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Resources

A community resource library

A curated index of parent initiatives, school programs, kosher hardware vendors, app rating tools, speakers, addiction support, and recommended reading, all to help families use technology with intention.

Please note: the resources below are gathered for the community's benefit and serve different audiences and standards. Use your own judgment and discretion, and reach out if you'd like help figuring out what fits your family. Some vendors and organizations listed are independent of TAG and Smart Connections NY.

Parent-Led Class Initiatives

Protection and pacing begin when parent groups work together. Cooperating within a class minimizes social pressure and slows unnecessary technology exposure.

MUST: Mothers Unite to Stall Technology

A grassroots framework for mothers to coordinate within their children's classes, collectively stalling the adoption of personal screens and smartphones so classmates stay aligned.

Visit Mothers Unite 4 Kids →

Wait Until 8th

An advocacy group that helps parents rally together and sign a collective pledge to withhold smartphones from children until at least the end of 8th grade.

Visit Wait Until 8th →

The Digital Citizenship Project

Organizes grade-level "fireside chats" that facilitate data-driven conversations among parents, building consensus on social media delays, gaming rules, and device parameters.

Visit Digital Citizenship Project →

Project TRUST

Offers customized counseling and advisory frameworks directly to parents, helping families design home rules and manage digital exposure boundaries.

Visit Project TRUST →

School, Student & Curriculum Programs

Structured programs that operate within school settings, including classroom materials, school-wide pledges, and peer-driven accountability.

School-Wide Pledges & Frameworks

Keeping Tech in Check

A parent-led pact launched at South Shore. Families promise children do not own personal smart devices through 8th grade, tech is avoided for entertainment Monday through Thursday during school terms, and all internet-capable home devices are filtered. Over 240 boys and 177 active families.

Yeshiva Toras Chaim-Bais Binyamin of South Shore
Phone: 516-374-7363

Visit YOSS →

Penimi School Solutions

Provides educational guidance, school policies, and programmatic blueprints directly to school administrations looking to curb excessive technology reliance.

Visit Penimi →

Digital Citizenship Project (Admin)

Partners with school leadership to deploy unified, data-driven frameworks that align teachers, parents, and students under healthy baseline expectations.

Visit Digital Citizenship Project →
Classroom Curricula

Hineini High School Curriculum

A technology awareness curriculum designed for a 45-minute weekly class period over one or two academic years, used in high schools to build critical thinking about screen time.

Rabbi Nechemia Gottlieb
Phone: 732-278-8513
Email: nechemiah@yeshivanet.com

Penimi Girls High School Curriculum

A curriculum for girls' high schools focused on how digital habits can affect relationships, focus, and long-term values.

Explore Penimi Technology Programs →

"Tech Smart" Curriculum

From The Digital Citizenship Project, using a "train-the-trainer" format that equips educators to teach students how digital connectivity shifts behavioral baselines.

Explore Tech Smart Materials →
Student-Led Commitments

Raise the Bar

An extra-curricular program active across many institutions including Bnos Leah of Prospect Park, Machon Bais Yaakov, BYA, Bnos Yaakov, TAG Far Rockaway, Bais Yaakov D'Rav Meir, and Lev Bais Yaakov. Students take on a personal tech restriction (Kabbala) alongside peer panels and monthly check-ins.

iChoose Choice Framework

A high school incentive program that matches students with a faculty mentor of their choice to review screen habits, track milestones, and voluntarily structure weekly texting reductions.

Kosher Phone Vendors

Trusted external vendors specializing in browser-free smart hardware, locked flip devices, and curated streaming systems. Please note that TAG and Smart Connections NY do not directly sell this equipment.

Safe & App-Filtered Phones

Sunbeam Wireless

Sleek, browserless flip phones with touch screens, on-screen keyboards, and options for Waze navigation.

sunbeamwireless.com →

Safe Telecom

Fully kosher smartphones with zero internet browsing and an isolated, kosher-only application ecosystem.

safetelecom.net →

YourKosherPhone

Modern, browser-free smartphones and flip phones tailored to meet clean digital standards.

yourkosherphone.com →

KosherCell

A popular provider offering a wide selection of browser-free, modern smartphones and flip phones.

koshercell.org →

Green Touch

A boutique shop providing curated selections of contemporary browser-free mobile devices.

greentouchstore.com →

Maxsip

A structured catalog of modern browser-free devices, often bundled with safe cellular data plans.

maxsip.com →

SafeCell

Custom-configured modern smartphones stripped of general internet browsing capability.

safecellapp.com →

BSD

A selection of current-model browser-free smartphones and durable, simple flip phones.

bsdmobile.com →
Kosher Media & Audio Streaming Devices

24Six Devices

Purpose-built kosher MP3 and MP4 multimedia streaming hardware, completely disconnected from the open web.

