{"id":12558,"date":"2019-08-08T11:12:55","date_gmt":"2019-08-08T11:12:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocialelement.agency\/us\/?p=12558"},"modified":"2023-08-21T17:48:43","modified_gmt":"2023-08-21T17:48:43","slug":"kids-social-media-habits-summer-holiday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocialelement.agency\/us\/kids-social-media-habits-summer-holiday","title":{"rendered":"How do kids\u2019 social media habits change during the summer holidays?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A recent poll of UK parents found that 32% were worried that their teens would spend <\/span>too much time<\/span><\/a> on social media during the summer holidays.<\/span><\/h2>\n

According to <\/span>Ofcom<\/span><\/a>, children aged between 5 and 15 spend an average of almost 15 and a half hours a week online. A massive 99% of <\/span>12 to 15 year-olds<\/span><\/a> go online for 20 hours and 30 minutes a week.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, these stats are an average of time spent over 2018. It\u2019s likely that with the expanse of free time over the summer holidays, kids and teens spend far longer online and on social media.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is it an issue if children and teens spend more time on social over the summer holidays?<\/b><\/h3>\n

The Children\u2019s Commissioner, Anne Longfield, raised concerns about the time children spend on the internet in their summer holidays, back in 2017. She <\/span>told the Observer<\/span><\/a> that parents needed to \u201cstep-up\u201d to prevent their children from spending too much time online over the holiday period.<\/span><\/p>\n

But parents don\u2019t have the control over their children\u2019s access to technology that they once did. We\u2019re not just connecting to the internet over desktop computers; we have the internet in our pockets now.<\/span><\/p>\n

Technology has changed, and the norms, habits and behaviours of children, tweens and teens have adapted to this new world.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eighty-seven per cent<\/i><\/b><\/a> of parents would be happy to give their children use of smartphones and tablets from the age of two.<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n

One <\/span>survey of families <\/span><\/a>with children under the age of 14 found that, on average, the children were spending an average of 3 hours and 14 minutes on their devices per day, and spent only 1 hour 43 minutes in conversation with their families.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why are children online and using social media so much?<\/b><\/h3>\n

Being online is the main way that many kids can keep in touch with their friends, especially during the summer break. It\u2019s also how they can keep up with their hobbies and major trends in their friendship groups.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, kids, tweens and teens use <\/span>YouTube and Twitch<\/span><\/a> to watch videos and streams of Fortnite; and now Fortnite is offering fans a way to earn <\/span>in-game loot<\/span><\/a> by watching videos of its world cup tournament.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some teens use apps like TikTok<\/a>, Instagram and Snapchat to create and share their own content, some with the aspiration of becoming influencers, and others to maintain a certain image within their peer group. Others use it to connect with communities they identify with, and <\/span>get help<\/span><\/a> for the problems they are experiencing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The reasons for needing to be on social media varied by age group, according to the report by the <\/span>Children\u2019s Commissioner<\/span><\/a>, which found:\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n