Many parents wonder at what age they should allow their children to get on the internet. This is a very personal decision and the answer will vary for every family. However this article will discuss some of the things a parent should keep in mind when making this decision for their household.
The first thing to remember is that no matter what age a parent allows their child to use the internet, it should not be something that the child does alone. Depending on the child’s age, the parent may not need to sit right there and help with every mouse click, but the parent should be involved. The best recommendation I have heard is that the computer the child uses to access the internet should be centrally located in the house, in an area where others can easily see and hear what might be occurring. The child will have less temptation of doing something they shouldn’t if they know that their mom or dad may be walking by at any given moment. Also, if the child inadvertently gets into something they shouldn’t be doing it is more likely the parent will see to intervene.
There are dangers online, and they must be carefully monitored; however, there are many amazing websites that a child can access. My own daughter is seven, and a budding chef. She spends all of her online time browsing around on the website of food companies like Betty Crocker and Kraft watching videos, reading cooking tips and playing cooking games. I feel like she is practically getting a secondary education just from spending some of her leisure time on the internet each day instead of playing the Wii or watching cartoons. One thing our family has to be careful of is making sure she doesn’t become too involved so we make sure she has a daily limit of internet access time.