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Sponsor: Visit K12.com/LISTEN or call (855)-628-9529 for more information.When your kids were little, you taught them to cross the road by holding their hands. Once they grow up their hands are occupied with smartphones and if they’re not careful, they could walk into traffic.
State and local governments all over the world are trying to deal with the threat of “smombies” (smartphone zombies) and today on The Wired Homeschool I’ll discuss some of the proposed solutions and provide tips for parents of teens who can’t take their eyes off of a smartphone.
Articles mentioned in podcast
- New Jersey bill could put pedestrians in jail for texting while crossing the street (Washington Post)
- ‘Distracted’ Austrians get road-crossing workshops (BBC News)
- City installs floor traffic lights for smartphone addicts (The Local de)
4 Tips for Staying Safe While Walking and Texting
- Don’t do it! Teach your kids to wait until they arrive at their destination before texting. Encourage them to enjoy the journey!
- If you must text, stop and move to the side. It’s better to get out of the way of other pedestrians and not risk walking into traffic.
- Go voice. Call the person you’re texting. By calling the person, at least your eyes are up and your head is not down. You’re still distracted but it’s easier to notice danger if you’re not hunched over your phone.
- Use a voice-to-text app. Most smartphones have a built-in voice-to-text feature. Dictating your messages is better than looking at your screen while walking.
Do you have any tips? Have you had any bad experiences while texting and walking? Let me know in the comments below!
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Music for the podcast by Kevin Macleod.