As their children reach middle childhood (6–12), parents are faced with new media-use challenges driven by their children’s development and growing independence. These youth spend over 5 ½ hours a day on screens, potentially displacing sleep, physical activity, and reading. During this stage, young people’s social lives evolve as the importance of peer interactions grows, their ability to understand the perspectives of other people develops, and their desire for online connection increases. In response, parents seek answers to questions concerning when and how to provide personal access to smartphones and social media. Research evidence supports considering a child’s needs, maturity, and responsibilities instead of only their age when providing them with a phone. Restrictive parental mediation strategies such as delaying access to social media during middle childhood may reduce overall use and limit risk for negative online social experiences, but they are also likely to interfere with the development of online social competencies and positive opportunities afforded by online socialization. A parental mediation approach that combines warmth and support with clear and consistent rules and consequences is likely protective, both against the negative impact of specific media content as well as against problematic media use overall.