Social Media Savvy: Facts and Figures About Selfies, Smartphones and Standing Out by Elizabeth Raum

Hey there! I’m Cath Hak from Sex Ed Rescue, where we dive into all things related to sex education. Today, I want to talk about a book that’s perfect for teens, especially when it comes to navigating social media and phones.

Now, this book caught my eye a while back, but it was a bit pricey at around 40 to 45 Australian dollars. I mean, most books are usually between 15 to 25 bucks, right? So, I decided to wait and see if my local library could get it for me. And guess what? They’re amazing! They actually ordered it in for me.

This book is part of the Girlology series, which covers various topics like body consciousness, fashion, and relationships. I’m definitely going to check if my library has the other books in the series too. Trust me, it’s a great little book.

When it arrived, I handed it over to my twelve-year-old daughter, hoping she’d give it a chance. Usually, she’s not too keen on these things and rolls her eyes at me. But this time, she actually took a look at it. And let me tell you, it was a bit of a distraction for me because she kept coming up to me, saying, Hey, Mom, did you know this? Did you know that? It’s one of those books, you know? It’s not like a storybook; it’s more like a magazine, packed with facts.

The book covers a wide range of topics, like how much we use social media, the percentage of internet usage worldwide, and even the differences between males and females in terms of internet and social media usage. My daughter found it fascinating to see the stats and compare them. It really opened her eyes to the reality of how much time people spend on social media.

I used to tell her that some kids spend three or four hours a day on their phones, but seeing it in a book made it more real for her. It also delves into things like texting habits and social media usage by age groups. My daughter was particularly interested in how much higher the usage is for younger people.

Now, the book doesn’t get into the icky stuff like pornography, but it does provide a lot of facts and information. The idea behind it is to get kids thinking about how they use social media so they can use it more responsibly. My daughter found this aspect really interesting too.

Speaking of social media, my daughter is all about Instagram. I’m actually glad that she started using it at twelve, even though some people say not to introduce social media at such a young age. For me, it’s been great because she’s comfortable showing me what she’s doing. We can have conversations about things like bad language, context, and how it reflects on a person. It’s a way for us to connect and discuss these topics while she still values my input.

Of course, I know things will change as she goes through puberty and hits those terrible teens. But for now, we can talk about things like porn and bullying. This book covers a lot of ground, from videos uploaded on YouTube to memes and how much people make and spend on social media. It even has a section on protecting your privacy and staying safe online.

At the back of the book, it mentions that a lot of kids are sharing personal information like their school names, town, email addresses, and even phone numbers on social media. It also discusses the potential dangers. So, it does touch on those important aspects too.

Overall, I think this book is pretty good because it presents facts in a concrete way. It’s not a step-by-step guide on how to be safe online, but it definitely raises awareness. Will it single-handedly change my daughter’s behavior? Probably not. But it does make her more mindful, and it gives us more opportunities to have ongoing conversations about staying safe online.

Remember, it’s not just one conversation that matters. It’s about having many conversations and using various tools, like this book, to engage with your kids. So, if you’re looking for a resource to kickstart those discussions, I’d definitely recommend giving this book a go.

I hope this review helps you out!