My child, the internet addict

Hey hey hey! So did you make it through Halloween? How late did your kids insist on staying up? Anyone’s tween get too freaked out by that slasher movie you told them they were too young to watch and hop into your bed last night? And the most important question of all…what did you steal from your kid’s candy stash after they finally fell asleep? (Team Twix over here.)

P.S. How many meals a night do you make 😝?! And to pineapple or not pineapple? Dempster’s Tortizza for the win!

 Is Your Child Addicted to the Internet?

Time to think about the real impact of all that scrolling. A new survey of about 1,000 moms and dads found more than 22% were concerned their children might be too dependent on the internet. And? Twice as many said they’re as worried about internet addiction as they are about addiction to substances like drugs and alcohol.

FYI: Screens don’t affect kids’ brains the way drugs or drinking would—they don’t create chemical dependency. But still…can’t hurt to toss your kid a book just in case.

How to Help Your Kids Make Friends

Making friends as an adult is hard (luckily we’ve been stuck with each other for a loooong time). But it’s not much easier for teens, especially teen boys. And many of our kids lost some good social skills-building years during the Covid-19 pandemic. For some, that means no real close-knit group to hang out with.

So how do you help your teen make friends if they’re struggling? How do you know when to push them and when to let things run their natural course? And what if this is more than just a rough patch? This super helpful piece has some answers to those big teen friendship questions.

Scammers’ Latest Target: Teens

It’s not just grandparents who are falling victim to online scammers. Turns out, younger people are 34% more likely to report losing money to fraud than older adults. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the most common scams happening right now involve teens and online shopping (bad news for yours truly—those are kind of our two biggest interests).

Never a bad time to brush up on some of our cyber safety episodes for members of the Common Parent - our private community built to support parents of teens and tweens. Learn more and start your free trial here! 🙌

Your Kids Probably Need More Sleep

Did you know: Children from the ages of 6 through 12 should sleep 9 to 12 hours per day and teenagers should sleep 8 to 10 hours per day? We’d bet your kids aren’t getting as much sleep as they need…which can negatively impact their mental health, school performance, and overall mood. From tons of homework on top of after-school activities to way-too-early school start times to those (addictive) screens keeping them up way past bedtime, there are countless things keeping our kids from a good night’s rest. Here are some tips to help your kids get the sleep they need.

P.S. Check out this interview we did a while back about how to help your sleep deprived teen.

Today we’ve got a special recs selection all about the unbelievable pressure our kids face to get into the right college or university. It’s wild how early it creeps up (we’ve heard of kids starting standardized test prep at, like, 12 years old), and we hope this roundup can be a resource for any parent panicking (or panicking they’re not panicking) about what comes next for your kids.

So let’s talk about it and take some of that unnecessary pressure off.

• This book, Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be, is a wonderful resource for teens (especially the more anxious ones) worried they won’t end up at their “dream” school.

• The parent’s guide to helping your teen adjust to college life—it’s never too early to start.

• Honest, real advice from parents to parents on navigating the college admissions process.

• Here are the best ways to get your kids ready for the SAT and other standardized tests.

• And when you’re busy taking that vacation you’ve been meaning to book for years…there’s now such a thing as a parenting concierge service for kids who need a mom when mom isn’t close enough to help with the laundry emergency.