How do your teens use Instagram? Share with us for the chance to win a £300 voucher!

[EmmaMumsnet]

Instagram is now a huge part of our culture and is a staple for many teens (and adults alike!) whether they use it to share moments with their friends, run an account for your family pet, or simply to browse memes. We would like to find out how your teens use Instagram and what accounts you’d recommend for teenagers to follow?

Do your teenagers follow foodie, beauty, or music accounts for inspiration? Are they creative and use Instagram to share their own art or photography? Perhaps they are keen activists and use the platform to spread awareness and gain support for good causes?

Instagram have also pulled together this handy guide which explains all about the safety features you and your teens can use to make sure they are getting the best experience on Instagram.

Everyone who posts below will be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks

MNHQ

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Not there yet. Social media scares me so I'm not looking forward to it all.

I know from friends and family that their teens use it daily for group chats with their friends.

My niece uses it to follow fashion accounts and PM friends. I think she used to post more frequently but the novelty wore off.

My children are now in their twenties. DD uses instagram, but her profile is private

My teenage daughter doesn't use it

Its becoming an obsession, teenagers are more accepting and do not realise that a lot of the photos are fake

I have only just granted access to my DS to Instagram, of course I have set rules and talked to him about how to stay safe online.

I have said to him that any photo he posts, before he clicks the final button he should ask himself ‘would I want to see this on front page of a newspaper’
I also talk to him about kindness of his posts, not to comment on posts he would find hurtful or upsetting if they were about him.
I closely monitor him, he will make mistakes and learn like everything else in life.

My daughter uses it for selfies.

Mainly use it to share photos

At the moment they are not on it, to be honest I hope they never are as it appears to be just another time wasting invention that doesn't serve much purpose.

The problem with Instagram is that unlike Facebook, kids will accept anyone that puts in a follow request. They want as many followers as poss, which inevitably leaves the door open to predatory types.
I don't know the app that we'll tbh but I do believe there is a private messaging resource on it.
These two things couple together are a recipe for grooming.
(although I stand corrected if the message option is not fact)

My kids aren't old enough for Instagram yet but I already know what sort of thing I expect them to use it for and I will expect them to follow me and allow me to follow them so I can keep an eye on what they are posting.

Well I've just had a look and yes it does have a messaging option. Not only that, but it has a 'send a disappearing message option' where the message is deleted automatically after the receiver has opened it.
Are the people that design these apps idiots?
It's almost as if they put these options in there deliberately.
The Facebook tw@t should be dragged up before the senate committee to explain the purpose of these deliberate functions on his app that is open to kids.

I still keep it banned. No arguments so far but I suspect there will be, I need to start looking into sensible use.

Kids use it infrequently as they were brought up on Facebook.

My almost 14 year old uses it to upload drawings she has done. She has 2 accounts, one for her art and one for friends but mainly uses the art one. She follows other young artists, some singers and accounts that post cat photos.

She had a few odd messages in her inbox which she showed me immediately and we blocked the people sending them.

I follow both her accounts so can see what shes posting.

It's a very fake world full of celebrities promoting items when really it's all down to plastic surgery. I will try and get my kids to avoid it when they're older!

I'm lucky that my girls 15 and 19 have always been quite sensible on Instagram. My youngest follows a you tuber who we've been and met a couple of times and my eldest has very few photos on hers, it's colour themed, apparently. My youngest showed me pics that some of the girls in her school had put on though and I was appalled. One was in her bikini and another was posing in her underwear on her bed in a more than provocative pose, I'm sure her parents aren't aware that's online! I follow both of them on Instagram so I know they have nothing to hide!

I do chat to my girls about what they post online, I remind them about sending photos by message too, I'd hate to have grown up in this era and I really hope they continue to be cautious as they grow older.

I remind them too that some companies may look at their online content before employing them, a friend of ours has a son who has never posted a selfie online ever, now he's applying to the RAF and he's so squeaky clean it's ridiculous. :-)

My teens post fun pictures or look at videos on instagram they don’t overly use it up to now we have never had any issues with instagram

My 14 year old DS mainly uses Instagram for updates, information and news about the Xbox games he plays. He also follows school friends on there but very rarely posts anything of his own.

I don't particularly like social media. It creates too many negative body image thoughts and i try to discourage my children from using it.

My son tends to just follow school friends and top gamers and they share gaming scores and hacks more than anything else

No teens, but I thought all the cool kids had stopped using instagram now mum and dad are on it :)

My nine year old daughter loves Instagram and uses it on her phone.

Instagram was Ds(14)'s first social media app when he started secondary school around 11ish, but they all seemed to switch to SnapChat around a year ago and rarely use instagram now. They don't use Facebook either.