• Digital Wellbeing During Tough Times (webinar) – Cultures of Dignity
• Using Benefit of the Doubt to Strengthen Relationships with Young People – Cultures of Dignity  
• Screen Time for Kids: Give Them What They Need – Nir and Far
• The Social Dilemma – documentary available on Netflix
• “A Guide to Public Wifi Security Risks & How to Use it Safely”
  Provided by Surf Shark
• Teenology 101: A blog from Seattle Children’s department of adolescent medicine shares what they’ve learned in hopes of assisting families in navigating through the teenage years.
• Online Safety for Kids and Families
  Provided by NetSmartz

Resources for Managing Social Media Usage
Follow-up to PE screening of IndieFlix Film “LIKE – The Impact of Social Media on Our Lives”

• Tips for Managing Social Media Use – provided by IndieFlix
• Internet Addiction Information – provided by Mercer Island Youth and Family Services (MIYFS)
• Book List – “Impact of Social Media on Our Lives”  – provided by King County Library System (KCLS)
• Online Resources – “Impact of Social Media on Our Lives” – provided by King County Library System (KCLS)
• “Have Smart Phones Destroyed a Generation” – Jean M. Twenge, The Atlantic (Sept. 2017) – referenced in “LIKE”
• Wait until 8th – An organization encouraging parents wait until 8th grade to give their child a smartphone
• Parenting Teens in a Digital Age Resources – provided by Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
• BeHeroes.net – Panelist, Jo Langford’s Web Site
• SavvyParentsSafeKids.com– Panelist, Christy Keating’s Web Site

Kids and Tech: Keeping our Children Safe
follow-up to IMS PTSA presentation

IMS PTA recently presented “Kids and Tech:  Keeping our Children Safe” featuring speakers Cecelia Greyson and Ian Polhemus.  Cecelia Gregson is an IMS parent and the prosecutor to the Washington State Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce. Cecelia and Ian Polhemus, Seattle Police Internet Crimes Against Children Detective, shared their experiences professionally and personally in an effort to better educate parents with tech savvy kids navigating coming of age in a digital world fraught with peril.

View their Internet Safety Powerpoint Presentation

Did you know…

Washington State ranked 1st per capita in the nation in 2016 for the number of unique internet protocol addresses sharing child exploitation material online?

The images collected and traded over the internet often come from children that offenders meet and groom online.  The offenders meet kids through a slew of apps we all know and should be intelligently monitoring such as Kik, ChatSnap, ChatStep, Tumblr, Instagram etc.  We live in a tech-rich community and crime analysts are currently examining our regional child exploitation boom and considering whether our thriving economy and tech heavy community may have a correlation to the uptick in numbers of offenders exploiting our children.

Disclaimer: MI Parent Edge is not in any way affiliated with any of the above-listed organizations, services, businesses, or blogs. If you would like to suggest a resource for our consideration, view the MI Parent Edge submission policy.