Carlotta, 8

Media Consumption: 2 hours a day during week, 4 hours on weekends. 6 hours per day during holidays

Favorite Media/Technology: iPad

What devices to you use/interact with and what do you use them for?

I have an iPad for games and an iPad for school, so I don’t play games when I have to do homework. I also have a little phone that I can’t use in the week just like my iPad. Only during the holidays, I can use it during the week for 2 hours. On my phone I can play games and I use it to call my mom and dad when I miss them. I watch a lot of TV during the holidays. 4 hours, I think. When I have guests, we decided that I can’t use electronic devices.

What is your favorite/least favorite thing about media/technology?

I really like that you can play and learn and look up stuff like words. But I don’t like that you have to charge it or the ads because when I play then the ads interrupt. I think it’s really stupid because I have to pay money to make it go away. Does that seriously have to happen? And sometimes these scary ads come with the shooting people and guns for 17 [year-olds] and then I just quickly put the iPad away and x-out of it when I don’t hear the sounds anymore.

What do you use media for?

For playing games and learning. I play a Barbie game but they want me to pay €7 for a membership every month, and I don’t understand why. For learning I use the app Seesaw and my teacher sends me work. Sometimes it teaches me how to draw a dragon and it shows you how to do it step-by-step. But sometimes I want it to be slower. I use kids-YouTube too but I am not allowed to put anything on it.

How do you learn about media?

Well, I learned a lot about internet safety, like if you get an unknown message then you are not supposed to open it because then your computer can get a virus and then it gets worse and worse and infects others. I learned it through my app BrainPOP Jr., and Moby and Anna are so funny and they explain it. I got the app from school.

How are you using media during the COVID-19 pandemic?

On the weekends I can play as much as I want. During the week I can’t and I have to do all my work on Seesaw and oh my God it is so much work. But sometimes my teacher gives me funny tasks to do, but sometimes the instructions don’t make any sense at all and then I don’t know what to do. We have class on Zoom, but sometimes it’s a little annoying because everyone takes over each other because they haven’t seen each other in person. I prefer in person because it’s better and easier to focus, and harder to listen to on Zoom.

Interviewed by: Emma Kollmorgen, Occidental College Rising 2nd Year Student