Highlights: Before blocking, muting, and reporting, it’s important to document cyberbullying incidents for evidence. Screenshots are one of the simplest and most effective means of documentation. There are various places to report cyberbullying incidents, depending on what the incident is and what the victim wants to see happen. If there’s one thing that nearly all kids or teens experience at some point, it’s bullying. Kids that aren’t bullied are often engaging in bullying behavior themselves, […]
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Highlights: Teens can find drugs online in a variety of places, including social media. Emojis, money transactions, and internet history can tell you if your teen is involved in drugs. Talking to your teen openly about drug use and online drug sales helps keep the lines of communication open. If you’re the parent of a teen, you’ve probably worried about them getting hooked on social media. But have you worried that they’ll get hooked on […]
Highlights MMOGs can be a good way for families to spend time and play together during pandemic lockdowns. MMOGs help build teamwork and problem-solving skills. Some of the best MMOGs for families include Pirate 101, Wizard 101, Roblox, and DC Universe Online. Are you stuck inside with your family because of pandemic lockdowns? This can be a great time to strengthen relationships and cement family unity if you go about it the right way. That […]
Highlights Cyber predators are having an easier time finding targets in the current environment. Parents may miss signs that their kids are in trouble because they assume their children are safe at home. Parental monitoring software is one tool parents can use to keep their kids safe from predators during the lockdown. There are plenty of inconveniences that have come along because of strict COVID-19 lockdowns. But at least parents whose kids are stuck at […]
Highlights: Bullying can cause an instant reaction, but it can also lead to long-term problems for the bullied child. About 1 in 5 children experience bullying. That’s a high enough number that all parents should be on the lookout for signs that their child is being bullied. Bullying is connected to not just one, but a number of mental health symptoms and conditions. The sooner a mental health condition is recognized and treated or managed, the […]
Highlights Parents need to learn to recognize the signs that their child is bullying. They aren’t always obvious. All children need to talk about bullying with their parents. Parents should treat their children with kindness and respect and model kindness and respect for others. Good behavior should be reinforced and encouraged. Parents can learn a lot by keeping an eye on their child’s social life and online activities. Bullied or Bullying? No one wants their […]
Overview: According to one survey, 73 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds reported having been victims of school bullying in their lifetimes, and 34 percent have experienced cyberbullying. Thirty-two percent of respondents reported bullying others. This article discusses behavioral changes that may signal that a teen is being harassed or harassing others online and what parents can do to stop or prevent online bullying. Cyberbulling Definition: When someone repeatedly threatens, harasses, mistreats, or makes fun of another person (on […]
Overview: Teens who regularly use online platforms should be careful about what they post. Many types of online activity can work against them when they’re ready to apply to colleges or get that first full-time job. Parents can help their teens understand that most online activity is permanent, even if they delete every questionable post on their platforms. There are steps teens can take to clean up their social media presence, but it’s nearly impossible to […]
Highlights: LGBTQ youth generally spend more time online than their heterosexual peers. The Internet offers safe spaces for teens who identify as sexual minorities to interact with peers and find supportive communities where they “fit in.” At the same time, LGBTQ teens are three times more likely to be bullied online than heterosexual peers. Parental monitoring software, when used judiciously, can alert a parent to signs of trouble for their teens. The Internet Can Be a Safe […]
Highlights Teens are using dating apps designed for them but also apps created for adults, sometimes falsifying their birth dates. Dating apps are generally unsafe for teens, allowing them to connect with others who may be lying about their ages, including sexual predators. Parents should talk with their teens about the dangers of meeting people online and setting up meetings with strangers. Parents may want to consider parental monitoring software to keep their teens safe […]
Smartphones have become vital to everyday life. And not just adult lives – teenagers and even younger children have their own phones and use them for a wide variety of daily activities, from communicating with friends to entertaining themselves. However, giving your child a smartphone allows them full access to the web, and there’s also no question that there are a lot of sites on the internet that simply aren’t appropriate for children. If you […]
Children of all ages use smartphones and tablets to talk to their friends, entertain themselves, and even for schoolwork. While not all parents agree on how young is too young to start using devices, most do agree that at some point, children need to have and use digital devices. However, children and teenagers are not adults. There are inherent risks in giving a child a device that’s able to access the entire internet. You probably […]
This fall, the back-to-school season went a little differently than usual for most families. Rather than returning to their classrooms with their bookbags and school supplies, many children logged onto a Zoom call from their home computers instead. Thanks to COVID-19, returning to brick and mortar school just wasn’t an option for a lot of families, and even some families who had the option opted not to send their children back to school for safety […]
While many parents and educators are concerned about the effect of a lot of screen time on children, many were relieved to pivot to online learning and online entertainment as a way to make sure that kids get education and socialization while staying safe and healthy during a pandemic. Living in the internet age has some real advantages. But it also has some real downsides, and it may be that the increased use of internet-connected […]
Halloween is meant to be scary in a fun way, but parents have a lot of real, not-so-fun reasons to be scared on Halloween. The whole point of trick-or-treating is to solicit candy from strangers – what if your child receives tainted candy? Or eats something they’re allergic to? What if they’re walking in the road and get hit by a car? What if they’re accosted by bullies? If you have slightly older children, you […]