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This week, I’m handing over The First Word to someone whose work is deeply resonating with parents everywhere, especially with the Moms First community.

If you checked out our Future of Fatherhood Summit, you may have heard Jonathan Haidt speak about one of the most urgent challenges facing modern families: the impact of smartphones and social media on our kids’ mental health.

Jonathan’s research, and his powerful book The Anxious Generation, doesn’t just diagnose the problem — it offers real, practical solutions. His message is simple: our kids need fewer screens, more independence, and a childhood that’s worth remembering. Beyond the book, he’s launched a movement focused on changing policy, culture, and behavior to make this vision a reality.

We invited Jonathan to take over this week’s newsletter because we believe his work is shaping a new national conversation — one that centers parents, builds community, and fights for a better future for our children.

I hope you’ll take a moment to read what he has to say — and then share it with someone else who needs to hear it.

 
 
Reclaiming Childhood in a Phone-Based World

Hello, Moms First community!

I’m Jonathan Haidt, the author of The Anxious Generation. My book and research can be summed up in one sentence: Kids have been overprotected in the real world, and underprotected online.

Recently, I had the privilege of speaking at Moms First’s Future of Fatherhood Summit in New York City. In conversation with Alicia Menendez, I spoke about a battle modern parents know all too well. That is: wherever children have smartphones in their pockets and social media on those smartphones, family life turns into an eternal struggle over screen time. I imagine you can relate.

In The Anxious Generation, I proposed four new norms that, when implemented, can help us act together to restore childhood:

  1. No smartphones before high school
  2. No social media before 16
  3. Phone-free schools
  4. More independence, free play, and responsibility in the real world


Around the World, the Tide Is Turning

Since the book came out, parents, educators, policymakers, and youth have been powering a global movement to roll back the phone-based childhood and reignite more play and independence for kids as they come of age. 

In just over a year, we’ve seen change happen at lightning speed around the world. Parents have been driving the charge — organizing parents in their neighborhoods, reshaping school policies, and leading the charge to protect kids’ mental health. 

Change is happening in ways both big and small. On the global policy front: eleven states (plus Washington, D.C.) have already enacted laws making their schools phone-free for the entire school day. Similar laws are under consideration in the legislatures of the remaining 39 states. 

As of January 2025, every school in Brazil has gone phone-free, from bell-to-bell. Australia has raised the age for opening social media accounts to 16, and many countries are quite likely to follow suit. President Macron recently announced his intention to work with the EU to enact a minimum age of 15, as has the Dutch government.

On the local level, myriad grassroots organizations have sprung up to champion this work, and there is so much you can do inside your own home, with your kids’ schools, and in your community. This work is all about collective action. No parent wants to be the only one who doesn’t let their kid have a smartphone or social media — but when we act together, the benefits multiply and the risks of going it alone disappear.

Let’s Rebuild a Childhood Worth Remembering

Here’s how you can get involved:

  • Talk to your parent friends and your kids’ schools about this issue. You don’t have to be the expert — here’s my Parent & Teacher Talk that you can use as a conversation starter.
  • Talk to your kids. Remember, no matter where you are in this journey, you can always make new decisions. Here’s a resource I developed with Dr. Becky Kennedy to guide these talks with your kids. 
  • Join our movement and share your story so we can amplify on our social media.


Childhood freedom and independence are crucial for the success of the movement to roll back the phone-based childhood. The goal of the movement is not to take away screens; it is to restore a childhood worth having and remembering. And we’d love for you to join us. 

 
Policy Progress: A Win for Child Care — But We’re Not Done Yet

Last week, the Senate Finance Committee released their version of a tax bill that includes long-overdue improvements to help families afford child care. Specifically, the Senate’s version of the bill will:

  • Modestly expand the only tax credit for child care, helping hardworking parents keep more of their income to cover the cost of child care
  • Give caregivers across the country more financial support for dependent care expenses
  • Incentivize businesses to provide child care benefits to their employees

Now we need the Senate to pass these child care supports and the House to match them.

Email your Representatives in Congress and tell them to make affordable child care a priority. We’ve created this form that enables you to send a customizable email to your lawmakers.

CONTACT LAWMAKERS

Families need real investment in care, not trade-offs that leave them struggling to afford both child care and the basics. So let’s claim these wins for families, and continue advocating for everything that we need to thrive.

 
Check out what people are saying about Moms First in the news:


Let’s not accept a childhood defined by algorithms and endless scrolling. Together, we can reclaim what really matters: connection, freedom, and a future our kids deserve.

Thank you for reading — and a heartfelt thanks to Jonathan for lending his voice and vision to this important conversation.

 
To brighter childhoods,
Reshma Saujani