Holidaying with Kids

When it's May, holidays pop into our minds. It creeps into chats, discussions and arguments. Everyone loves a good holiday, but we might all differ in our definition of a ‘good holiday’. The ideal holiday is always one that caters to all of us in small ways. At the end of a holiday, we must all have great memories to keep.

Kids in the Boot by Ben Francis

With kids, it’s all the more difficult. Younger kids have less patience, while older kids enjoy a variety of things. Here are a few things you could try:

Treks: Typically younger kids have no patience for treks which last more than an hour, while older kids are quite comfortable walking for a couple of hours. Many teenagers who enjoy the outdoors can do full-fledged treks on their own.  

City Trips: One has to pick a good kid friendly city, which is friendly to everyone in the family. Generally such trips can include museums, parks, shops, fun eateries, a Zoo if the city has one, the riverfront(again if available) etc.

Road Trips: These can be great fun. It gives families the option to stop and go at their leisure. Younger kids love these breaks. It could be at a park or a restaurant or just an open field. If you are driving along the beach, it’s fun to stop and play a bit before continuing. Here’s more on kid friendly road trips.

Theme Park Trips: These can be great fun, but generally include staying within the theme park premises. After one or two visits, older members of the family might find it boring, but there's always the room to laze in.

Trips are a good way to bond with relatives. It's good to visit them or meet at some place. With nuclear families, trips might be the only time cousins get to meet. So what are you doing this summer?

Your Child and Social Networking – How to Get off on the Right Foot

Everyone’s talking about and on social media – posting selfies on Instagram, tweeting opinions in 140 characters, liking and sharing statuses and videos on Facebook and building professional networks on LinkedIn – we seem to do everything with one eye cocked on social networks. Why should kids be any different? They come with their share of sociability after all, and a need to talk about everything they see and experience, so it’s natural that your child should be curious about whatever social network happens to be currently popular among his or her friends and school mates. As our family lives are affected by social media, we need to know more about it.

“The kid never stops txtn” by Alex Gaylon licensed under CC BY SA 2.0

Networking for Kids – The Need for Vigilance

More than 70% of tweens and teens below 17 are active social networkers and more than 5 million Facebook users are not yet 10. These statistics strike terror into the heart of the bravest parents and rightly so. Toddlers with Twitter handles may be cute but most children are poorly equipped to deal with the predators, stalkers, pedophiles and cyber bullies that populate the underbelly of the virtual world. Burying your head in the sand and refusing to recognize the dangers of social networking simply don’t work. Here are 3 important tips you can use to make it a safe, age-appropriate and pleasant experience for your child.

1.      Allow them to explore kid-friendly websites

Just because they’re under 13 doesn’t mean you should bar your kids from exploring the virtual world. There are plenty of kid-centric websites that offer fun educational games and Role Playing Games where players can chat and interact with like-minded peers. These websites are designed to keep kids safe by blocking the exchange of personal information, inappropriate language and real life contexts – all potential sources of danger your child will definitely encounter on social networking sites meant for adults. Just make sure you do your research before allowing him to sign up. Steering your child in the right direction is as important as steering him away from the wrong one.

2.      Set up limited accessibility

Allowing your child to join social networking sites is fine. What is NOT fine is letting him have unlimited, unsupervised access to social media. Too much screen time can be detrimental to schoolwork, hobbies, real life friendships and family ties. How much is too much? 30-45 minutes a day is more than enough for teens, tweens and younger children. Set and manage the websites your child can visit; monitor his requests and set appropriate restrictions on games and apps. If he uses mobile devices, install parental control aps. Some social media sites have child-friendly privacy settings but you can’t afford to let your guard down.

3.      Make them aware of online dangers

Social networking is a great way for kids to connect with family, friends and class mates. But cyber bullying, identity theft and stranger danger are very real threats that come with the territory. And sometimes, online “friends” can be wolves in sheep’s clothing. Teach your child to take these precautions when he’s online:

·                         Not post his full name, address, school or date of birth
·                       Accept friend requests ONLY from people he knows in the real world
·                       Upload ONLY appropriate pictures, videos and posts
·                       Report bullies immediately

4.      Play Multi Player Games with them

A good way to ease them into the online world is to play along with them on Multi Player Games or Cooperative Games. There are special “Parent” Accounts which can be used. A good thing to do is check the age suitability of the content on a game. Games which involve cooperation in playing, mirror real life and builds a sense of sharing. Inbuilt controls in games, allows parents to make sure that they are around while it’s played. Sites like Common Sense Media have game reviews which are very useful.  

The most important precaution you can take to keep your child safe on social media is to talk to him about it; the earlier the better!