May 22, 2015
Q: I am fed up with all of the adult content in commercials that are shown during children and family programming. I have witnessed them across every network and have now started a Facebook page in hopes of gathering as many people as I can to petition for showing only G-rated commercials during children and […]
April 8, 2015
Q: Is Animal Jam an appropriate website for tweens and children as young as 5-year-olds? As a parent and librarian, I am concerned by a number of Animal Jam’s features, such as pushing players to purchase items within the website, and am skeptical as to the site’s “educational” value, even though it is associated with National […]
March 27, 2015
Q: I recently received the Spring 2015 Catalog from the department store Barneys New York. The catalog was sent to my house without any envelope or sleeve to protect it from being opened by kids, even though it contains pictures that I believe are inappropriate for young children. What can be done to prevent such […]
March 6, 2015
Q: My Lego-loving 5-year-old son is now interested in the Lego Ninjago series (influenced by his 7-year-old cousin). I have tried to keep him from Ninjago as it seems to me to be inappropriate for his age. Currently, all of his Lego building has been with the City series. I believe he looks at Ninjago […]
December 31, 2014
Q: Our school is considering adding media education to the curriculum, but some board members want “evidence” of its benefit. Can you recommend any studies that clearly demonstrate that media education helps children/teens? – Reaching for Research, USA A: Dear Reaching, You are right to want to have media education (often called media literacy education) […]
December 17, 2014
It’s that time of year once again when school vacations and holidays bring many friends and family together. It can also be a great time to continue or start a tradition of cozying up on the couch, or going out as a group to watch a movie. This year, theaters are offering movie versions of […]
October 30, 2014
Q: I am part of a moms’ group that puts on monthly parent meetings in an effort to educate parents about the issues surrounding screen time in the home. In our next meeting, we will be focusing on video gaming, and I would like your advice on how to handle the inevitable parental question: “If […]
October 6, 2014
Q: My 8 year old is being given a laptop by her public school. While I do understand the benefits, I have serious concerns about such a young child having minimally supervised online access at school and at after-school care. The school laptops do not even come with any tracking software or restrictions. At home, […]
August 20, 2014
Q: My 6 year-old daughter’s class is opening a Facebook account. They are spinning it as an “exciting new way to expose 1st graders to social media” and to help them learn to use it responsibly at a young age. The class will post photos, news, and videos of the children, and parents and relatives can read […]
August 15, 2014
Q: I have two daughters, 8 and 6, who will be returning to school this September. I tend to be fairly liberal with the rules around media use during the summer, but this year both girls will be receiving iPads from their schools to use for classwork and homework. I’m concerned about getting the girls […]
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