Parent got tracking app when teen started driving, kid OK with it

The day her son got his license, she downloaded Life360. Her husband had driven him to get the license and when he returned alone she found herself panicking at not knowing where their son was. She called him, asked him to share his location and he laughed, "Sure, mom." She says location-tracking apps have become a normal part of modern parenting.

Growing up in a freer, less connected era felt different, she writes, but having a teenager driving across the county made those old habits feel inadequate. The app gives her a fallback — a way to see where he is without taking away his independence. She does not check the app constantly.

The one time she closely followed it was the first day he drove his two younger siblings to school; they watched the 18-minute trip on Life360 while finishing their coffee. Otherwise she typically looks only if curfew is close and he hasn't texted, if practices run late, or if an incident occurs nearby — for example, a shooting near a local T.J.

life360, location tracking, location sharing, parenting, teen driving, curfew, siblings, school commute, incident, shooting