Jonathan's Blog From The Source
Posted on: 06/28/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
Last week I was interviewed on live TV, the Canadian TV show 100 Huntley Street, sharing ideas from my new book about how to actually connect with our kids who can’t seem to pry their eyes from their mobile devices.
The interview was fun– take a peek:
Continue reading “On TV Last Week”
Posted in Books, Entertainment Media, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 06/21/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
I’m beginning to do a lot of radio interviews again with the release of my new book, and somehow this question always comes up:
What is the biggest issue parents are dealing with today?
I don’t even have to blink, because the answer is so apparent: smartphones and social media.
Yes, in a world where sexual fluidity, drug dependency, and shrinking moral values are abundant, even those issues are being propagated through the medium of social media, primarily through that device in our kids’ pockets. And whenever our kids choose to rant, or feel confused and/or depressed… where is their go to source for information as well as the platform they choose to express themselves?
Continue reading “same place same device”
Posted in Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 05/3/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
I hear the question at every parenting workshop I teach. It comes in many forms:
“How young is too young for my kids to have their own phone?”
“I didn’t get my kid a phone… I just got them an iPad. Is that dangerous?”
“My 11-year-old daughter wants an Instagram account. Should I let her?
“What age should I let them have access to all of this stuff?!!”
Let me give you the quick answer: 13-years-old.
It’s a question I have to keep answering again and again for parents. So let me show you a few places where it’s been addressed in detail lately.
Continue reading “At what age should I let my kid have a phone?”
Posted in Entertainment Media, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 04/28/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
The book, the workshop… it’s happening.
Last night I taught my brand new parent workshop, Connect with Your Smartphone Obsessed Kid, for the second time. I’m excited with the feedback I’m hearing so far! And speaking of feedback…
My publisher just sent the final cover of the book, 52 Ways to Connect with Your Smartphone Obsessed Kid, to the printer. I really like the way it turned out (with Shaunti’s kind words on the front)…
Continue reading “52 Ways to Connect”
Posted in Books, Entertainment Media, Family, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, Speaking/Training | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 04/5/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
My 3 Favorite Places to Get Real-World Help for Parents
Parenting was difficult for my parents, and I wasn’t even begging them for a Smartphone! Now add technology into the mix… how are today’s parents even supposed to handle the following situations (true circumstances parents ask me about constantly):
Posted in Entertainment Media, Parenting, Sexuality, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 02/23/16 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
Would you guess today’s young people are drinking more or less alcohol than you when you were a teenager?
What about drugs? More or less?
Sex?
Smoking?
Last week Vox.com released an article with a title saying, “Today’s teens have babies less than you did.” Then the words “have babies” scroll off the screen and are replaced by the word “fight.” Then “drink.” Then “use meth.”
The article goes on to compare the results of the Continue reading “Today’s Teens Compared to Yesterday’s Teens”
Posted in Entertainment Media, News, Sexuality, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 11/9/15 6:25 AM | by Jonathan McKee
How many hours per day do your kids digest entertainment media and technology?
Think about it for a moment. If you add up all the screen time, music, social media, video games, TV, mobile video… all of it! How many hours would it be?
Common Sense Media just did the math in their exhaustive study of thousands of teens (13-18) and tweens (8-12), and the total hours today’s young people spend soaking in media per day might surprise you Continue reading “Teen Media Consumption 2015”
Posted in Entertainment Media, Internet, Movies, Music, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, TV, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 10/6/15 7:36 AM | by Jonathan McKee
Does the smartphone help communication… or hinder it?
That one of the questions I ask when I’m teaching young people to be smarter than their smartphones.
“Think about it,” I suggest. “How many times are you sitting in a circle of your friends and none of them are talking because their heads are all down staring at their phones?”
Students always laugh and point to each other. “That’s so you!”
My point is clear: Phones can be really convenient tools helping us communicate with friends outside the room, but they become a hindrance when they interfere with our connection with people inside the room Continue reading “Moving Kids from Tech-dependent to Tech-enabled”
Posted in Entertainment Media, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 09/29/15 5:45 AM | by Jonathan McKee
She holds her phone up at a high angle and strikes a sexy pose.
“Click.”
She inspects the picture. “Nope. Too much arm fat.” She tries again.
After four or five tries she captures the image she wants. Now to apply filters…
Funny… five years ago no one even knew what a selfie was. Now, Millennials average 9 selfies per week, spending an average of seven minutes perfecting each one before posting. That’s adds up to about Continue reading “9 selfies per week”
Posted in Parenting, Self Image, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media, Youth Culture | | Leave A Comment
Posted on: 09/8/15 10:51 AM | by Jonathan McKee
A brand new study asking U.S. teens and their parents about their social media and mobile app use revealed some intriguing insights, not only about teen’s attitudes about tech, but about how connected… er… disconnected parents really are from their kids tech communication. The study discovered:
Interestingly enough, 88% of parents say they are aware of all or most of the social networks or apps their teens engage with, but yet Continue reading “3 Tips to Keeping Connected with Your Kids… without Becoming That Creepy Parent”
Posted in Entertainment Media, Internet, Parenting, Smartphones/Cell Phones, Social Media | | Leave A Comment
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