Protecting Kids in Social Media

Social Media has been dubbed as the future of communication and has become highly depended upon by our students. The social media experience of a student is much more different than that of an adult. While adults may turn to social networking as a way to stay connected with family and old high school classmates, kids place a different spin on usage of the networks. It is important for parents to know these differences to effectively monitor your child’s safety.

Although there are more social media platforms popping up every day, there are networks your kids likely frequent. Believe it or not, Club Penguin is available to children as young as five years old. Your kids are likely using platforms such as Twitter, InstaGram, and Oovoo. Kids love these platforms because parents are not using them. Parents tend to be more active on Facebook. How do you protect your kids if you are not a member of these sites?

Each of these sites requires an email address or cellular phone to set up. Ask your student to list the sites with login and passwords they have set up membership with. Email is a usual tell-tale for which accounts they have subscribed to. Mobile applications are also an indicator of membership. Do not be afraid to log in and see what is going on, whom they are friends with, and what they are communicating about. Many adults pose as students to gain the students’ trust.

Start with setting ground rules for social media usage. Club Penguin is a trusted site which prides itself in keeping the child’s identity private. However, profiles on other social sites such as those mentioned above can be found from a Google search. Review your child’s privacy settings. Ensure kids only connect with people they know. Limit the time spent on these networks. Establish what is appropriate to post. Log into their accounts to see what is not posted publicly. Check their accounts periodically. Social Media Couple’s has provided an in-depth Facebook agreement for families you can download here http://bit.ly/RuHv4o to help get the conversation started.

Blog submitted by Sharita J. Lee, MBA with JusSharLee Management, LLC www.jussharlee.com