Growing Up Social

ByLaura Uncategorized

I have been, or can be if you click on a link and make a purchase, compensated via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value for writing this post. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Any which way you look at it, we are surrounded by technology. While it can be a wonderful thing, there is always the risk of it sucking us in and leading to a very lonely existence. Our kids are not immune to the allure of the screen which is something Gary Chapman and Arlene Pellicane tackle head on in the new book, Growing Up Social.

Intervention Image Growing Up Social

About Growing Up Social

Is technology bringing your family closer together or driving you farther apart?
 
Children today are no longer playing hide-and-seek outside or curling up with a good book—instead they’ve been introduced to a world of constant digital entertainment through television, video games, and mobile devices. And while technology has the potential to add value to our lives and families, it can also erode a sense of togetherness and hinder a child’s emotional and social development.
In Growing Up Social, Gary Chapman and Arlene Pellicane will empower you with the necessary tools to make positive changes…starting today. Through stories, wit, and wisdom, you’ll discover how to take back your home from an over dependence on screens. Plus, you’ll learn to teach the five A+ skills that every healthy child needs to master: affection, appreciation, anger management, apology, and attention.
•Equip your child to be relationally rich in a digital world
•Replace mindless screen time with meaningful family time
•Establish simple boundaries that make a huge difference
•Discover what’s working for families that have become screen savvy
•Learn healthy ways to occupy your child while you get things done

Now is the time to equip your child to live with screen time, not for screen time. No phone, tablet, or gaming device can teach your child how to have healthy relationships—only you can.

Gary Chapman- author, speaker, and counselor—has a passion for people and for helping them form lasting relationships. He is the bestselling author of The 5 Love Languages series and the director of Marriage and Family Life Consultants, Inc. Gary travels the world presenting seminars, and his radio programs air on more than 400 stations. For more information, visit 5lovelanguages.com.
Arlene Pellicane– is a speaker and author of 31 Days to Becoming a Happy Wife and 31 Days to a Happy Husband. She has been featured on The Today Show, The 700 Club, and Family Life Today and formerly served as the associate producer for Turning Point Television with Dr. David Jeremiah. Arlene lives in Southern California with her husband, James, and their three children. Find out more at ArlenePellicane.com.

My Thoughts on Growing Up Social

This is another one of those books which has come into my life and made me just a tad uncomfortable.  After all, I spend more than my fair share of each day on the computer between work as a blogger and homeschooling the boys.  I even (gasp!) spend time keeping in touch with family and friends who are scattered around the globe.  Sadly, there are days when I spend more time in front of a screen than away from them.

Our kids imitate what they see.  So is it any great surprise that my boys all want their fair share (or more than fair) of screen time?  For the older boys, it is a mixture of school work, social media, and gaming.  My younger boys love to play games (both educational and not) as well as watch different shows on our Roku or off DVD.
I suppose I should be glad that we cut cable out of our lives earlier this year.  The TV can be a huge time sucker and the content of commercials even during the daytime hours can occasionally give you a case of whiplash when you do a double take.

Even though I try to minimize the negative influences of technology, I have to admit that I’ve allowed them far more screen time than I should.  The TV or a tablet can serve as a wonderful ‘babysitter’ when I need to get work done. But, I am finding that it also leads to some pretty awful attitudes at times especially when I call time’s up and they have to disconnect.

I love how the authors walk you through different skills needed and how they relate to screen time.  The A+ Skills are affection, appreciation, anger management, apology and attention.  After presenting those skills, you are then lead through chapters that look at screen time in relationship to shyness, the brain, the love languages, security, parental authority, the single parent, and you (the reader.)

Sadly, I can see one son being more and more withdrawn from others and complaining that he just doesn’t know how to make friends. Another has been known to go into a rage when he doesn’t instantly get what he desires. While I can not blame it all on screen time, I can see that it is tied together. And, if you live in a virtual world, how can you not eventually suffer even more loneliness than if you never got sucked into that world in the first place.  The instant gratification of a like on Facebook or a endorphin rush while playing a video game is fleeting.  

GUS-Green-ready

As uncomfortable as reading this title has made me, the pages of Growing Up Social also fill me with hope.  I have hope that I can make changes from this moment forward which limits screen time for the boys as well as coming up with alternatives to pass the time.

Trailer for Growing Up Social

One lucky blog reader can win their own copy of this title.  Visit the Growing Up Social giveaway page by December 1,2014 to enter.

Do you and your family struggle with screen time?

What is one way that you are helping the kids to learn how to build relationships away from social media?

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