The Cyber Safety Tech Mum

The Cyber Safety Expert teaching parents how to keep their kids safe on the internet.

Beginners Guide to Digital Parenting

Beginners Guide to Digital Parenting

Beginners Guide to Digital Parenting

No matter what angle you look at it from, parenting is hard work (but truly rewarding)!  Days are spent meeting requests (or demands!), cleaning up ‘accidents’, undertaking activities, teaching social etiquette and implementing discipline techniques. We are continually striving to help our children become independent and develop the skills to assess risks so that they can make informed choices.  These are the same challenges parents for generations have faced.   But there is something that we deal with now as parents that our parents (and those before them) didn’t have to address – Digital Parenting. 

Now, some children are competent ‘swipers’ even before they can walk.  They are handling smart phones and tablets like pros, not afraid to tap wherever they please. They are Digital Natives. Our Children will handle devices practically every day of their lives for a variety of tasks so we, as parents, need to begin to get a handle on digital parenting so that we can guide our children’s online access and activity.

Related Reading:  A Parent’s Guide to Instagram for Tweens & Teens

What is this Digital Parenting that we now need to add to our Digital Parenting Toolkit?

Online Parenting

Our online parenting is a reflection of our offline parenting.  We teach our kids manners and socially acceptable behaviour and these are transferrable to their digital lives. It is our responsibility to remind them that their behaviour is visible whenever they are online sharing posts, pictures, videos and comments.

Education

We need to take the time to continually educate ourselves and our children on understanding online risks. Learning about privacy and sharing and that sometimes people online are not who they say they are.  Encouraging open dialogue and giving children strategies on what do when they see something online that makes them feel uncomfortable or that they know isn’t right.

Click here for The Screen Time Formula

Become Active in Your Child’s Digital Life

Be involved in your child’s digital life.  Take an interest in what they like to do when they are online.  Are they viewing particular video’s in YouTube?  Could you watch it with them or help them research further into their interest?  What games are they playing?  They could teach you how to play the game.  I bet they know some cool settings on their devices that they could show you too.

Activate Parental Controls

Minimise risks where possible by activating restrictions and parental controls available on most devices.  These restrictions include helping to ensure that your child is viewing age appropriate content. They are helpful but it is important to remember that there are no monitoring tools that replace parental supervision. Check out the internet safety toolkit for some practical guidelines.

Screen Time

Encourage a healthy lifestyle balance by managing screen time .  It is always a good idea to have physical activity prior to screen time. Start early with teaching children to self-regulate their time online, eliminate techno tantrums and internet addiction.  Set ground rules and expectations and re-visit them regularly with the whole family so they can be adjusted as required.  

Screen Time
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The Ultimate Guide to setting safety controls on children's devices

Social Media

You are never going to be able to be across the vast array of social media platforms that are out there.  What you can do is know what your child is using (or wants to use) and then find out about it.  Look into the available privacy settings and understand the platforms functionality – ie.  can everyone see and make comments even if an account is set to private?  ‘Follow’ your child on social media but don’t stalk them.  Alternatively, request that another adult ‘follow’ them (cool older cousin or aunt) so that they can assist you in guiding your child’s online decisions.

Cyberbullying

Bullying has always been an ongoing issue.  Bullying online is termed ‘cyberbullying.’  Ensure that you know the signs of cyberbullying and how you can help to reduce it. Setup a plan with your child so that they can come to you if they feel that others are being unkind to them online.  Be on the look-out to make sure that your child is not being the cyberbully.

Become a Role Model

Our children are always watching us.  Be a role model and set an example when it comes to digital use. You don’t always need to have a device in your hand and if your child is talking to you, then put your device down and make eye contact.  

There will be times when you need to assess the risk and say ‘no’  because that is the right decision for your child (and family).  That is part of parenting – online and offline.

These are all important areas of digital parenting, but it is worth noting that the methods of employing each one will vary differently for every family.  It is important to consider your own family and personal values, personalities as well as your parenting style.

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Comments

  1. Martyn says

    Things have definitely changed and parenting with it. Screen time may have been an issue when I was young, but until the internet and social media happened, that was about it. A cool article. Thanks Tech Mum!

    • TheTechMum says

      I’m glad you liked the article! Without our own experiences of growing up with devices, it’s time to support each other as parents and keep the lines of communication open with our kids.

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