It’s totally mind blowing how far technology has come from when I was a teenager to today. My boys each have a phone, and for the most part we have no issues. One talks on the phone too much to his little girlfriend, one is on his when he should be doing chores, and then there’s my my youngest!!! My youngest is a pre-teen who is going through that curious stage. I have to say this, until a couple of weeks ago, I still had this view of him as a naive, innocent, Lego-playing kiddo. I recently found some searches he had done on his phone that both terrified me and shocked me. However, after the initial shock of it wore off…… I understood it’s just a natural thing for this age, so with the help of LifeLock, my 15 and 17 year old (yes I had them for back up), we were able to have a successful talk with him.
As much as I don’t like to admit to it, I do slip sometimes on the issues I need to be discussing with my kids. My two oldest know everything you could possibly know. I’m very open with them, and vice versa, and sometimes they’re the ones educating me. I just wasn’t ready to be having discussions like that with my youngest boy.
I have limited parental controls, the ones I thought necessary like limited contacts and data usage, but after my discovery I took his phone for a while until I found a way to keep him better safeguarded. That’s when I realized I needed to really dig in and discuss ALL the issues related to technology. Don’t be naive like I was, it’s definitely a talk you need to be having the moment you hand over smart device to your child, and cover all bases.
Just the other day I was told by one of my older boys that a photo of a girl they go to school with, in a compromising situation (which is a whole other issue in itself) was mistakingly put on Instagram. Although it was deleted within a minute, it had already been screen-shotted by other kids. Now imagine where that’s going to be shared! It’s a scary thing and the kids HAVE to know how to use their devices responsibly.
Kids are spending countless hours using devices on the internet and 92% of teens report going online daily. Of those 92%, 24% admit to being online constantly…..somehow I feel like those numbers may be higher :). LifeLock knows that being a parent is a balancing act, and together with the National PTA®, they are giving parents a way to make a hard and complex discussion easier and it covers all of the areas necessary including:
- Safety & Privacy
- Screen Time
- Social Media
- Apps & Downloads
- Texting & Calling
- Reputation & Respect
- Online Videos & Cameras
After agreeing on healthy limits together, a personalized, official family agreement can be stored on the computer or printed and posted at home. As parents, we can’t afford to be ignorant to the dangers out there whether they be screen time, talk time, respect self and others, or even privacy issues.
Visit the Smart Talk site to check out the online safety resources and create your own personalized family contract to encourage healthy digital habits, and then revisit it as often as you see fit.
What are your biggest concerns or issues with kids and technology these days?
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
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