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Learn about The Online Mom Network
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Join The Online Mom Network
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How Do I Become An Online Mom?
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The Online Mom provides internet technology advice and information to help parents protect their kids, encourage responsible behavior and safely harness the power of technology in the new digital world. Social networking, photo sharing, video games, IM & texting, internet security, cyberbullying, educational resources, the latest on tech hardware, gadgets and software for kids 3-8, tweens and teens, and more.
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FAQs
Q: When should I let my child have her own computer?
A: That depends on what the child will use the computer for and
whether you feel they - and the rest of the family - would benefit from
the additional resource. For most families, the need for individual
computers is dictated by how many kids there are in the household and
how much the computers are used for school work. If there is only one
computer in the house, then consider getting an additional machine for
the parents to free up more time for the rest of the family. In the
absence of unusual circumstances, it would probably be appropriate for
a child to get their "own" computer when they are well into their high
school years. (See Teens: A Behavioral Approach)
Q: At what age is it appropriate for a child to own a cell phone?
A: This can vary dramatically. We have known children as young
as 6 to have their own phone, while other parents have waited until
their children are in high school. However, it's fair to say that
children under the age of 12, while appreciating the novelty of a cell
phone for a week or two, will probably then leave it in a drawer for
the next year or two and forget about it! (After all, there are very
few other kids that they can call!) Plus, providing your tween with a
cell phone may attract the ire of other parents, who will then get
requests from their own children!
Once your child is out and about on their own more often it makes
perfect sense for you to be able to keep in touch. Cell phone providers
have a multitude of family plans to start you off with. However, make
sure you are aware of the minuses of cell phone ownership as well as
the pluses...and we are not just talking about the cost! (See Owning Cell Phones, iPods & Other Tech Toys)
Q: Our new family computer comes with Vista, which claims to
have excellent parental controls built in. Are these sufficient for
regulating Internet content and access for our children?
A: Microsoft has made tremendous strides in the area of parental
controls with the release of Vista, its relatively new operating
system. Vista allows you to set individual controls for multiple users
and can restrict access to web sites, set time limits, control access
to games, and block the use of other programs. However, if you need to
go deeper and track web sites visited or even have the ability to read
or record e-mail or IM, then you will need to install one of the many
custom programs that are available by download or through a tech
retailer. (See Security Tools for more information and an age-appropriate approach to security software.)
Q: At what age is it appropriate for a child to have a MySpace page?
A: MySpace themselves will tell you that their social networking site is not appropriate for children under 14 years of age. In fact, it's written into their Terms of Use.
(This document is well worth a read - it will both reassure and alarm!)
We fully support this age limit as an appropriate cut-off point. There
are plenty of other social networking sites
for younger children to get involved in without risking exposure to
some of the racier material that's all over MySpace. In fact, we
recommend that your child's first venture into MySpace (or Facebook)
territory be a supervised project, with you helping them set the page
up and recommending pictures and other profile information. They may
not want you as a friend but that shouldn't stop you checking their
page out every so often. If they object to that before the age of 18,
then you may have something to worry about! (See Teens: Keeping It In The Family for more information)
Q: We have recently discovered that our teenage daughter has
posted some highly inappropriate material on her MySpace page. How can
we broach this subject with her and ask her to take it down?
A: Take a look at some of the recommendations that we make in our Keeping It In The Family
page. The important thing for your daughter to understand is that
posting this material is just like posting it on the school bulletin
board. Not only can her friends (and non-friends) see it but so can her
teachers, her friends' parents, and any future employers! If it's not
going to threaten any of her existing friendships - or even if it is -
consider telling her exactly how you heard about it and how much harm
that does to the family reputation. Keep it friendly and don't try and
drive it underground but be insistent. Poor judgment now can impact her
for a lifetime!
Q: How can I track which sites my son visits when he is on the Internet?
A: There are numerous parental control software suites that can
track where your son goes when he's on the Internet. They can all be
pre-programmed to prevent him visiting inappropriate sites, either by
specifying them individually or by excluding certain categories of site
or content. (See Getting Help: Security Tools for more information and some age-appropriate security recommendations.)
Q: How do I find out which video games are appropriate for my 12 year-old?
A: The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is responsible for rating games
and they approach the task much the same way as movie industry rates
films. While not perfect, the ESRB does a pretty good job and, if
anything, they tend to err on the side of caution, clearly mindful of
the poor publicity that video gaming used to attract. There are also
numerous sites that review games for parents and kids - WhatTheyPlay is a great example.
Q: I am worried my teenage daughter is corresponding with
inappropriate "friends" on the Internet? She spends a lot of time in
chat rooms but is very defensive about who she is chatting with and
what is being said. How do I make sure she is not at risk without
spying on her?
A: That's a difficult one. We assume your child is old enough to
have her own computer or can access a family computer without you
looking over her shoulder. If that's the case, then it will be hard to
go back to a family-style computer in a common area without provoking a
certain amount of rebellion! The best way to know if there is a problem
is to watch for any danger signs.
Nobody knows your child better than you do. Has she become withdrawn or
argumentative? Has she recently changed the people she hangs out with;
lost her long-time friends and picked up inappropriate new ones? These
and other behavioral changes can be signs of bigger problems that
should be addressed immediately. If you can't get your child to talk to
you about her online activities, then you may need to dig a little deeper.
If you don't think your child is behaving differently or exhibiting any
of these problems, then maybe you can afford to leave well alone and
afford her the privacy that she thinks she deserves!
Q: My 11 year-old daughter wants to spend all her spare time on
the Internet, chatting with friends and searching teen-targeting web
sites. How much Internet time is appropriate for pre-teens?
A: At that age it's just not healthy for children to spend all
their time on the Internet, any more than it's healthy to be watching
TV all day long. You need to agree some limits - an hour after school
and maybe a little more time at the weekend seems perfectly reasonable
to us. If she is using the family computer (which we hope she is!),
install some parental controls that allow you to pre-set time limits,
so there can be no arguments when her time is up. And make sure you
know what sites she is visiting and who she is talking to. If
necessary, talk to the parents of her online friends and try to agree
on a set of standards that will apply to all of them. Hopefully the
Internet-addiction phase will pass quickly. Then you can have a couple
of years to prepare yourself for the huge cell phone bills that are
sure to follow!
Q: We are fairly comfortable with the parental controls we have
in place on the family computer but these obviously don't apply when
our children go on play dates at friends' houses. How can we insist
that our rules are followed when they are using other peoples'
computers?
A: One of the biggest problems that parents now face is the fact
that the rules and parental controls that they have carefully
constructed for their children can all go by the wayside when their
kids go on play dates and visit their friends' houses. It may be that
the parents don't bother with computer and Internet supervision or it
may be that the rules are different and more lax. Either way, it is
hard to be consistent and fair if your child is exposed to different
standards wherever they go. The best approach? Talk to the parents.
Explain what you are trying to do with your child and the rules that
you have put in place. More often that not, you will find a receptive
ear and might even give them some ideas to adopt for their children's
computer time. Another thing to recommend to them....Visit The Online
Mom!
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