Keeping Kids Sharp And Safe – By Controlling Online Access

Parents and teachers have suspected it for years, and research confirms it: When kids are out of school for the summer, they can lose ground on their reading and math skills. So how can you make learning a year-round activity – whether school is in or not?

In today’s homes, multiple connected devices – smartphones, laptops, gaming consoles, tablets and TVs – are widely used by most kids. About 75% of children age eight and under use electronics, and 95% of teens are on social media. Devices can be used for educational enrichment, which can help parents make sure kids continue learning year-round.

On the flip side, connected devices can also offer endless distractions that get in the way of learning and school work. Worse yet, they can expose children to threats: Studies show that 90% of kids have accessed inappropriate content online, while more than half have shared personal information with strangers and upwards of 40% have been bullied online.

The only way to address all of these issues is to take control of device usage in your home. In companies, the chief information officer (CIO) manages online access and authorizes use. At home, you can be the CIO if you have the right knowledge and tools. Here are 10 tips that can help you get started:

1. Make rules and stick to them. Set time limits on kids’ daily device usage for entertainment, and hold them to it. There are device management solutions that allow you to restrict online time, which can help you enforce the rules.
2. Make sure kids can handle the device. These days, some kids get smartphones in kindergarten, while other parents make their children wait until middle or high school. You know your kids best, so make the right choice for them.
3. Password protect all devices. Set up a password for every device, and make sure you create separate profiles for each child who uses them. Different ages may require different restrictions, and this will enable you to manage them all.
4. Set restrictions on apps and TV channels. Not all apps or television channels are appropriate for children, and if you have a good device management solution, you can easily block inappropriate content.
5. Filter web content. To protect kids from inappropriate web content, you can set filters, such as under age 18 content only. You can also block content from sites that contain certain words or themes.
6. Set blocks on outgoing content. Kids don’t always know what is appropriate to share, such as videos or pictures. One instance of bad judgment can cause endless trouble. You can block specific types of outgoing content to keep kids safe.
7. Monitor online activities. You can’t be there every minute, but there are tools available that allow you to monitor online activities across all device types. As a parent, you monitor what they do in the real world; it makes sense to keep tabs virtually too.
8. Talk to children about how to protect themselves online. Kids need to understand that there are real dangers in cyberspace. Talk to them about cyber-bullying, danger from online predators and other hazards.
9. “Friend” your kids online. If your children are on social media, you can keep an eye on their activities if you “friend” them of Facebook and follow them on Twitter or other platforms. It’s also a good idea to play online games with them and interact via apps.
10. Don’t be afraid to use parental control tools. Being a parent has never been an easy job, but in some ways, connected devices make it even harder. Luckily, there are parental control solutions you can use to manage it all.

The Internet, TV, connected devices and apps can be a great way for kids to learn more about the world around them. There’s plenty of educational content available to help children keep learning all year long, even when school is out for the summer.

But there are real dangers to address as well, including distractions that can affect academic performance, cyber-bullying and over-sharing with strangers. By keeping an open dialog with your kids and using device management and parental control tools, you can address these issues and keep your kids sharp – and safe!

Omer Faiyaz is the founder and CEO of Remo Software, which specializes in streamlining the ever-growing number of mobile electronics in the smart home in order to keep families connected, organized and efficient.