Monitoring Children’s Social-Media Use

For adults and children, interacting with some form of social media has become a daily part of life. Therefore, parents need to stay well informed in order to ensure online safety for their children as they use social media and technology. Understanding how technology works, implementing safety features, and staying informed about and even getting ahead of dangerous online trends and challenges are strategies parents can use to help them monitor their children’s technology usage and keep their children safe. In addition, parents and caregivers can set up in-app settings, utilize external parental control apps, apply social-listening skills, and engage in open communication with their children.

Set up In-App Settings

Each social-media platform includes specific features for parents and caregivers to use as they navigate settings and set up parental controls. The Glossary of Digital Media Platforms, developed by the American Association of Pediatrics (2024), is a resource parents and caregivers can use to better understand the various social-media platforms children and teenagers may want to visit and utilize. Within each resource linked below, parents and caregivers can find information about privacy settings, methods to control messaging and friend selections, and how to set up screen-time management.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has created a resource parents and caregivers can use to learn more about common terms used in social media—Definitions of Common Digital Media Terms.

Utilize External Parental Control Apps

Parents and caregivers can use parental control apps to help them ensure their children interact with social-media applications in a safe way (CNN, 2024). Many of these parental control apps are paid services that adults can put on the devices their child uses. Parents can, then, track information, such as screen-time usage; use website and app filters to block access to specific websites and applications on a device; enact safe search features on sites like YouTube; track calls and SMS (texting); and stop certain language and inappropriate or unwanted conversation topics from being searched and received. Check out some of the following parental control app websites to see if any of these external parental control trackers might work for you and your family.

Apply Social Listening

Understanding what online trends and challenges are occurring across social-media platforms (e.g., ALS ice bucket challenge, the cinnamon challenge, the Kia challenge) can help parents prepare to have conversations with their children and help prevent children from engaging in harmful behaviors. Parents can identify current social-media trends and find out more about specific trends by searching hashtags and information trending on social-media sites (e.g., Twitter, TikTok).

Have Open Communication

Openly communicate with your child so you and your child understand why and how to stay safe in online spaces. Although understanding and setting up safety measures and parental controls can help prevent inappropriate media from getting through to your child’s account, making sure your child understands why you are setting boundaries and expectations is also vital. You may want to visit and use the resources, listed below, to help you learn new skills and strategies for communicating with your child.

Communicating with Adolescents and Teens (mini booster module)
Setting Boundaries and Expectations (mini booster module)

Learn how you and your child can create a family media plan for your family by using the American Academy of Pediatrics Family Media Plan, which can be completed online and downloaded.