Creative Family Fun - Entries written by Entrusted Staff

Robbie's Top Tech Tips for Families

• At a minimum, set the safe search settings in your browser or computer to “Block Inappropriate Content.” There are also accountability and filtering tools, like www.covenanteyes.com and www.netnanny.com. These filters and controls are helpful, but don’t rely fully on them. The Internet cannot be “childproofed.” That job is up to us as parents.
• Check social networking rules for the minimum age requirement, but also use your parental judgment to determine whether your child is educated and mature enough to handle this type of social interaction. Just because 13 is the minimum age for having a Facebook page, does not mean your child is ready to be a member of the Facebook community.
• Become a member and get to know the culture of the cyber-environments your children are interested in using before they join. Be sure they understand there will be an “open-door policy” with all technology they are using. They must understand you will be their “Friend” on Facebook and MySpace, will be following them on Twitter, and will be checking in on their other friends and the communication that is happening. Your children need to know you are there to help keep them safe.
• Utilize the parental controls that are available on your child’s cell phone. Most providers have options to limit the amount and times of usage and to block specific incoming and outgoing texts or calls. Certain plans also allow you to set up a list of approved callers who can call or send text messages to your child.
• Show your children positive ways to use technology. Model the use of an online Bible tool such as www.biblegateway.com or www.blueletterbible.org.  Introduce them to a new educational game available on-line like www.funbrain.com,  www.coolmath.com, www.exploratorium.com, or let the creative part of their brain grow by using a site like www.glogster.com.  
• Stress the importance of security with the technology they are using. Children should NEVER submit any personal information online unless they’ve checked with you first. Some websites require an email address and first or last names. Explain the dangers of sharing usernames and passwords with others. Additionally, ensure that your computer software is up-to-date.  This includes the updates for the operating system as well as a firewall and virus and spam protection. Some popular virus/spam programs are www.symantec.com, www.norton.com, and www.mcafee.com. A free virus/spamware program can be found at http://free.avg.com.