Best Of The Web: July 27-August 2

Contributors:
Melanie Dostis, Kelly Farrell, Gavriella Mahpour and Elora Tocci

Here’s our
weekly roundup of parenting articles that piqued our interest. Enjoy! —

Researchers
say that seven
out of ten kids ages 10 to 14 have their own cell phones. Do your kids? When
is the right age to give your child a cell phone? Not many people are in
agreement. (MSNBC)

Starting
next year, McDonald’s will include apple
slices in every Happy Meal. This health conscious effort on the part of the
fast food chain is in response to customer demands! (USA Today)

In an
effort to encourage summer reading, the New York Public Library is pardoning
late fees for over 140,000 city kids. Looking for more great ideas on how
to foster continuing literacy? Check out these great
summer reading programs that will inspire a love for books. (Daily News)

Teaching
your kids street safety is no easy feat and some parents are up to more of a
challenge than others. Researchers created a virtual reality simulation and
found that children
with ADHD face greater pedestrian risks. (CNN)

This op-ed
considers teens
and sex. Does our culture of essentially “don’t ask, don’t tell” lead to
irresponsible behavior? And would normalizing teen sex remedy the problem? (NYTimes)

Watch out
Facebook! There’s another social
networking site that’s determined to dominate the scene. In 2005, a 15 year
old teen started myYearbook.com and just recently sold it for 100 million
dollars. (ABC News)

Perhaps the
worst
mother of the year: a Connecticut woman had her 4-year-old boy drink
a 40-ounce bottle of beer and her 10-month-old daughter was also given beer in
addition to cocaine. She is being charged with two counts of risk of injury to
a child and two counts of second-degree assault. (Connecticut Post)

Children
are more vulnerable to lung damage from traffic pollution if they live in a
high-stress house, according to a new
study. Kids appear to be more susceptible to pollution if their
parents are feeling stressed. (Reuters)

Although
the heat wave has finally broken, the weekend promises temperatures in the 90s.
Stay safe and cool with TIME magazine’s 7
best ways to beat the heat. (TIME)

The New York Times reveals a bleak
look at school choice. The current educational environment pushes schools
to compete for the best students, leaving many behind to attend the worst
institutions. (NYTimes)

A new poll
has found that Americans are increasingly showing support for abortion rights.
Currently, more than one-fourth of those polled support a woman’s
right to choose. (HealthDay News)