Making Safe and Smart Choices with Technology: One National Heritage Academies Educator Offers Advice for the Summer Months

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., June 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As the school year draws to a close and students head into summer break, one long-time National Heritage Academies educator and leader offers advice on how to monitor your child's online access and behavior.

Director of School Quality Nancy Kouba, an educator for 25 years, says that today having access to cell phones has become the norm rather than the exception to the rule, especially among younger children. To help kids make safe and smart choices when online or using a cell phone, Kouba shares that at-home conversations about appropriate technology use are a great place to start.

Her first rule of thumb: Monitor your child's devices. "Regardless of your child's age, I encourage you take a look through their phone," she said.

Even if you do not think they have social media accounts, she recommends still checking for the most popular apps, such as Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and Discord. If your child has a "My Eyes Only" passcode set up on Snapchat, that's a red flag, she says.

A few other things to think about:

• Establish an end-time for device use and charge them outside your child's bedroom (e.g., at 9 p.m., plug in the phone or tablet in the kitchen and/or take their gaming system controllers).
• Check your child's browsing history and website searches regularly.
• Check their camera reel. What videos have they saved?
• Review text messages. Do you see negative behaviors and/or language use?

One other important piece of advice Kouba offers is to help our children understand the seriousness of making online threats on social media, whether joking or not.

"I have seen several students make life-altering choices this year," she said. "It's heart-breaking as an educator and a parent."

The bottom line: It's our job as parents to keep our kids safe – in the real world and online, Kouba said. Together, we can all help kids make good decisions and understand the consequences of technology misuse.

National Heritage Academies (NHA) is a network of 98 tuition-free, public charter schools across nine states, serving more than 60,000 students in kindergarten through 12^th grade. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.

SOURCE National Heritage Academies