Patrick Henry Parents Talk Pinterest And More

Parents got some help navigating the social media maze on Thursday night in Sioux Falls. Patrick Henry Middle School teachers held a special social media session during parent-teacher conferences to talk about the technology trends.

“I think it’s just something we should be aware of and talk to them about,” teacher Dan Kirsch said. “It’s just constantly changing; the information and the ability access information.”

The teachers touched on trends they see in the halls each day, saying which age groups use which applications, and how often.

“It’s just a nice capture of what they are and how kids use it. So I’m going to go over them very, very briefly,” teacher Chelsea Schjodt said.

Sherri Schneider talked about her successes and failures as a parent attempting to monitor accounts. With two teens and a tween, Schneider has more experience that most parents attending the session.

“In some instances they are more informed than I am. And so I feel like I am trying to catch up,” Schneider said.

Presenters touched on secret pinterest boards and the importance of facebook privacy settings, along with Instagram, SnapChat and Twitter’s tendencies to foster more sinister online trends like cyber bullying.

“And they post 30 to 50 posts a day and literally it's every little, tiny thing,” Schjodt said. “And they can tweet that picture of that kid and have kind of a mean has tag.”

“What type of digital footprint do you want your child to leave behind when they go on a social networking site?” Kirsch asked.

Parents like Schneider say it’s important to have boundaries and be willing to adjust game plans to keep up with the technology.

“It's okay to set limits. And I think that the foundation you build from the ground impacts the way you set limits going forward,” Schneider said.

Teachers also shared useful online resources for parents trying to get a grip on the trends.