Monthly Archives: October 2013

Internet safety experts sometimes suggest that parents keep an eye on their kids’ online behaviour by placing the family computer in a common area, such as the living room. With smartphones, this advice is no longer as relevant: most kids now access the Internet through their own mobile devices rather than the family PC. To help parents keep their children safer online, Qustodio has launched an app for iOS to make surfing safer on iPhone, iPad and iPod. Here’s how it works: Read more

Earlier this week, educator and IT specialist Tim Wilson released his study on kids’ Internet use, and the results are alarming. The study, organized by the (ISC)2 Foundation’s Safe and Secure Online Programme, surveyed 1,162 primary school students about their Internet and social media habits. Read more

Clearing a Path for Parents through Today’s Digital Chaos There's always a lot of expert advice when it comes to kids and technology and not all of it is either helpful or useful. We try to focus the Qustodio Blog on sharing relevant information. We know that the real experts when it comes to kids are you: all the moms and dads out there on the front lines. You see at first hand how technology is affecting your kids daily. Last week, we spoke with Samantha Kemp-Jackson, known in the blogosphere as Multiple Mayhem Mamma and asked her about some of the issues facing parents. As well as being a real life mom of four, Sam is parenting writer for The Huffington Post. Sam had some great advice: getting involved and, rather than just talking about being a good digital citizen, showing your child by example. Read the full interview: Read more

Parents have many concerns about their kids’ technology use (and rightfully so!). Aside from the usual suspects—cyberbullying, online predators, and behavioral issues—apparently, there are also a host of health problems associated with too much time in front of a screen, including scary sounding conditions like text claw and iPosture. Who knew? Read more

If your child has a Facebook account, you've probably been teaching them for some time about safe and responsible internet use. Hopefully, you’ve had a discussion on what can and cannot be shared and posted on Facebook, and have both agreed what constitutes acceptable use. You've also talked about things like cyberbullying and how important it is to be nice… Read more

If you have a preschooler, then you must check out PBS Kids’ new series “Peg+Cat.” We know, we know, there are so many different media choices out there for you and your little one to choose from. Some are mindless fun and others teach a lesson or two, so what makes PBS Kids’ latest roll-out a must-see? Read on to find out. ### It’s super educational. There are lots of television shows, games, and apps that purport themselves to be educational, but like many of the shows and PBS kids games on the broadcasting company’s line-up, Peg + Cat is the real deal. Read more

With all of the information available on the dangers of too much screen time and the need to set time limits, there’s probably not a responsible parent left on the planet who isn’t aware that too much time in front of a digital device is harmful to kids. Actually setting up healthy time limits and (perhaps even more challenging) sticking to these agreed-upon parameters is an entirely different thing altogether. Read more

Parents used to refer to their children as "wired" when they were particularly energetic or experiencing a sugar high but today the term"wired" has a completely different meaning. Generation C (aka The Connected Generation) are kids who have never known a world without the Internet, Smartphones, and educational apps. You may not know it but your child is probably wired... read on to see a great infographic that explains all about the wired child and Generation C. Read more

Teens and parents alike have long expressed concern over the permanency of Internet and social media posts. We advise our kids to “think before you post” and pray that they’ll listen. The state of California, however, is taking measures to protect those kids who, despite these warnings, slip up and post something that they later regret. Read more