Life as a teen without social media isn’t easy. These families are navigating adolescence offline

Kate Bulkeley uses her phone to print textbook pages while Sutton packs art materials ahead of a ski vacation, in Westport, Connecticut. It is hard to be a teenager today without social media. For those trying to stay off social platforms at a time when most of their peers are immersed, the path can be challenging, isolating and at times liberating. It can also be life-changing. — AP

WESTPORT, Connecticut: Kate Bulkeley’s pledge to stay off social media in high school worked at first. She watched the benefits pile up: She was getting excellent grades. She read lots of books. The family had lively conversations around the dinner table and gathered for movie nights on weekends.

Then, as sophomore year got underway, the unexpected problems surfaced. She missed a student government meeting arranged on Snapchat. Her Model UN team communicates on social media, too, causing her scheduling problems. Even the Bible Study club at her Connecticut high school uses Instagram to communicate with members.