The Information/Social Media Age brings about great change in the way we live our lives. I have more social media accounts than I can count on both hands, although I regularly use only a handful. Via these social media networks I share pieces of my personal life, in words, pics and videos, and the thoughts that I have on a variety of subjects. I frequently post about the interactions with my family, sometimes digging into deeper details on my blog posts.
Consider every post a viral post
One thing I try to keep in mind is that when I post something on a social media account is that it is a worldwide message practically available for anyone to see with a computer and internet connection. Yes, I can send private and/or direct messages to specific people, but I am not certain that those messages are 100% in my control of who can access them.
What age is appropriate for kids’ social media use?
Our oldest of 3 children is 11 years old (turning 12 this summer), and many of her peers (and some younger than her), have social media accounts and are active on them. My wife and I have agreed that our children will not be allowed to have social media profiles until the specified age in each network’s terms & conditions. Even at that age they have to show a maturity level that gives us confidence they can handle what comes with a worldwide voice.
What will your posts reveal about you and your family?
Knowing that this day will come sooner than later I am more conscious of what I post, as I know my daughter will eventually have an account, and have access to my status updates. Although that day may not come for another 2 years, my status updates from yesterday, today and tomorrow will still be accessible. The last thing I want is any of my status updates, related or unrelated to our family, to bring any kind of embarrassment or pain to my daughter. We have probably all watched the “9mm dad” video, well at least 32 million of us have. In addition, my mother is active on social media as well (Facebook and Twitter). I feel the same about my status updates in relation to how they will make her look or feel.
I have read all kinds of status updates, blogs, comments, etc and I can only imagine the affect they may have on a family or the example those updates set for the kids. Social Media is fun and is a great tool that can be used to accomplish a lot. I encourage you to use it wisely, and do like me…do not post anything you wouldn’t want your MOM…or DAUGHTER… seeing.
Question: Do you have a child or parent using Social Media? Do you consider them when posting updates?
This is something I’ve been discussing with my older children as well. It’s one of those conversations you have to have many times over the years to remind them of the possible consequences.
Yes Marta, being a homeschool family one of our “key” words is “modeling”. We try to model the habits, behavior, etc of what we want our kids to do/have. That includes Social Media use.
Good advice. People are often waaaaay too free with what they post! My kids are too young to use any of it right now. It’ll be interesting to see how it has changed by the time they are old enough. It’s changed so much in just the last couple of years; I can’t imagine what it will be like in the next 10!
Thanks Kelly. Yes, it never occurred to me until recently that my kids will eventually be able to access/read my posts. My daughter being the first, probably next Fall (2013). It is amazing how being a parent changes the “game” in everything we do.