Home | Digital Age

11- to 14-year olds spend an average of 9 hours each day on screens.

--Center for Disease Control

50% of teens admit to being addicted to their smartphones.

--Common Sense Media

94% of kids will see porn

by the time they're 14.

--Fight the New Drug, 2020

THERE HAS TO BE A BETTER WAY

We live in a tech-driven world. It’s woven into the fabric of every aspect of our lives. 60% of 10- and 11-year-olds have smartphones. (Fight the New Drug) Teens are self-admitting addiction to their phones. (Common Sense Media) Technology is an amazing tool. At the same time, it can be one of the most dangerous tools we use, and yet, every day parents are handing their kids smartphones (and giving them access to other tech) without any safeguards or training. Parents shouldn’t fear technology; we simply need to know what our kids are up against and how to respond.

This generation is growing up in a world like none other. They can access the internet from a variety of devices at any time. Long gone are the days of dial-up-internet where you have to wait for your mom to get off the phone so you can play a game online. Long gone are the days of needing to go to the library to look up things that you are too nervous to ask your parents about. Long gone are the days of not talking to strangers online and not getting in a stranger’s car. (Hello, Uber!)

problem

— A SMARTPHONE IS NOT A RITE OF PASSAGE FOR OUR KIDS. IT'S A PORTAL TO THE WORLD, A WORLD WE NEED TO PREPARE THEM FOR.

How will she learn to use tech with wisdom if you don't teach her?

We can’t parent like the generations before us did because our kids live in a world that only a few dared to dream was possible. We all desperately need tools to help navigate this uncharted tech jungle that our kids are growing up in. We need to understand how to not just PROTECT them, but PREPARE them so when we PROPEL them out into the world on their own, they don’t just survive, but thrive!

Adam and Angela Shaw have a 2.5hr event where they:

Discussed what we are facing as parents raising kids in this digital age,
Gave practical tools for navigating this tech world, and
Shared, as parents--just like you--what they are learning about how to protect, prepare, and propel their kids.

Contact the Shaw's HERE if you'd like for them to come to your next parenting event!

TECHNOLOGY ISN'T AN AWFUL THING; WE JUST NEEED TO TEACH OUR KIDS HOW TO USE IT THE RIGHT WAY.

MEET ADAM & ANGELA SHAW

Hello! We are Adam and Angela Shaw. We’ve been married for 19 years, and we have three kids (ages 16, 13, and 11). As we watched all of the tech devices begin to enter our home and as our kids got older, we realized that we had to figure out a way to help our kids navigate this tech world. We realized that our generation is facing a world that no generation before has faced. We vividly remember when our parents got their first cell phones. When we first started dating, we used AOL Instant Messenger to chat, not texting. The catalog at the library was our Siri or Alexa. We saw how under-prepared we were to parent in a digital age, so we dove head-first into figuring out how to protect our kids and prepare them to use tech with wisdom, so we could propel them out into the world one day and know they won’t get eaten alive! We don’t have it all figured out. But we want to invite YOU--parents just like us--on our journey.

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A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE SHAWS: Adam is a physical therapist and works in an acute care hospital setting. Angela works part-time for a network of churches in communications and conference planning. When they aren’t working or helping their kids with homework, Adam and Angela also serve at their church in a variety of leadership capacities from worship leading, to helping with students and overseeing the tech team. When they have a moment to sit down, they enjoy hanging out at the beach or relaxing with a good TV show. Follow Angela @AngelaHShaw

the shaw's

stats

1 IN 3 TEENS

wake up to check their phone for something other than the time at least once a night. (Common Sense Media, 2019)

11 YEARS OLD

is the average age that most kids are exposed to porn. Some studies say it happens even younger. (Fight the New Drug)

82% of TEENS

experience bullying as a bully, victim, or witness--most of this happening or starting online. (Bark's Annual Report, 2020)

75% of TEENS' WAKING HOURS

are spent on screens, a statistic that has increased due to COVID. (The Harris Poll)

87% of TEENS

encounter nudity or content of sexual nature online. (Bark's Annual Report, 2020)

78% of TEENS

admit to checking their devices hourly or more often. 48% of parents admit to doing the same. (Common Sense Media)

10% of 12- to 13-YEAR OLDS

fear they may have a compulsion to pornography. These 7th graders are saying they are already watching porn to the point where they are concerned and don't feel like they can stop. (NSPCC ChildLine study)