EXPERTS’ ADVICE ON CHILDREN’S SCREEN TIME

Devorah Heitner, founder of the website Raising Digital Natives, gives parents a different perspective on children around technology in her new book, “Screenwise: Helping Kids Thrive (and Survive) in Their Digital World” ($19.95, Routledge).

Instead of installing monitoring software like My Mobile Watchdog and Net Nanny, she wants parents to mentor their children about appropriate use of all the screens they use. “The more walls we build, the more we are just creating little hackers who are just trying to get around the fence,” she says.

Heitner, who lives in Chicago, taught media studies, especially kids and media and culture, at the college level before starting Raising Digital Natives. She will be in Austin next week talking to parents at Doss and Highland Park elementaries. Her talks are open