'Childhood 2.0' viewing educates parents on internet safety

SARANAC | In 2020, 15 through 24-year-olds had a suicide rate of 14.24 according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. "Childhood 2.0", a documentary by Jamin Winans, Robert Muratore, and Kiowa Winans, explores the shifting dynamics of mental versus physical danger. More specifically, this documentary looks at the effects that social media and the internet have on children's mental well-being. It also gives parents an inner look at what their children may be exposed to whilst online, an activity that they may have once thought as harmless. The documentary features real parents, their children, and leading industry experts in child safety and development to take a dive into real issues kids are facing today such as cyberbullying, online predators, suicidal ideation, and more. It is an eye-opening film that shows an honest look into what children are experiencing online, whilst discussing topics parents may find hard to talk about with their kids. On March 16, Saranac Middle School invited parents to watch this documentary and participate in a question and answer session held after the viewing. Katey McPherson, an expert from Bark, a parental control app that monitors apps for cyberbullying and more; Jennifer Kanaly, a local psychiatric nurse practitioner; and James D'Ambro, a school liaison for the New York State Police, made up the panel. About 50 parents turned up to watch this informational documentary, and raved about it afterward, Principal Katie Francisco of the Saranac Middle School told Sun Community News. The film first came onto the radar of Saranac Middle School when guidance counselors Amanda Carter and Katie Remillard saw it in a newsletter. After viewing the film, the staff knew this was something they needed to share with the community. "We viewed it first and knew we needed to get the information in as many families' hands as possible so we scheduled this forum as soon as we had the availability and Covid guidelines allowed," explained Francisco. Francisco said, "This got on our radar because we are passionate about educating and helping families navigate the perils of the new virtual world we are living in. In today's world, kids are quickly becoming the "experts" and parents and guardians are in need of as much education, guidance and support as possible so that they can guide their children in making good decisions." Saranac Middle School did make sure to warn parents that the content is hard to watch and should be viewed without children. A similar message plays before the film starts, as the film has yet to be rated. "Childhood 2.0 "is available for viewing online for free at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He3IJJhFy-I and currently has more than three million views. It's a film that any parent who truly wants to better understand the mental toll the internet can take on children, and what dangers their kids could be exposed to should watch.

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'Childhood 2.0' viewing educates parents on internet safety

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