Social Media – Tips for Parents

Posted by James Whitaker on 12 December 2016 in

Blog, Blogs, Parent advice

Today One in five 8 to 11 year olds and seven in ten 12 to 15 year olds has a social media profile. Whilst growing up media savvy has many benefits, it also poses some risks. As such its not surprising that, as parents, we want to help our children navigate social media in a positive and productive way whilst keeping them safe.

To help you out we’ve put together some top tips on how to keep your kids safe online.

Find out what sites your child is using and learn about them

Snapchat, Twitter, Peach, Instagram, Yik Yak or Facebook – new social networks are emerging and existing ones are changing all the time. As a parent it can be hard to keep up! Try to find out what your child is using and how they’re using it, talk to them about why they like a particular platform and let them show you how it works.

Keep the conversation going – talk about the dangers

Educate your child about the potential dangers and consequences of social media misuse, many won’t be aware of the potential pitfalls. Using real life examples can help to illustrate possible issues and are a great starting point for an open discussion. Secondly, take the chance to let them educate you! Discuss together the positives of social media and how it can be used productively. It’s a great opportunity to let children to show you their world, even if you (the parent) don’t always understand it.

Establish usage ‘rules’ or guidelines

Depending on your child’s age you want to think about some guidelines and rules for usage. You may have some platforms that you don’t want them to use at all or decide that you simply want to set a time limit for usage. Again, discuss with your child and try to find a set of guidelines they are happy too and instil a positive attitude to social media.

Be aware of privacy settings

When some apps update the privacy settings can automatically change. Make sure you encourage your child to check them regularly and that you do this with them. Remember that most social media sites have a minimum age requirement of 13 to start a profile, ensure that parental controls for PC’s and mobile devices are up to date so that you can monitor what sites are being accessed.