Creative ways we’re using video to thank teachers after a year like no other
A few years ago, we asked teachers to name their #1 favorite end-of-year gift and the answer was not "cash and a massage" (ha). In fact, we were heartened to hear again and again a teacher's favorite gift from students is a personal message of thanks from them. After...
These smart tips and apps can help minimize distracted teen driving
We recently got a question in our Out Tech Your Kids group asking about apps that read texts out loud while you drive, which got me started thinking about some tips and apps to help minimize distracted driving for teens. As parents, we need to think bigger than just...
15 new iOS 15 features that parents will get (very!) excited about: FaceTime, ScreenShare, Focus, Health, and more
Each time there's a live streaming Apple Event to announce the new products and updates, we watch diligently to see what's new for parents and families, or which advances and improvements will actually make our lives a little easier, more organized or more fun. The...
The iPhone trick I can’t believe I hadn’t been using before now
I'm not sure about you, but even with an iPhone 12, which is not the biggest iPhone out there (hello, 12 Pro Max friends), I'm a two-handed keyboard user. I generally peck with my right pointer, and add a little left-hand thumb action now and then. And yes, I'm...
This service can make a special digital memory book from photos and videos for Father’s Day. Free!
I love giving the gift of photos, videos, and heartfelt messages for Father's Day (or any special day, really), but they're not exactly the easiest things to give long distance to say, a grandpa. Do you attach a video to an email? Send a sweet text? Print out a photo...
My favorite new iPhone trick to help me fall asleep — and stay asleep
Over the past year, I have been so grateful for the sleep stories on Calm and some of the Apple Music playlists to help me fall asleep. The one issue: I was sometimes waking up in the middle of the night, my AirPods still in my ears...my music still playing. Then, I...
Check out the Lasso closed-loop home recycling bin. One word: Wow.
My thirteen-year-old is keenly focused on our family being more environmentally conscious, which I'm all about. Currently, the recyclables in my kitchen are balancing precariously on a tall black kitchen trash can stuck in the corner of my kitchen. At least, I think...
How can I prevent a Facebook hack? Reader Q&A
This week in our Out Tech Your Kids Facebook group, we were asked how to prevent a Facebook hack, and specifically, if were any security measures to take that might help. And yes, yes there are! Here, a few really simple tips to help prevent a Facebook hack. They can...
The new Apple Watch Pride edition bands are out and they’re gorgeous!
Welcome to May, the month in which top brands lets everyone in the press in on all their new products supporting and celebrating June's Pride Month. Some of these products...well, it feels like pandering TBH, but in the case of Apple, they've been a strong supporter...
One brilliant tech tip for teens, before they start their college search.
This past week, we had a fantastic chat with college coach and essay consultant Betsy Cadel on the Spawned Parenting Podcast. She offered so many incredible tips on making the college search and application process easier and less stressful, but one tech tip really...
A socially-conscious, updated Oregon Trail game for 2021. Yes, please.
I'm part of the micro-generation Xennials, for whom there was no better reward in middle school computer class for finishing your typing drills and DOS coding worksheets early than getting to play a game of Oregon Trail. It's one of the classic 80s video games I also...
7 of the best news podcasts and programs for kids, from preschool to high school
In our Out Tech Your Kids group on Facebook, a parent recently asked for recommendations for great news podcasts for kids. Our readers replied with some really good suggestions, so we wanted to round them up for you...and add a few more we discovered too. These are...
Tech Tips & Tricks to Make Life (Way) Easier
How to add a holiday aesthetic to your iPhone: 3 easy ways
Lately I've been looking for the best way to add a holiday aesthetic to my iPhone, uh.... like all the teenagers in my life do. Of course you can always customize your own iPhone icons yourself, I don't have quite as much time to spend on crafting the perfect holiday...
