LumberjackedMay 29, 2025

Fediverse for teens

https://lemm.ee/post/65314537

Fediverse for teens - lemm.ee

I have three teenage daughters who are currently not allowed on social media. But I want to give them some ability before they become adults. My eldest gave me a PowerPoint presentation on why she should be allowed on Snapchat, lol.  She made some good points. Her friend group has a group text and she wants to keep up with everyone but doesn’t want to get the ding notifications constantly.  Feels like a good opportunity for a Fediverse platform. Like a closed Mastodon/Pixelfed server and have some parental controls. Any projects out there?

Show threadLembot_0002May 29, 2025
Poor kids. Teenagers need communication with other teenagers, or they would grow up crazy like you.
Show threadlemmy_outta_hereMay 29, 2025
There are more and more kids who aren’t allowed on social media because of its multifarious harms. Don’t forget that 20 years ago, no kids had social media. By all accounts, kids were doing fine back then. Also, OP said that her eldest daughter, at least, has a friend group, so your concern about their social isolation is probably misplaced.
Show threadu/lukmly013 💾 (lemmy.sdf.org)May 29, 2025
Well, realistically, things have changed. Without social media you get quite left out. Easily forgotten even.
Show threadNougat

We've had discussions about this, with and without our kids. Yeah, they need to be in the loop with their friends, and being in that loop can mean being exposed to some bullshit.

That's always been the case, though. The additional risk of modern social media, I think, is that it's always with you. One of the rules we laid down was to plug your phone in outside your room before you go to bed. That was relatively strongly enforced when they were younger, just getting started in that arena. We don't enforce it anymore, but they sometimes still do it anyway.

It's important to be connected, and it's okay to be disconnected when you want to be.

May 29, 2025 at 1:55pmWeb
Show threadZakMay 29, 2025

They’re all essentially adults now, so we don’t enforce it anymore, but they sometimes still do it anyway.

I know adults old enough they didn’t grow up with smartphones who exclude devices from their bedrooms by choice to have a healthier relationship with technology.