iRules: What Every Tech-Healthy Family Needs To Know About Selfies, Sexting, Gaming, and Growing Up

Hofmann, a professional parent coach and mother of five, lends wisdom and common sense galore to an examination of how personal technology plays out in the family dynamic. The iRules represent a familial "contract" that covers behavior on tech devices and online; it emphasizes respect, awareness, and responsibility. Hofmann examines in detail each rule (e.g., "censor yourself") and its implications from the stance of an active, authoritative (as opposed to permissive) parent (e.g., this is my phone, I pay for it, you merely get to use it). From overarching tenets (e.g., children's passwords are known to the parent) to acknowledging that troubling things can—and will—occur (e.g., sexting), the book's coverage is comprehensive, focused, and helpful. Narrator Carrington Macduffie's clear reading is intelligent and even.