“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” -George Santayana

Dear HKMS Families,

This week, we had the sad misfortune to once again prove Mr. Sanayana's astute observation to be true, as some of our students were attacked by a deviant over social media.  Not only did this perpetrator take over one of our student's accounts, and make damaging and illegal posts, he also was able to attain the names, phone numbers, and addresses of other children, some of those not even on Snapchat.  Once into the account he was able to access group texts, which contain phone numbers and even locations.  I am reminded of the saying, our children are only as safe as their friend with the weakest digital rules. Due to the social networks that phones have created, if one of our children is vulnerable to attack, then all of our children are vulnerable.  This situation once again reinforces the fact that your children are not safe on Snapchat or any social media, even group texts.  No matter your monitoring software or their maturity level, online predators are cunning and evil.  This has happened right here in our small community and the impact is heartbreaking and devastating.  We love our students and fear for their safety on social media.  Please seriously consider (or reconsider) removing all social media access so your child is not the next victim.   We can put the toothpaste back in the tube, it just takes commitment. 

When you do take their devices away, your child may be angry with you. This should be expected.  When removing an addiction from a dependent, anger, sadness, and arguing are all normal reactions to withdrawal.  In a study by Seo (et, al. 2020), Changes of Neurotransmitters in Youth with Internet and Smartphone Addiction: A Comparison with Healthy Controls and Changes after Cognitive Behavioral Therapy  the researchers compared teens who use smartphones for more than an hour per day to a control group and also looked at how brain chemistry changed after the subjects underwent cognitive behavioral therapy. The study focused on neurotransmitters, which are chemicals that help send messages in the brain, and how they related to mood and behavior. The researchers discovered that young people with high smartphone or tablet use over had higher levels of a neurotransmitter substance called creatine. This suggests that high creatine levels, likely play a role in smartphone addiction. Understanding these chemical changes could help in developing treatments for screen addiction.  

Addictive substances can be used to "self treat" to avoid hard feelings.  We've all witnessed an upset toddler, at a restaurant, church, theater, or other public place.  We watch, as parents give that child a tablet (or even the parents phone) to restore order to this space. Parents, likely embarrassed by their upset (perhaps screaming) child, gives the frustrated child a screen to calm them down and restore order.  I am sure they think they are doing the right thing, so as to not bother the other patrons.   Gone are the days of a toddler learning how to patiently wait for their food in a restaurant without a device, but also gone are the days of our kids staring out the window on long car rides letting their minds wander and process the day. When they have down time, feel bored, feel stressed, feel overwhelmed, feel frustrated, the phone is "self medicating" with hits of dopamine and creatine.  Toddlers...well, humans of all ages with smartphones, no longer sit with hard feelings learn how to cope and move through them, they escape.   We wonder why kids come to school, whether it be pre-k or 7th grade, and struggle to sit through a 45 minute lesson, or a 6 hour day without that hit of dopamine.   We don't force toddlers to "wait" for their food at a restaurant or their turn at a doctor's office without constant stimulation, how can we expect them to show up to school and sit quietly on the carpet for story time?  Our middle schools often spend every "free moment" outside of school on a device and struggle to focus in class when the pace of learning does not match that of a YouTube short.  The answer is so simple.  The addiction is clear.  The damage is real.  Let's save our kids.  Let's do it together.  

As discussed in last week's newsletter, there is a treatment, outside unstructured play time! What better time of year to get them outside and playing than Memorial Day weekend! The town has many events, including the annual Memorial Day Parade (featuring the HKMS marching band!) and the SPORT HILL RACES – Hill Climb Demonstration & Car Show on Saturday.  It's a great time to start a garden, build a fort, or go for a bike ride.  Any and all of these are so good for our children's cognition and emotional well-being... just have them leave the phones at home. :) 

Wishing you all happy and reverent Memorial Day weekend!  

Sincerely,

Steve Clapp, Ed.D.