If you're a parent of a pre-teen, "tween," or even teenager, you've probably heard of Snapchat - and you may even have some serious feelings about whether Snapchat is appropriate for your kids. We totally get that. But this parenting blog on the New York Times by Rachel Simmons, a youth and social media researcher, author, and co-founder of Girls Leadership, offers a different perspective on the wildly-popular app, and why she thinks parents should take a second look. As Simmons notes in her blog post, "Snapchat is the app that lets users share photos or video that disappear. If apps were cool kids, Snapchat would hold court in the middle of the cafeteria: Its 100 million daily active loyalists are mostly teenagers and millennials. Some 38 percent of American teenagers use it (in Ireland, a staggering 52 percent of teenagers use the app)." Simmons isn't petitioning parents for blind acceptance of the app, or denying the potential the app has to be used negatively. But rather, she gives a thoughtful review of the app, and some solid reasoning for why parents should at least engage in dialogue with their children about its use: "Spend a little time talking with your teenager about Snapchat, and you may find that beneath the cool kid exterior, there is an app here with heart and good intentions, one that is challenging some destructive norms of online life, and making the Internet a much more authentic, genuine place to hang out." As we've said multiple times, through our various posts on kids' use of social media, honest and open communication with our children is the absolute key to keeping them safe online, and helping them navigate the often-murky waters of social media apps, and growing up in a digital world. No one said it would be easy, but if the lines of communication are kept open, it sure can help!