Kids can’t delete message history! Awesome! Engaged, nosey parents (the kind we really like), can see what’s being said. So, if parents are concerned about their kids opening links from friends, then make sure to have “limit adult content” enabled in Restrictions so you can review search history. What’s more, we tried sending a YouTube link to a dummy kid account we created in the app, and we couldn’t open it unless we had the YouTube app also loaded onto the phone (the link transported us from Messenger Kids to the YouTube app). We couldn’t find any backdoors to a Google search (which is unusual). If a parent is going to allow a kid to use social media at a young age, then at least Messenger Kids is a safer option with many of the “fun” features of social media, without the risks.

At least 50% of the 5th graders we talk to have their own social media account! And, it’s usually Snapchat, Instagram, or TikTok, all of which are bad news for kids who are supposed to be at least 13 to use any of them. Honestly, the parental controls are good.We spend a lot of time in elementary school classrooms. From a business perspective, it’s brilliant. Facebook wants to hook kids.But, our stance is, “why is that a surprise?” Facebook has always been about addiction. You can see the results here: The Best Social Media Platforms Made for Young Kids NOTE: PYE did a full comparison of Messenger Kids with two other popular kid messaging apps. What do parents need to know about Messenger Kids? Related post: What’s the Right Age to Give My Kid Social Media?

It works on all iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) for now – an Android app has been promised soon.

If you use Facebook Messenger as an adult, then you’ll recognize Messenger Kids as a retooled version of what you’re already familiar with, complete with kid-friendly emoji’s, GIFS, stickers, filters, on-screen writing, video calling, and more. What is Facebook Messenger Kids?Īpp Store description: Designed specifically for kids “ages 9-11,” Facebook is attempting to create a social media platform that complies with COPPA (doesn’t violate privacy of kids), gives parents a wide set of controls, while likely grooming kids to love Facebook as adults. Please see the results of our testing here. Octoupdate: We did a side-by-side comparison with Messenger Kids, Kinzoo, and Village Social.

Messenger kids