More than half of the kids aging nine-sixteen years have a smartphone for themselves. Many children use the Internet regularly. Thus, we can infer that social media and the Internet have become a critical part of many children's lives. Now, instead of straight away preventing our children from using the Internet, you should talk to them and educate them about it.
And, here is where digital resilience is of importance. You need to build your children's digital resilience and tell the children how to use the Internet healthily. They should use it in a way that will be beneficial for them, and it should facilitate learning, but not at the cost of their emotional or mental health. So, here is all you need to know to make your kids digitally resilient.
What is it?
When we talk about resilience, it refers to a person's ability to bounce back and to recover from any adversity that comes their way. Similarly, digital resilience is the ability to cope with and recover from the problems that they face online. Children with high digital resilience are more likely to benefit from the Internet positively and are less likely to face harm.
Digital resilience is a by-product of good parenting, good digital skills of a child, and a positive tech attitude. Considering good parenting, it should be consistent and responsive.
What are your responsibilities as a parent?
For starters, you need to teach your children about online awareness and resilience. Clear communication is essential. They should know that bullying is wrong, and even if they see it happening on the Internet, they should stop it by reporting it or informing you or a trusted adult. Here are the things you should do to build digital resilience in your child.
Building digital resilience in your child
Set limits
Setting boundaries can be relatively challenging for both parents and children. Kids need to know why the limits are being set. If they don't understand, they might misinterpret it as a punishment.
Manage screen time
We are aware of how it feels when we are always on our phones or laptops. Similarly, it is equally addictive for children. And since they are into it from an early age, it might turn into a lifestyle as they grow old. It is something you wouldn't want. So, you need to create the ideal balance between screen and offline time. You should teach them about it and also explain the benefits of both sides.
Make use of the parental safety settings.
Many websites, apps, and broadbands have parental safety settings. You can use them to keep your child safe on the Internet and away from potentially harmful content. You can even resort to certain apps that have a kids version of their apps.
Show your involvement in their lives.
Don't make treating the Internet a solo activity. Instead, you should show your involvement and see what they do on social media. You should also have conversations about what they are doing online. If you see that they are not going according to what you said, you should talk to them and explain to them how important it is to be safe on the Internet.
Be the ideal digital citizen.
You need to discuss with your kids the essence of being the ideal digital citizen. They should be looking up to you, and for that, you need to be a good digital citizen. Children should know that if they are not visible on the Internet, it doesn't mean that they should misbehave. Being kind on the Internet is as essential as it is off the Internet.
Don't forget to be assertive.
You should let them know that you will always be there for them if they ever encounter a problem on the Internet. Not only that, but they should know that they can always talk to an adult about their problems, and discussing and talking about things is the ideal way to deal with it.
All in all, following all these steps will gradually help build digital resilience in your child. Now, here is something you should do to ensure that your kids stay safe online.
Download a parental control tool
Downloading a parental control tool will significantly help since it takes care of your child's online safety when you are not around them. You won't have to worry anymore because using these tools eliminates almost all the dangers on the Internet for your child.
One such tool is Avosmart. It is a leading parental control software that has many features that help keep online dangers at bay. Here are some of Avosmart's best features.
- You can block websites and apps that have potentially harmful content
- You can put time limits on games and apps
- If you think that a particular YouTube channel is unsuitable for your child, you can block it
- You can get the location details of your child
- You can get access to your child's accounts on social media apps and search history
- Avosmart provides its users with helpful insights into their children's online activities
All in all, it is a tool that gives you a lot of control in your hand. Simultaneously, it protects your child on the Internet and keeps you worry-free.