When is the Right Time to Let My Children Have Social Media?
One of the best parts about parenting is seeing your child reach certain milestones—saying their first word, crawling, walking, potty training, and feeding themselves. These are some of the big milestones your baby hit while growing up.
But now they’re a little older, and there are new milestones that they’re hitting. There are even new wants and needs.
You miss the days of your child asking for a piece of candy or a toy at the store. Since they’re a little older now, their latest request is a cell phone. And more specifically, they want it for social media.
Let’s learn more about when it’s the right time to let your children have social media.
Consider Their Maturity Levels
While most social media websites have an age limit that a user must meet before they can join, you should also consider your children’s maturity levels before joining. You may have a very mature thirteen-year-old, but you may know of a few older children from family, friends, and neighbors who don’t seem as mature. There are both positives and negatives for social media usage. There isn’t a right answer when determining if your child is ready for social media. Let’s go over some of the positives and negatives of social media.
The Positive Side of Social Media
Social media is a great way for people to connect without even needing to be in the same room. It can help children connect with like-minded individuals. They can also express themselves creatively by taking and posting photos of what’s going on in their day-to-day lives. Social media is a great tool for connecting users with their friends and followers, and it’s also a way for children to feel more accepted by their peers. In today’s world, social media use can also make someone even more employable.
The Negative Side of Social Media
While there may be positives to social media, there are also some drawbacks. Social media can be a time suck. Children may be consumed or wrapped up in the constant scrolling, liking, commenting, and other interactions that they may spend most of their day on social media. This can take away from them actually being productive or building real relationships.
Social media can also cause self-judgment or low self-esteem issues. When people post on social media, you’re only seeing their highlight reels. They post the best photos of themselves. You’re not actually seeing the behind-the-scenes of it all. You don’t see how many of the same photos they have on their camera roll, the editing, the filters, or what it took to make that one picture happen. You’re also only seeing that one moment in time. You’re not getting a good idea of what their life is actually like.
How to Introduce Social Media
No matter what age you decide is best for your child to start using social media, it’s always a good idea to have a conversation with them about proper social media use. Make sure you’re sitting down and talking with them about how they should handle social media and your expectations for their use of it.
As a parent, you can set up privacy restrictions or limits so that their social media feed can be age-appropriate. You can also initiate time restrictions on their phones for how much time they’re allotted for social media each day. If you’re worried about their use, you can even make it a requirement that you monitor their social media or that they have to be friends with you so you can keep tabs on what they’re posting.
Next Steps
When it comes to social media, there isn’t necessarily a right time to introduce your children to social media. If you’re looking for a second opinion from an outside third party, Fox Child and Family Therapy is here to help. Whether you’re looking for additional support for you or your child, reach out to us today at 913-229-5691 to set up a consultation.