When we were kids, to sneak music, we had to hide CDs under the mattress. Our parents could keep tabs on what we listened to by nosing through our rooms or listening to what was coming out of our stereos. Today, kids access music on their phones, which makes it close to impossible for moms to keep tabs on lyrics and content. In this episode, Megan, Susan, Chloe, and Abby talk about how to help your kids decide for themselves what music is worthwhile.
It starts with a story from Megan about when she got caught listening to Christina Aguilera and had to face a creative consequence. We should warn you—you might be humming “Genie in a Bottle” after listening.
While MTV isn’t the same presence it was when we were in middle school and high school, now parents have to contend with YouTube, TikTok, and Spotify. Music is not only a solo medium, it’s incorporated into so many other forms of entertainment. Trying to get your child to stay away from questionable content can feel like playing Whac-a-Mole. Just when you think you’ve got one source beat, another pops up. So the goal can’t be to keep your child from listening to music. Instead, encourage your kids to really listen with their ears and hearts to what the songs are saying.
Getting kids to think about song lyrics is not as hard as you might think. It starts with asking them a few questions that will trigger their consciences and critical thinking. There’s no guarantee that thinking about the bad messages in songs will cause your son or daughter to choose better music, but any steps toward being more discerning about the media our kids consume is a step in the right direction.
Articles we mentioned:
7 Questions to Get Kids to Think About Inappropriate Song Lyrics
Printables we think you’ll like:
Is there another way to get kids to think more critically about the media they consume? Tell us in the comments below.
