Social Media Training for…Kindergartners?
Togetherville is a new online social network aimed at kids aged 6 to 10. The basic premise is that kids, with their parents’ help, can set up their own online neighborhood with friends and relatives and develop “a whole new set of skills to become responsible digital citizens.” Kids can post their own status from a pre-approved list created by the makers of Togetherville, buy digital gifts for their friends at the kid-friendly price of 25-50 cents, and use various online apps to create art, play games, watch videos, and send messages to their friends. Mom and dad can see everything that happens, and as members of their child’s community even have the dubious pleasure of tapping into the Hanna Montana and Justin Beiber videos, movie clips and other sponsored video content found throughout the site.
It was the buzz in the agency last week, as various people weighed in on its value to parents, kids and marketers (eek!). The big question was this: Do kids really need a training ground for social networking?
Is learning how to update your status as important as learning how to ride a bike? Or is it really about teaching kids that the same actions and etiquette required in real social interactions take place via technology too — something that may be critical to both their personal and future professional lives?
The internal reaction was divided and passionate. Those of us with children on the younger end of the spectrum felt that those critical years are best spent learning how to navigate real-world relationships and learning to have confidence in that setting – from working as part of a team to learning how to share of themselves or even of their toys. It’s those skills that will best serve them in life and set them up for success in society, families and future workplaces. Others, usually with tweens versus the core target of 6-10 year olds, felt like Togetherville can help establish the rules of the road for what will be their inevitable leap into the social networking world — and allow mom and dad to be a part of it.
So what do YOU think?
Related Articles:
- Togetherville: A social network for kids (Wired)
- A social network for tots and ‘tweens (Marketplace)
