This blog post is sponsored by Messenger Kids
Whether we care to admit it or not, our children are part of the digital age. It’s exciting in one breath and terrifying in the next! They have incredible power at their fingertips. Our job as parents is to help them learn to navigate it safely.
Enter Messenger Kids, a free messaging and video chat app.
It’s like Facebook Messenger, but designed specifically for kids and my boys are already obsessed! It gives them the opportunity to feel like big kids, but allows me to have insight on how they’re using the app. Some of their friends already have cell phones, but at this point, we do not feel like our kids need that much responsibility or pressure quite yet. But we do think they are old enough to visit with close friends and loved ones in a digital environment where parents have more control.
More Control
- Control our children’s contact list
- Check in on our child’s messaging threads
- Manage our kiddos’ screen time through “Sleep Mode”
- Rest easy, knowing all stickers, GIFs, and filters are kid-appropriate
Kids Messenger is free, has no advertisements and no in-app purchases.
Fun Features for Kids
Messenger Kids is just plain fun! It gives our children the freedom to connect, learn and explore with friends and family on their kid-friendly tablets in a kid-friendly space.
The filters and GIFs prompt something really cool: Laughter! Heaps and bunches of laughter! And mama, if you’re anything like me, that’s your favorite sound in the world.
Messenger Kids allows kids to connect with close friends and family from their tablet or smartphone. Parents can add friends and family to chat with their child, which gives them more control over the contact list. Group or one-on-one video calls with loved ones are more fun with interactive masks, reactions and sound effects.
Before adding the app on our iPad’s we sat down with our boys and chatted through the Messenger Kids Pledge, which is: Be Kind. Be Respectful. Be Safe. Have Fun.
Connect Over the Holidays with Messenger Kids
And we are so excited about the recent launch of Holiday with Messenger Kids where kiddos can share special artwork and effects for the holidays, made just for Messenger Kids. Kids can explore different masks, filters and sticker experiences in the Messenger Kids camera, including rocking out as the dancing Santa; learning about Hanukkah using the menorah filter; adding the celebratory Kwanzaa frame to a photo; or ringing in the new year with the 2020 fireworks and confetti filter. New masks and filters will roll out every couple of days as we approach the holidays, so kids can check back in and find new experiences to try throughout the holidays!
Five Minutes to Set It Up
The app is free and available through Apple, Amazon Fire Tablet, and Android app stores.
- Download the Messenger Kids app to your child’s phone or tablet.
- Authenticate your child’s device, using your Facebook login (this will NOT create a Facebook account for your child)
- Create an account for your child by adding his or her name.
- Parental controls are available in the Parent Dashboard in your main Facebook app. It is here that you can add contacts and use the Sleep Mode to set “off times.
Learn More Here
- Messenger Kids: https://messengerkids.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/messengerkids
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/messenger_kids
- Messenger Kids Newsroom: https://messengernews.fb.com/resources/messenger-kids/
