Sexting at Young Ages

Parenting in today’s world requires that some of the most uncomfortable conversations we anticipate having with our kids are now necessary to have at younger and younger ages. One of those conversations needed today centers on kids sending nude photos to one another through their smartphones. According to one survey that’s actually a bit dated, sixty-six percent of teens and young adults have received a sexually explicit image, and forty-one percent have sent one. Here at CPYU, we’ve heard stories of smartphone-toting kids as young as elementary-age requesting or sending nudes. Social media and parenting expert Mandy Majors offers these three suggestions to parents. First, use teachable moments to plant seeds with your young children. You can teach them that taking pictures of people without their clothes on is wrong. Second, create family screentime guidelines, including no phones in bedrooms or bathrooms. And finally, teach your kids to protect their hearts and minds.