There’s a strange change that has been happening since the dawn of social media and that continues to accelerate every day. Teens are talking less to their parents and engaging more with their peers through social networks and mobile devices. The first shift, not talking to parents, has been happening for a long time but social media has made it even more prevalent. Engaging with their peers – it seems many communicate more with their fingers than their mouths nowadays.
Facebook changed its privacy settings on Wednesday and it's important to know what the new changes mean for users, especially your digitally-connected children.
You might notice that now all your privacy settings are housed under one area called Privacy Shortcuts. But you may not see the changes on your profile yet -- Facebook said it will be rolling this out through the end of this year.
Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google, talked with Reuters last week, mostly about online security and privacy and how both relate to the General Petreaus nonsense. But he also said something interesting about parenting: Have the online talk before the sex talk.
He's got a point. If you do something irresponsible or stupid or even illegal as a 15-year-old kid, the courts will wipe it away when you're 18. But if you do something equally idiotic online, it's probably there forever. While most 15-year-olds, especially ones on the internet, have probably figured out what goes where, the online privacy talk does seem like something that needs to become a child-rearing staple—and a lot of parents are probably not equipped to do that.
When should kids reasonably learn this stuff? And what's the solution when a lot of parents and teachers could stand to get the very same talk Schmidt is asking them to give?
Kids now have access to more information through a 4-inch screen than used to be available in a library the size of a city block, but is it affecting the way they develop for better or worse?
The debate over whether our children are maturing too quickly was reignited last week when the American Academy of Pediatrics published a study which suggests boys are reaching puberty earlier than before. Taking evidence from over 4,000 boys in 41 states, the findings suggested that boys are showing signs of puberty between six months and two years earlier than in past studies. Back in 2010, a similar study of girls in the Journal of Pediatrics revealed that they are also showing signs of puberty earlier than they did in the past – some as young as seven years old.
Have you ever felt worried leaving the Mac with your children? With access to the Internet – the world wide web of unfiltered content and unlimited possibilities – they can virtually do anything unsupervised, from talking to strangers to charging thousands to your credit card, in just a few clicks.
To remain competitive in the increasingly-crowded Android tablet market, Toy retailer Toys ‘R’ Us has announced the introduction of a new seven-inch tablet for kids called Tebeo.
Like discussing the birds and the bees or explaining the infield fly rule, having the ‘Facebook Talk’ is now one of parenting’s essential rites of passage. Your kids need to know the rules of the social media road and, more importantly, you need to know the rules – what you are and aren’t allowed to do in front of their 900 million closest friends. These rules will vary depending on your kids’ ages and personalities, so you’ll probably need to have this talk at least once a year. But here are five things you definitely should not do.
With bagged lunches and crisp clean notebooks, kids everywhere are heading back to school to brush up on their math, English and geography skills. One lesson they won’t get in the classroom, however, is arguably one of the most important for their future success: How to smartly and responsibly handle money. That is a course we leave to parents, who do not get a lesson plan.
“Parents do great teaching kids good manners and how to be safe, make their beds and be culturally savvy,” says Mary Hunt, personal finance expert and author of recently released Raising Financially Confident Kids. “But so very often parents neglect the most important thing of all—to prepare them to be financially astute.”
Starting up is arguably more taxing than adding another newborn to the family. Successful young entrepreneurs share tips to handling the "babies"--both at home and at the office.
Time to run through eight of the best Android apps for kids. These apps will keep your young children amused, occupied, and entertained. Some of them even have educational value.
Kids are insatiable little monsters who will drive you completely insane if you let them. It is vital to develop a repertoire of tricks to keep them amused while you stand in line, cook the dinner, talk on the phone, or write articles. An Android phone loaded with the right apps can be more effective than a children’s entertainer, not to mention more educational and interactive than a TV. You’ll delight in the looks of wonder on their cherubic faces as their rapt attention is held for a precious few minutes and you can get your tasks done in peace.
Some parents worry that their kids will turn to a life of crime. Some worry that the children will forsake an education. But not you. You're more stressed about the kiddehs growing up without a sense of style. Well, OK! You can assuage your misplaced fears with this beautiful baby lounger that exposes them to great design right after birth.
Some parents might balk at spending $420 on a bouncy chair that their kids will probably grow out of in half a year, but they're missing the big picture, right? As an infant your child might not appreciate the chair's graceful curves and perfect use of clear lucite plastic. In fact, they'll probably just puke on it. But on a sub-conscious level they're being exposed to the finer things in life. And one day, just maybe, they'll furnish their homes with items that don't arrive in a flat-pack box.
Your parents are never going to be you. You've probably figured that one out by now, but when you're making suggestions or helping them through a problem, it's easy to forget. You may love your custom XBMC home theater PC, but that's probably a bit much for your mom or dad. You may know what "make a new Finder window" or "open Windows Explorer" means, but they probably don't. Not only is it important to take a step back, but also know that they're probably never going to catch up with you. Although you may love technology, it's not as important to them and it's not going to be. So be sure you remember who you're dealing with. If they ask you for a recommendation for any kind of gadget, be sure to consider what works best for them rather than you. If they need help with a computer problem, help them with detailed steps. Talk it out like you're seeing it for the first time. You can't expect them to know all terms you've picked up over the years, even if they seem incredibly simple. You probably know this already, but when their tech needs arise it is important to remember. If you're very clear, and you explain things thoroughly, there's a better chance they'll pick it up and remember it next time around. That's better for both of you.
Every day the Internet is becoming a more ingrained part of preteens' lives, especially preteens who haven't yet hit Facebook's 13-years-old age requirement. How can parents get an idea of what their kids are doing online while still engendering an environment of love and trust? Much of this relies on parents being open with kids about types of acceptable online behaviors, but it's also important for parents to teach kids the general rules for online safety.
While modern-day teenagers pour massive amounts of personal information onto social networks, one father took offense to a Facebook comment created by his daughter and decided to reach beyond the standard punishment.
Smartphones and tablets, combined with great apps and sensible screen time, can do wonders for entertaining and educating our children. Nevertheless, the interaction with these devices is still limited to a few gestures, so they do little help with developing the kids’ motor skills.
According to a recent study from the NPD Group market research company, 91 percent of kids in the U.S. between the ages of two and 17 are now gamers. But here is the surprising bit: The fastest growing group of young video game players is the toddler set — between two and five years old.
There is a lot you can tell about a person by reading their Facebook profile. From incriminating photos to friendship insights, Facebook tells all. That's one of the reasons so may parents are joining Facebook, according to a recent study. As it turns out, more than half of parents use the popular social network to spy on their kids' Internet activity--and 11 percent of parents joined Facebook for the sole purpose of snooping on their kids! But with the growing number of underage Facebook users, are parents snooping, or safeguarding? Find out the stats on parents and Facebook in the below infographic.
