Dear Parent,
This is continued from last week
Post a Family Safety Pledge by all computers. Review it with each child and have them sign it (Actually you can find one online). This will help them in keeping their promise to use the Internet responsibly.
Listed below are some additional resources to help parents and their kids be “cyber-smart.”
Resources: E-Parenting: Keeping Up with Your Tech-Savvy Kids by Sharon Miller Cindrich, Safety Monitor: How to Protect Your Kids Online by Mike Sullivan, and Keep Your Kids Safe on the Internet by Simon Johnson.
Ages 10 – 14
As your children become teens, Internet chat rooms and social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube become enticing. Teens love to socialize with their friends and many now do it online.
However, social networking sites can be dangerous. Many people don’t think children under 16 are mature enough to handle the opportunities and challenges of social networking. If you do decide to let your child use a social networking site, be sure to periodically read what he or she is posting on it. Ask for your child’s passwords, screen names, and account information. This will allow you to monitor their pages, even if they have it set to “private.” As a parent, you have a right to this information. And finally, keep an open conversation with your teen about their social networking experiences.
Chat rooms too can hold hidden dangers that leave teens exposed to predators. Never allow your teen to participate in a chat room if you don’t know the adult supervising it. Caution your child to never say anything in a chat room or on instant messenger that they wouldn’t normally say in person. It is tempting to flirt and say things you wouldn’t normally say to a person online that is inappropriate.
If your teen can’t seem to tear herself away from friends on the computer screen, it is time to set boundaries. Go back to time limits. And keep that computer out of your teens room and in a general area where you can monitor her computer usage.
