We talk a lot about safety online in our classes K-8. I can talk endlessly to kids about how to be safe online, but at the end of class I always wonder how much they are talking about it at home.
When I get home, I have two kids of my own that I am in charge of monitoring. I am sure other parents are as exhausted as I am and are as likely to give a wave of the hand to kids that are begging to get on to the family computer to play games or watch their favorite videos of Justin Beiber on youtube.com.
If you are mom or dad, like me, who just wants 20 minutes of peace in the family while you get something cooking for dinner and are just as eager to have your kids get some practical computer time then this post is for you.
I assume you are as busy as I am and don’t have hours on end to study on online safety. So here are two (2) key issues in home computer usage that I believe will make you feel much better about allowing your kids to learn and play on the family computer.
1) COMPUTER(S) LOCATION & SETTINGS:
Like your house, we have several computers in our house as well as two smartphones. Internet access is about as readily available as tissue. My daughters ages 9 and 6 are adept at logging-in to any of these devices and getting right to the site they want. My first line of protection is visual monitoring, which means location, location, location.
Our family computer is located in the kitchen. The laptop is in the family room, and my BlackBerry is usually charging in one or two of these locations.
Because it is ridiculous to think that I can ‘watch’ any of these devices 100%, I have log-in and passwords set up for each device (excluding my BB, of course). Parent access is password protected and we have vowed NEVER to give the kids our password. The kids’ access is limited by time limit and content.
I had to learn to use this feature on our family computer when I caught my eldest daughter trying to go to www.Barbie.com when she was only 4. She wasn’t sure how to spell Barbie but was making a fine effort trying to type it into Google at about 5:00 one morning. Lucky for me, I walked in right as she was beginning to type the final “b”.
It had never occurred to me that my little darling wouldn’t think about asking Mommy if it was alright to play on the computer. Now that’s she’s 9 it is a full-time job keeping access monitored.
As parents, we have pre-approved the websites that our daughters are able to access on the computer. We have set up our search engine with appropriate parameters so that they can still “search” but inappropriate content for the most part will be blocked. We like www.youtubeforchildren.com which offers all of the fun videos and filters any inappropriate content.
2) PARENT PARTICIPATION
The second part of online safety relies less on technology and more on good ol’ Mom & Dad awareness. While we rely on our password and log-in to keep internet access secure, it has become part of our family conversation to talk about what it is our girls are doing online. As a mom, I admit, I could care less what my kids have purchased for their Webkinz. I don’t care what their Webkinz Poodle is wearing and whether or not she is happy or sad. But I sometimes have to fake interest in their high score and their current youtube video favorite to get clued into what is really going on online.
I listen and I sit down and I watch what it is that my kids are doing online. What sort of games do they like? What makes them laugh? I feel I must know, why they are wasting their time playing ridiculous Justin Beiber videos when we could be rocking out to Aerosmith!? ;)
The point is that you must be clued in on whatever it is that is going on on that screen because that is their world at the moment. Things change quickly in the cyberworld. If you try to jump in and figure out what is going on when your kiddo hits middle school, you my friend, are gonna be totally lost!
If you feel that you are too far behind to even try to catch up, my suggestion is make friends with somebody “in the know”. Your school Technology Coordinator or Computer Instructor is a great resource if you don’t have any nerdy friends of your own.
The people in your child’s school are with them all day helping them to access the right stuff online, they know exactly where kids are going and where they SHOULD NOT be going. They are inundated all day with kids’ stories about their favorite websites and videos and obsession over Webkinz and Halo.
It is their job to know kids and what interests kids and they will be happy to help give you some ideas about what resources you might wanna access in your home.
The point is that you want to limit access for your kids without going totally nuts and keeping them away from technology entirely.
After all, tech skills are important skills. Classrooms move at the pace of technology. Computers, video cameras, iPods, and iPads are IN the classroom right now. Your child needs to have these skills!
Your friendly Tech Coordinator can answer common questions like: “When should I let me child on Facebook?”
The answer is NEVER. Just kidding! The real answer is that it is suggested that kids should be at least 13 years old before creating a Facebook profile. However, there are alternatives to Facebook like, Everloop.com, which offer “social looping” activities and fun for kids ages 8-14.
The good news is that there are well-trained people in your corner who are happy to help you. I encourage you to reach out and connect!
