WF BLOG
What to Do When Your Child
Wants to Be an Influencer
L I love that [my
daughter] wants to
come up with
creative videos and
share them with
others — not just
sit and watch them.

But, on the other
hand, the internet can
be an awful place.

42 WashingtonFAMILY JUNE 2019
ooking at the back-to-school pictures
this past September, I noticed many
included kids holding chalkboard
signs with categories such as teacher’s
name, grade year and favorite subject. The
part that stuck out for me was under the
headline “What do you want to be when you
grow up?” A majority of the ones I saw said
“YouTuber.” This is quite a departure from when
I was growing up in the late ’80s/early
’90s and everyone wanted to be a singer,
actress, gymnast or cheerleader. Yet, I
understand the appeal. The most popu-
lar YouTubers get paid pretty large sums,
depending on the number of views their
videos get, along with free merchandise
from companies wanting promotion. Who
wouldn’t want that?
My daughter became enamored with
YouTube about two years ago. We cut out
television because our provider’s costs were
getting too high, and we barely watched
enough to justify the expense. My
daughter started watching
YouTube videos on Ameri-
can Girl dolls, including
stop-motion stories and
vloggers opening new
brand items.

Within the past
year, she has been
asking if she could
have her own You-
Tube account focusing
on American Girl dolls
and products. I feel really
torn. I love that she wants to
come up with creative videos and
share them with others — not just sit
and watch them. But, on the other hand,
the internet can be an awful place, where
people hide behind their keyboards
hurtling snarky and abusive comments.

I also do not know how to edit videos.

I enrolled my kids in a one-day class at an
area arts center to learn about stop-motion
movie making. (Long story, but the instruc-
tor didn’t teach at all, and we still need to
find some instruction in that medium if
readers have any ideas.)
Deciding on a compromise, I told my
8-year-old that she could have an Insta-
gram account focusing on her American
Girl adventures. This way, she could build a
brand while mastering some creative skills
before segueing to a YouTube channel.

Since starting right around the New
Year, I’ve been working with her on getting
a better understanding of photography.

While I am certainly not an expert, I did
learn a lot of great techniques while serving
as a photographer and photo editor of my
high school yearbook. My teacher taught us
to avoid subjects looking out from the edge
of the photo, because it causes the reader
to look off the page. She would also discuss
how cropping can help sharpen the focus
of a picture.

My daughter and I have gone over some
different camera angles and discussed the
importance of properly lighting up a photo
set. She has become interested in styling
her dolls before shooting photos by coiff-
ing their hair or picking out an outfit
and making sure the doll is in
the proper positions before
taking pictures. She also
has come up with a ton
of unique ideas for pho-
tos so she is not post-
ing the same images
each day.

But just like her
future YouTube account,
I have some strict rules.

She cannot show her face
since the account is public.

When she gets older, that rule
may relax, but not when she is an 8-year-
old. She can view and like photos but only on
my device. She does not have a phone yet.

The account, for now, is jointly run
by both of us, and I really enjoy it as
a great mother-daughter bonding
activity. When I was looking for accounts
to follow, I found a number that are
mother-daughter run so I am glad we
are not alone on this venture. One day,
my daughter can run it by herself. But
for now, I’ll cherish that she wants to do
this account together. ■
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PHOTOGRAPHER: GEORGEMANGA
BY GINA GALLUCCI-WHITE



MONTESSORI GUIDE
Discovering Montessori
DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA Montessori
children discover:
• Learning creatively
and spontaneously
• Learning at their
own pace
• Developing to their
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• Encouragement to
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make decisions
• Learning that lasts
a lifetime
THE CHILDREN'S HOUSE
OF WASHINGTON
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