"Underage" Use of Facebook

I don't know how many of the middle school parents know about our Synergy blog yet, but I read this in School Library Journal, a professional resource I use at the library. We all know the potential misuse/abuses with Facebook, and not to be suspicious, but kids are curious. The study says 7.5 million "underage" kids (under Facebook's 13 year old age requirement) use Facebook, and 5 million of those are 10 and under.

I have first-hand experience with this myself. My 11 year old cousin made up a birthdate that put her older than me (graduated from Penn State Class of '99!) so that she could get on Facebook with her friends, after my aunt had said no. Being 11 and not supervised, she has no clue what all's out there, the viruses, let alone inappropriate behavior possible. She even sent me a message saying , "Shh! Don't tell Mom!" (Of course I did tell mom.) I know, in her mind, it's a harmless site, like Webkinz that she used to spend hours on. A place where she can talk to friends, take quizzes and play games. But there's still too much potential for misuse/abuse, especially when kids aren't being supervised or haven't been educated on privacy settings, what not to "click" and all the new potential safety risks with our increasingly online generation. And my cousin? Despite being a "good kid", she got into a fight with a friend at school, and the two girls started arguing online. The principal had to call my aunt and the other girl's mom to talk about cyber-bullying.

I'm not suggesting you always be suspicious of your child, but be aware of their curiosity and face it head on so they don't go behind your backs.

Teens and cars

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/hopeingod/SamsBlog/~3/6jPU1Mn-vSw/teen-crashes

College students and "the call"

Article about how college freshman are finding it more difficult than ever to adjust to college life and deal with the distance from mom and dad:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10298/1097855-298.stm#ixzz149COZb00

Fascinating study on the relationship between technology and permissive behavior

This is an interesting study - the relationship between students who are hyper-texters and hyper-networkers (social networks) and permissive behavior.

Make sure you check out the video which goes through everything. It is interesting that they are not necessarily saying that this is cause and effect; but it is alarming that those students who tend to be obsessive about these things seem to also have tendencies toward peer pressure and at-risk behavior.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/TECH/social.media/11/10/hyper.texting.teens/

Rise in profanity on TV over the last 5 years

Just came across a study that was done to see if television is getting more profane, and here it is if you as a parent care to take a look at it. Just a warning - There is a table at the end that lists the offensive words, so don't be shocked when you come across them.

http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/publications/reports/2010ProfanityStudy/study.pdf

Family greatest influence on a teen

This shouldn't come as a surprise-  it is what the Bible has been saying for quite a long time. But there are times that as a parent you doubt if you are having any impact at all. Trust me-  you are. One way or another.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/secret-to-healthy-adult-functioning-close-family-relationships-as-a-teen-study-finds-104503269.html

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10 ways parents can protect kids from cyber-bullying

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/10/07/ways-parents-protect-kids-cyberbullying/

Parenting Beyond Your Capacity

Hello parents!

You have heard me talking about the concept of "Orange", and I wanted to  make you all aware of this book that is put out by "Re-Think", which is where  all this Orange stuff comes from anyway.

It is written just for you as parents, and it boils down the parental portions of  the book "Think Orange", giving you something tangible to apply to  parenting.

As parents we know we are called by God to disciple our children, and in our heart we really do want to. At times it is hard to know where to start, or what it really looks like in real life. That is where this book comes in - it is practical advice on how to disciple your children for God's glory.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book - so much so that I bought 2 copies and put them in the church library so you can read them. So I want to really challenge you to take the time to check it out of the library and read through it. It isn't that long, and I really believe it will be super helpful.

Be sure to let me know what you think of it when you do read it! I want to dialog about this stuff.

 

Challenging article for parents of athletes

So I came across this article today which is written by a pastor in Maine who has worked with students for a while (Scott Linscott). While much of it is written with the extreme athletically driven parent in mind, I think it is thought provoking for all parents of teenagers to check out.

Let me know if you like it. Or if you think the guy is a jerk. :)

You can find it at Mark Oestreicher's blog here:

http://whyismarko.com/2010/open-letter-to-parents-of-teens/

Great post from a father striving to be intentional about spending time with his kids

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/challies/XhEt/~3/T0i4XUf-1XI/on-being-a-dad

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Facebook Places

Facebook Places has now launched. Anyone can find out where you are when you're logged in, including addresses & map location. Parents - make sure your kids know. To undo: go to "Account," then choose "AccountSettings," then go to the tab across the top marked "Notifications,"then scroll down to "Places" and uncheck the 2 boxes.

It looks like facebook places works with the iphone application and the touch.facebook.com site which would be accessed from a smartphone. That might be it for now, but I plan on finding out more info.

You can check out more info about it at:  http://www.facebook.com/places/

Family Worship

http://theresurgence.com/martyn_lloyd_jones_family_worship

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quote from "Think Orange"

"During the formative and teenage years, it is actually more essential for the parents to earn trust with the child than it is for the child to earn trust with the parents."

The point the author is making is that parenting is all about children trusting in us and their relationship with us - that is what is going to motivate them to follow our guidelines and rules when they don't like them and don't understand them.
Just like how God asks us to trust in His love and wisdom when we don't want to obey him. We can't figure everything (or most things) out, but we do know He is a good God and so we follow.

Orange Parents

This concept of orange is something I will be talking about at the parent meeting on Sunday. Check out this website - it is a good resource to increase the synergy between church and home.

http://www.orangeparents.org/

Parenting with Hope in the Worst of Times

Here is an excellent blog post from Desiring God ministries about the brokenness and boldness that is required of those of us who are seeking to shepherd our children. I imagine the sermon is very good, and I think I will jump over there and listen to it now.

http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/2309_parenting_with_hope_in_the_worst_of_times/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+DGBlog+(DG+Blog)