Your Mind Matters: Social Media and You by Honor Head

Book Review

A short overview of this book

Your Mind Matters: Social Media and You by Honor Head is a great book for parents who want to talk to tweens and early teens about using social media. It’s perfect for reading together with your child BEFORE they start using social media. It’ll also give parents ideas about the different conversations to have with their child.

There are two main faults with the book.

Firstly, it doesn’t talk about sexting or sending nude photos. This is an important conversation that parents need to have with younger kids. Secondly, it doesn’t talk about images that may be upsetting eg porn, cruelty to animals and violence. So you will need to mention these things yourself.

You can learn more on this page, about how to talk to kids about sex education

Ideal Age

Ideal for children aged 8 to 13 years.

Buy this book

✅ Buy a copy of Your Mind Matters: Social Media and You by Honor Head from Amazon.

Video Transcription

A transcription in case you are more of a reader than a listener

Hey there! I’m Cath Hak, and welcome to Sex Ed Rescue. On my website and YouTube channel, I help parents have those important conversations about sex with their kids. Today, I want to talk about a book that focuses on social media and its impact on young minds.

This book, published in 2019, is packed with lots of information and covers various topics. It’s a factual book with an index at the back, making it easy to navigate. However, there are a couple of things I wish it included. It doesn’t talk about sexting or pornography, which are important topics for kids to understand. Social media isn’t just about porn; it can expose them to other disturbing content too, like violence or animal cruelty. It’s crucial for them to know how to handle these situations. Additionally, the book doesn’t emphasize the importance of being mindful about what they share online. It touches on self-esteem, but it would have been great to see these issues addressed as well, especially considering it was published in 2019.

I’ve noticed that some books shy away from discussing the tricky topics, maybe due to politics or the fear of not selling enough copies. But don’t worry, you can still use this book as a starting point for those conversations. Just add in the extra bits yourself.

The book highlights the positive aspects of social media, but it also talks about the impact it can have on our brains. It includes facts and references to research, which is great. It mentions the fear of missing out and the pressure to constantly be connected, but it’s also important to address the feelings of exclusion that can arise from social media interactions. We want our kids to understand empathy and kindness.

When it comes to deciding whether your child should be on social media, it can be a tough call. I remember facing that dilemma when my daughter was eleven. Ultimately, we decided to let her join Instagram because she was still open to talking about it with us. We had ongoing conversations about what she saw and experienced online. Even now, at fourteen, we still have those talks. Of course, she may not share everything she encounters, but she knows she can come to us if she needs to.

We’ve discussed the concept of selfies and why people take them. It’s important to have these conversations early on, so our kids have a solid foundation to rely on when they’re older. We want them to have a healthy self-esteem and not feel pressured to keep up with unrealistic standards they see online. The book also touches on cyberbullying, the importance of sleep, and the need for tech breaks. It even provides resources for kids who need help dealing with online bullying.

Remember, it’s crucial to create boundaries, like our family rule of no devices in the bedrooms. It’s working for now, but we know things may change as our kids grow older. The book also talks about the importance of sharing carefully and provides a glossary to help kids understand different terms.

So, overall, this book is a great resource for twins and teens to start conversations about social media. While it may not cover everything, it’s a good starting point. And hey, don’t worry if the book doesn’t address certain topics. You can always fill in the gaps and have those important discussions with your kids. Cheers!

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