Today's world is saturated with media and information. Data, research, and news are at our fingertips 24/7. This information can enhance our daily lives, yet needs to be managed appropriately. As we jump headfirst into the 2019-2020 school year, consider setting expectations with your child(ren) around their use of a smartphone or digital device. Expectation setting is helpful as you look to start the year on a positive note, especially as your middler begins to reconnect with or start new friendships with other students.

A good resource for parents with students of all ages is the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The APP recently created a Personalized Family Media Use Plan to assist families with mentoring and monitoring their child(ren). As the site says, "By creating a Personalized Family Media Use Plan, you can be aware of when you are using media to achieve your purpose. This requires parents & users to think about what they want those purposes to be. The tool below will help you to think about media & create goals & rules that are in line with your family’s values."