Parents, how do you deal with your kids and their electronics?

I'm very curios about this, a post popped up on social media today asking how old your kid will be/was when you let them start using certain apps (The one in the discussion was snapchat).

Back when i was a kid we didn't have smartphones or anything like that, I had a computer since 3rd or 4th grade but no internet, and I was probably 15 before I got an iPod.
Hell i didn't even get snapchat until last year.

So discuss away.

 

Kik appears to be one to watch out for. A girl got murdered using it.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...app-scrutinized-wake-va-teens-murder/79826224

 

Speaking from a teens perspective. Kids use these apps at all ages, as long as you have instilled good judgment in them everything will be fine. You have to have some level of trust in kids, and maybe if you don't trust them do phone checks if you think they're up to something. But then again kids will be kids and do dumb things.

 

That KIK was also an app that this creep used to contact a minor.

http://www.seacoastecho.com/article_9707.shtml#.VwnDB4TdtEI

I'm also a teen and I have to disagree, it may be the way I was raised but the only way my kids will be able to be digitally contacted (until probably 16) is through calls and texts from their contact list, if somebody wants to be added to a contact they can bring a name and phone number written on a piece of paper.

Some apps like instagram I agree, they can use younger, but so many kids are addicted to technology it's not right.

 

kik is great for nudes, but remember, never send a dick pic

 

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=943_1460253707

Never heard you complain before...

 

Dont be a scumbag parent. Its our job to raise a child not a friend. They need to be disciplined. If my kids get in trouble they lose they electeonic privlages for weeks. We dont need them to live so its not an issue.

 

How old of kids are we talking? I have a 9 and a 12 year old and zero have cell phones as I do not believe in it. I have a spare Trac Phone I keep active in case my 12 year old stays after school for something. Other than that the 12 year old has a School given iPad and that's it. I have a 23 year old Daughter who was abducted at 12, I will get into that further after. And always remember you are the Parent not their friend.

 

I dislike all these damn electronics and social media things (Facebook, Twitter, etc) My wife's argument is that "its what kids do nowadays". BULLSHIT! I say its like that because parents allow it. I'd rather it'd be something for them to screw around with after they got done playing outside all afternoon! The second the kid gets home, its in to his room door closed till bedtime! I say they get rid of all this crap. BLAH!

I gave up that fight, wife can deal with it.

 

A friend of mine has 2 young boys with iphones. She has the accounts "mirrored" so that she can see (on her ipad) every place they go and every text they send

 

We have three kids, two boys, 9 and 7, and girl who is 5. They don't have cell phones. (Yes, we know families whose kids that age have cell phones. Yes, it's ridiculous.) I'm not sure when we'll get them cell phones. I don't really think there is a hard-and-fast age for that, I think you just need to evaluate your child and their level of responsibility and go from there. Our plan is that we're going to wait until one of them asks for a cell phone and then evaluate from there.

As for household electronics, they have a Wii that they play occasionally, and they play Minecraft and other casual games on an iPad and a Kindle. We monitor their time, they only get about half-an-hour a day or so. Other than that we encourage them to read or play outside. No couch potatoes.