To not understand giving primary age kids TikTok?

I agree with the poster who mentioned different generations of parents and gen zs growing up with internet so knowing the dangers.
I'm on the younger spectrum of parenthood and definitely a lot stricter about this tech stuff then a lot of older parents

I think another thing that makes it worse is divorced/separated families where the parents try to compete with each other by buying the latest tech. Or one parent is a lot more lax then the other etc causing arguments like "well mum/dad let's me do it at their house"

It's neglectful parenting, there's no other way to put it. Allowing primary age children access to the kind of material available on social media is incredibly damaging.

Have a look at the Smartphone free childhood campaign and Jonathan Haidt's book for strategies to help with decisions around this. I think getting in touch with like minded parents in your school or friendship group who are all willing to say no to TikTok etc can help to diffuse the 'But everyone else has it!' argument.

Fwiw I'm not meaning to pick on any individual .

So you are using sm as a learning tool @mollie7 ? I mean of course sm is about the likes and instant gratification of somebody liking or hearting a video even if it's a "private" account children are getting that instant boost of Evie from her class liking the video but what if Evie doesn't like it what then ?

I use all social media platforms because my children want to use them. They have to add me as their friend, have a private profile and use it in the same room as me so we can learn together. My children edit and produce their own videos and have learned complex digital processes from doing this. They don't post very often most of the posts are kept private. It's not about the likes or the bullying it's about learning together. It's never going away so either embrace it or it will catch you out.

Lots of young kids are unfortunate and have morons for parents.

The same shit parents every time isn't it

It's a part of parenting I find so hard to navigate. Mine (7 and 9) don't have access to any social media. They play Minecraft, Toca and various apps on their Fires. But we go round to friends houses and there's a 3 yr old sitting on Tik Tok in the corner with a dummy in his mouth and a 9 yr old playing Fortnite which he's played since he was 4. DD7 was at a party last week where the girl got a phone for her birthday. This seems to be becoming standard although we do have a few like-minded friends. Kids are used to my rhetoric about it all and hopefully they'll thank me when they're older.

Unpopular opinion - Braindead parents who couldn’t give a toss about their children’s mental health as long as they’re quiet and out of their way? It’s criminal in my mind because it’s so unhealthy and dangerous.

Revolutionary!

It's crazy in my opinion. And yet the same parents act like I've given my kids class a drugs when I let them play in our local park, can see it from our house during daylight hours or that I let my y6 dd walk home from school (5 min walk), in preparation for having to catch the bus to secondary school in less than 6 months now.

My 10 yo can do all the TikTok she wants.
On my phone or her dad's. Next to me or her dad - not on her own.

I understand that she wants to explore too because a large number of the pupils in school /class on TikTok. We do it together.

Be wary when kids say "but everyone is on it/using it" because typically they aren't, the kids are using it to push boundaries and see where you'll give in. For some reason as a collective all adults have given in on this issue to varying degrees.

I don’t understand it either, OP. My DD is in year 4 and claims that most people in her class are on TikTok. These are 8 and 9 year olds, so they have no business being on there. It’s frustrating as those of us who hold out end up being the bad guys. Wish the government would just ban it as the US govt seems to be doing!

Really? That’s very unusual.

I prefer TikTok to YouTube and Snapchat. There are so many ways to ensure your children can access it and stay safe. I don’t think it’s about parents who won’t say no, it’s about parents who don’t take steps to ensure it’s appropriate and safe.

Children love doing the dances, my dd and friends edited a brilliant video of them at a theme park recently.

I’ve never had an issue. But I don’t just say no because I’m scared of sm for my child but I also don’t say yes for an easy life either.

I remember a talk we had in school it was the start of SM and messanger services, the teacher who was running the talk said you wouldn't let your child walk in the middle of the road unsupervised so why would you let them loose on the Internet. I always stuck with that, yes the kids moaned and sometimes had secret accounts bur their safety was always my main concern.

Newusernametime12
I don't even think it's just gen-Z. I know a lot of parents with younger children who are discussing delaying smart phone or individual tablet access. The parents range from early 20s to early 40s.

I've found once people start talking about it and they know their children will have friends who aren't sitting on Snapchat and group chats, parents are much more confident to stick to their guns.

Pipecleanerrevival Your experience matches mine and what I've heard from work. A lot of parents won't let their children walk to the corner shop with a friend because of stranger danger, but they've got access to the world in their pocket.

@Pipecleanerrevival that's horrific !

I have seen videos on ways to self harm, references to suicide, bullying, tips for anorexics to lose weight, men wanking, just by scrolling the “for you” on Tiktok. I never searched for any of these things. If I can see it, so can your 11 year old. YANBU

Tbf my dc are proper adults so I'm probably out of touch, primary school is really young to be flicking through phones and snapchattiing and making tik tok videos.

You’re totally right. I was quite shocked my god-daughter had it in year 4-5 ish, I absolutely wouldn’t have let my kids be on it in primary school. I’ve recently started using it a bit and I was flicking through the live’s (where the shops are etc) and I came across some stuff I definitely wouldn’t want a child seeing. Parents cannot check everything they come across on there. Some parents don’t care and then it causes problems for other kids who don’t understand why they can’t use it. Stick to your guns

What can a school do about it? I suppose a letter now and then discouraging it and reminding of age limits, but ultimately it's parental choice.

Well, no-one here is going to admit to allowing it.

After asking for it for a while, my kids realised I was never going to say yes. Now they can see the harm for themselves, they are glad they are not hooked.