Social Media is not going away. It impacts the lives of our students in ways that we can’t even imagine, both positively and negatively. The best thing we can do is promote healthy discussions and brainstorm strategies to help with some of the social media pitfalls.

• Co-create a pros and cons list for social media use.

• Discuss the pitfalls and strategies to counteract these downsides.

• Create a list of ways to limit and use social media safely and positively.

Having a respectful debate about the pros and cons of social media is a good way to get kids critically thinking about their own social media use.

Some possible topics:

Should social media be banned from teenagers?

Should phones be allowed at school?

Should teens have a limited time allowance on social media that activates automatically?

Do you feel social media increases the rates of depression and anxiety in students?

Does social media lead people to create images or narratives about their lives that don’t match reality?

Insta life or Insta lie?

The videos below are good discussion starters.