Tips from a Wonder Mom for Raising Digital Natives with Healthy Online Habits

At Hello Wonder, one of our top goals is to foster positive online habits for the kiddos of the world - including our own! In today’s digital age, helping our children navigate technology presents what can seem like insurmountable  challenges.

So, how do we ensure that our children have healthy relationships with the internet? We use active guidance with our digital tools to help create boundaries and establish healthy online habits. I’m Desiree, a Wonder parent, and I want to share my top recommendations for navigating the digital world with confidence and ease. Join me as we explore effective strategies for digital parenting...

Dig into your devices

It's crucial for parents to enable parental controls on all devices accessible to children. While guidelines and boundaries may vary among families, understanding and implementing these controls is essential for safeguarding children from inappropriate content. Each device and application offers different capabilities, so it's vital to explore and utilize these features effectively.

Review and monitor

Parents should actively monitor and approve every app their children use. This begins with reviewing and password-protecting app store access to prevent unauthorized downloads. Setting passwords prompts discussions about the apps they want to use, the level of appropriateness, and time limits.  The most important part is proactively initiating healthy conversations about technology usage from an early age.

Hello Wonder provides a kid-safe internet environment with built-in parental controls aligned with your family's values, ensuring your child's online experiences reflect your aspirations for them.

Beat the screen time management blues

With plenty of apps designed just for kids entertainment, such as Amazon Kids+, it's easy for kids to spend excessive time in front of screens without boundaries. The average child is in front of a screen anywhere from 5 to 8 hours a day, with less than an hour a day outside. Excessive screen time can disrupt sleep patterns, impact coping skills, and shorten attention spans.

Tools like screen time reports on devices can help parents track and manage their child's online activity retrospectively, but just limiting internet access doesn’t promote healthy engagement. It’s more about creating patterns that work for individual families. Hello Wonder provides real-time reminders for breaks, promoting a balanced approach to screen time. It also allows parents to pause Wonder remotely from their phone - with Wonder saying it’s time for a break, rather than the parent.. This keeps parents from being the “screen time police” and more naturally regulates screen time.

Get up and get going!

Balancing screen time with physical activity is vital for children's health and well-being. Encouraging regular exercise not only boosts mood and improves sleep quality, but also prevents long-term health issues associated with sedentary lifestyles, such as heart disease and depression. Getting kids away from screens and up and about will keep their minds active and curious!

There are also apps out there that use their screens to get kids up and about - Pokemon Go, Geocaching, and Starwalk are a few examples. At Wonder, we make sure kids are served content that encourages them to enjoy activities away from screens with educational content on health, encouraging children to learn through movement and curiosity.

It’s all about the conversation

By utilizing these digital tools and creating open dialogues about technology use, parents can empower their children to navigate the digital world responsibly while prioritizing their physical and mental well-being. Try Hello Wonder, the kids AI driven digital companion, and bring your family together through responsible technology.