24six.app →

Naki Radio

Dedicated home radio hardware offering secure access to pre-approved Jewish music stations, children's podcasts, stories, audiobooks, and Torah shiurim.

nakiradio.com →

Apps & Games Evaluation

App stores carry thousands of games with little content transparency. These tools help parents and educators evaluate apps and verify safety ratings.

Techkosher.org App Directory

A community Jewish digital repository (in active development) built to review, verify, and document mobile applications through a values-focused lens.

View TechKosher Directory →

ESRB

The global benchmark for evaluating video games, with age classifications, content indicators, and breakdowns of gameplay components.

Visit ESRB Rating Portal →

Common Sense Media

A widely used repository scoring apps, games, movies, and books by development milestones, child safety, and reviews.

Visit Common Sense Media →

Smart Social

A parent intelligence platform with detailed breakdowns of popular social platforms, hidden features, and safety concerns in trending teen apps.

Visit Smart Social →

Speakers & Experts Directory

Respected communal leaders, developers, and clinicians who provide community workshops and school assemblies on technology safety.

Rabbi Nechemia Gottlieb

Founder and managing director of TAG International. Delivers technical and spiritual updates for community leadership.

Phone: 732-278-8513

Dr. David Pelcovitz

A clinical expert on the psychological impact of digital technology in the Jewish community, addressing schools, communities, and national conventions.

Email: Dpelcovitz@gmail.com
Web: Yuspeakers.org

Dr. Eli Shapiro

Clinical director and founder of The Digital Citizenship Project, specializing in how technology affects academic performance and social development.

Web: elishapiro.com

Rabbi Avraham Robinson

Menahel of Yeshiva Toras Chaim of South Shore. Delivers interactive multimedia presentations to help elementary school parents guide device use.

Email: Rarobinson@yoss.org

Alex Paskie

A veteran web developer and core TAG volunteer. His practical, technical presentations are popular with high school students and parent groups.

Phone: 917-727-5431
Email: Tag@paskie.com

Mrs. Faygie Zelcer

Founder of Penimi and the Link Up program. Provides lectures for women's organizations and girls' high school assemblies.

Phone: 718-514-2525
Email: Info@penimi.org

Yossi Strickman

Founder of Project Trust, providing clinical and social mentorship for high school boys navigating digital boundaries.

Phone: 973-525-0533
Email: Yossi@projecttrust.net

Mrs. Aliza Feder

Author of the book Tech Talk and a sought-after lecturer on technology awareness for teenage girls.

Phone: 732-691-7610 (Home)

Mrs. Tova Feder

Curriculum developer of iLimit, a multi-stage technology awareness and boundary program for girls' high schools.

Phone: 917-703-0558

Rabbi Zev Brown, PhD

A mental health expert and educator who speaks at interactive parent workshops and school board consultations.

Phone: 732-232-1658

Binyomin Tepfer, PhD

A therapist specializing in behavioral and digital addictions, with direct, compelling presentations for adolescent boys and parents.

Web: Binyamintepfer.com

Rabbi Ephraim Goldman

A high school educator in Chicago and Director of Community Education for Project Focus. Leads townhalls, shiurim, and workshops.

Phone: 646-784-7266
Email: projectfocuschicago@gmail.com

Addiction Help & Support

Unrestricted screen exposure can lead to compulsive habits in children and adults. These resources offer guidance, professional referrals, and clinical therapy paths.

Guard Your Eyes (GYE)

A platform offering secure recovery resources, anonymous forums, and structured tools for breaking habits related to inappropriate internet use.

Visit Guard Your Eyes →

Project TRUST (Adolescent)

An intervention framework coordinating one-on-one adolescent mentorship alongside certified mental health professionals to help teenagers establish digital balance.

Visit Project TRUST →

Dr. Binyamin Tepfer

A licensed psychotherapist specializing in digital dependencies and behavioral addictions, offering individual and couples therapy.

Visit Dr. Tepfer's Site →

Relief Referral Organization

A mental health organization that matches individuals with vetted therapists and counselors specializing in digital addiction within the Jewish community.

Email: Info@reliefhelp.org

Visit Relief →

Screenagers Research

A repository of empirical science, academic links, and analytical columns examining the physiological nature of video game, texting, and internet addiction.

Read Addiction Research →
This is a sensitive area. If you or someone in your home is struggling, please reach out to one of the organizations above, or text the office and we can help point you in the right direction.

Jewish Resources & Literature

Articles, journals, books, and halachic works exploring the spiritual, social, and developmental impact of modern communication tools.

Articles & Publications

MUST Articles Database

A curated collection of columns, essays, and reports on the sociological effects of screen exposure on families.

Access Article Archive →

Klal Perspectives Journal

A symposium of multi-author monographs by leading educators and social scientists exploring communal technology boundaries.