All the ways kids are using tech to make their holiday gift wishlists: 11 ideas
I'm absolutely fascinated by the way my own kids and step kids use tech to make ongoing gift wish lists -- the iOS Notes app has become the method of choice for them and so far, that's working pretty well for us. Then I saw Jessica Bradley Rushing's hilariously 2021...
The best Black Friday tips to save you money online: Read this before you buy a thing!
For over a decade now (whoa) we've been sharing the best Black Friday tips to help you find the best deals with the least hassle. Now that Black Friday has turned into "Black Friday through Cyber Monday," which turned into an entire month of Black Friday deals, which...
Even More Coolness. Enjoy!
Screen time saved us during the pandemic, so why are we bashing it?
If you do a quick Google of “kids and screen time,” you’ll find a myriad articles telling you how much they’ve had this past year and all the things it is doing to them, as if we haven’t been with our children almost 24 hours a day and know exactly what is going on?...
9 incredible high-tech beauty gifts for Mother’s Day
My favorite Mother's Day gifts usually involve a day to go recharge with some spa treatments, but I'm thinking this is the year to bring the spa home, right? I've been scouring reviews and reading up on the very best high-tech beauty gifts for Mother's Day, because...
How to report spam texts and phishing. Because sorry, Amazon is not giving you $130 in “freebies” out of blue.
Have you noticed lately there's been a huge uptick in text spam? So of course, I want to report it to...someone. Anyone! Turns out it's so much easier than I had expected. Now when I say text spam, I don't mean political candidates you've contributed to (or those who...
The vocabulary app my kids think is a game. Shhhhhh!
Do you have a struggling speller? As a homeschool mom, I know first-hand how hard it can be to try to explain spelling rules to a kid who doesn't quite get it, which is why I had to share the Wordcraft app that my kids have been playing lately. A vocabulary app my...
Here’s where to watch all the 2021 Oscars best picture nominees
In a typical Oscars year, I'm pretty much an expert on the (ahem) animated film category, but when it comes to the best picture or documentary feature film categories, I've maybe seen one or two movies. But 2020 was anything but typical, and one silver lining of the...
3 helpful gardening apps to turn your thumb green, finally.
Who else is thinking about gardening this spring? Along with our own Liz and Kristen who recently hosted the We Time Project and took a food gardening course (yay!), it seems like everyone is ready to put down the sourdough starter and get their hands really dirty....
Google and Headspace team up to help families practice mindfulness and find screen life balance | Sponsored Message
This is a sponsored message on behalf of Google For most parents, balancing screen time has always been a challenge. But over this last year, the struggle became even more real, with three in five parents allowing an increase in time spent on gadgets. And as Google...
Reader Q and A: What is the best stylus for kids who are budding artists?
In our Out Tech Your Kids Facebook group, a parent asked for recommendations on the best stylus for kids who are getting into digital art, and the recommendations from our readers were so helpful that we wanted to share them here. From the top-of-the-line tools to the...
5 important digital parenting questions parents should ask themselves (and know the answers to)
We've always said that raising digital natives, especially since we're not digital natives ourselves, means understanding the role of technology in our family. But when it comes to knowing what questions to ask (and answer), well, that can be the challenging part....
7 must-do tips for spring cleaning your email inbox
We talked last week about tips for spring-cleaning your phone, and this week I'm taking a stab at my email. I'd never let my actual snail mail pile up in a massive overflow of unanswered bills and letters, but for some reason I let my email inbox become an unruly...
9 smart tips for spring cleaning your phone, inside and out.
With spring nearly here, I'm getting antsy to clean up my yard and go through all my closets to get rid of all the junk we've accumulated over the winter. But I'm going to start small, literally, and follow these tips for spring cleaning my phone first. Because, let's...
3 cool ways to try new board games online or play old favorites with friends
We're huge board game geeks in my family. Our stack of strategy games is up to the ceiling. And while we're always up for a new game, they're expensive. So my new solution has been playing board games online before I buy! I get the full experience of gaming (and a...