Ryan Last, 17, a straight-A student and Boy Scout in San Jose, California, killed himself last February because he was “absolutely terrified,” his mother, Pauline Stuart, told CNN. In his suicide note, he described how embarrassed he was for himself and his family.
Topics: gaming, social media, sextortion
In the olden days, perhaps in your grandparents’ time, family meals were a given. The kids may have had play practice or a sporting event, but in general, the entire family gathered for dinner six to seven nights a week.
Topics: social media, drug trend, emojis
Every generation develops its own slang, its own secret language, and shorthand ways of communicating that keep parents in the dark about what they’re up to. As a parent, it’s frustrating, but it’s also a perfectly normal part of growing up.
Topics: social media, drug trend, emojis
There’s something about the anonymity and ease of digital communications that often brings out the worst in people, including children.
Topics: Facebook, social media, cyberbully
We’ve written about the potential dangers kids may encounter on social media, but recently we saw a case where social media helped rescue a 16-year-old girl from her kidnapper.
Topics: social media, tiktok, safety
Teens have always had issues with self-esteem. The captain of the football team, the head cheerleader, and the “in” crowd were present long before social media came along.
Topics: self esteem, teenagers, teens, social media
Adapting to the shelter-in-place order forced on us during the COVID-19 crisis is showing some early adapters: the winners are colleges and schools making the switch from sitting in a classroom to having the classroom on your laptop. Hats off to you!
One of my college-age granddaughters sent me a text yesterday, but when I called her back (generational thing) she replied back via text: I’m in class can’t talk right now.
Many schools are requiring the students to show up for their online classes in their school uniforms or in the school’s dress code. Schools are getting on with business, the content is the same, but the delivery is different.
Informed Families was scheduled to be closed for Spring Break this past week, but we canceled it. Why? So we could get our Lock Your Meds curriculum online and ready to use when Miami-Dade County public schools reopened on March 30. Schools, teachers, parents and students rely on Informed Families to provide them the latest information, tips, and resources to keep kids safe, healthy & drug free.
Topics: President's Message, education, Webinars, prescription drug abuse, lock your meds, teacher tools, lesson plan template, Peggy Sapp, social media, Covid-19