Read Journal PDF →

Project Focus Pamphlet

The complete handbook deployed during the city-wide community tech awareness initiative in Chicago.

Read Booklet PDF →
Books & Seforim

Positive Vision

By Rabbi Avrohom Neuberger. Halachic and ethical perspectives on maintaining visual purity and mindfulness in an age of digital distraction.

Find at Artscroll →

Tech Talk

By Mrs. Aliza Feder. An acclaimed work written for adolescent readers, addressing the challenges of social connectivity with warm, sensible guidance.

Find at Z. Berman Books →

The Battle of Our Generation

A comprehensive practical handbook exploring contemporary strategies for Shemirat Habrit in the modern digital environment.

Visit Publication Site →

Link Up Workbooks

By Mrs. Faygie Zelcer. Educational workbooks distributed to active student participants within the Penimi program.

The Evolving Digital Challenge

By Rabbi Nechemia Gottlieb. Analyzes the shifting landscape of internet capabilities and provides actionable guidance for home defense.

Seforim Phone Directory
  • Esa Einei by Rabbi Ya'akov Langsner. Phone: 973-365-8059
  • Zos Brisi. Ethical guidance manual, available in Hebrew/English via Feldheim
  • Ana Yada D'at Li by Rabbi Avrohom Neuberger. Phone: 845-352-3505
  • Ayin Lo Raasa by Rabbi Shmuel Heller. Email: Sheller@tagtoronto.org
  • iObserve by Rabbi Yehuda Shatz. Available at local Jewish bookstores
Audio Lectures & Media

Smart Choices Hotline

An awareness campaign distributing CDs, posters, and booklets, and arranging community-wide asifos under the instruction of Daas Torah.

Hotline: 732-400-9003
Orders: 732-200-2812
Email: smartchoices@yeshivanet.com

TAG Flatbush Media Library

Recorded audio guidance lectures and public addresses by Rabbi Mordechai Kirschenbaum and Rabbi Yosef Elefant.

Access Audio Library →

Guard Your Eyes Video Repository

Short, thought-provoking videos on internet dependence and the neurological traits of digital habits.

Watch GYE Videos →

Yeshiva Darchei Torah Video Archive

Three core video addresses sent to the school parent body on healthy home technology boundaries.

  • Rav Yaakov Bender: a 5-minute introductory message. Watch →
  • Rav Elya Brudny: The Apples of our Eyes (Chapter IV). Watch →
  • Dr. David Pelcovitz: The Apples of our Eyes (Chapter V: Setting Appropriate Limits). Watch →

Community Standards Collective Video (2019)

A presentation on the sociological benefits of standardized community guidelines for children's technology access.

Watch on Vimeo →

Secular Resources

Contemporary studies, books, and research on technology use. Please note that these materials reflect secular values rather than community standards.

Wait Until 8th Research Repository

Research, data sheets, and articles on how early smartphone use can affect sleep, attention, and social development in children.

View Research Links →

Alone Together

By Sherry Turkle. A study of how digital tools can reduce interpersonal connection, leaving users isolated despite constant interaction.

View on Amazon →

Reclaiming Conversation

By Sherry Turkle. On the value of face-to-face conversation in developing empathy, focus, and strong relationships.

View on Amazon →

A Deadly Wandering

By Matt Richtel. An account of a fatal texting-while-driving accident, exploring the cognitive science behind digital distraction.

View on Amazon →

How to Break Up With Your Phone

By Catherine Price. A science-backed guide to identifying habits, adjusting notifications, and building a balanced relationship with your phone.

View on Amazon →

Screenwise

By Devorah Heitner. Practical advice for guiding children's digital life, focusing on mentorship rather than just monitoring.

View on Amazon →

Screenagers Documentary

A film exploring the daily realities of screen time, online gaming, and social media on teen development. Local screenings can be coordinated via Kav Lnoar.

Kav Lnoar: info@kavlnoar.org
Phone: 917-830-7717

Official Film Site →

Filtering, Office Hours & Support

Need help installing filters on Windows, Chromebooks, Apple (iOS/Mac), or Android devices? Contact the office to configure your device or set up filtered routers.

Smart Connections NY / TAG Far Rockaway

Text / Call: 516-247-1907 (text is fastest)
Email: tech@smartconnectionsny.com
728 Empire Avenue, Far Rockaway, NY 11691

Office Hours

Sun: 2–5 pm
Mon–Wed: 11 am–6 pm
Thu: 2–9 pm
Fri: 9 am–12 pm
Sat: Closed

Advanced filtering setups require a scheduled appointment. Walk-ins are accepted for basic kosher flip phone modifications only.

Not sure where to start?

Text us with a question, or to book an appointment. No pressure, no rush.