters.
