Tweens and Tablets

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of OurPact.

The other day I was looking over my B’s shoulder as he was playing Minecraft on the iPad that we consider “his”. He has loaded it with apps that he likes and uses it more than anyone else. It was a gift for the family so we did not buy it specifically for him but we (his father and I) decided that he could benefit from using it for the games he likes as well as homework assignments. This is the way of the world now.

I do not mind that he plays Minecraft, I quite like it actually, that specific game anyway. I do however wonder sometimes about the time spent and I will admit I am not always the best at monitoring how long he (and even his brother or sister) are using these devices. Especially on the weekends.

In additon to being old enough to Google just about anything, he is also starting to “tune in” to social media and recently mentioned creating his own Instagram account. I told him he was too young for that. It is funny though, sometimes he’ll ask me to post something for him and so the other day I said, “Get your own IG account”, in a joking way. Then he looked at me funny and said he was too young and I agreed.

Of course this is all new territory for me as a parent, even for someone like me who has been online in some way for almost a decade. Things were so different then, however, and I was also an adult when I started spending time in cyber space – one who was sort of raised on television, but that’s another story. Back when I began blogging in late 2006, there was no such thing as Twitter yet or good golly, Tinder or Snap Chat. Facebook may have been around but at that time I was on My Space (very rarely, I might add). Instagram was not even a twinkle in anyone’s mind’s eye and I still had a “flip” phone.

Now, my son texts for free on my old phone (that he uses as an iTouch, it does not have cell service) and probably only talks about things tween boys talk about like games, sports or something going on at school. They are good kids.

But, not everyone is good and the fact is, our children and teens are spending a continued increasing amount of time on phones and other devices. And because we, as their parents, are their guides in things like this, I believe it is essential that we set up guidelines for both where they visit and how long.

This is where OurPact comes in.

One the app is downloaded to your phone or device, you can:

● Set the number of hours your children spend on the Internet and within Apps.

● Block Internet and Apps at a touch.

● Allow Website and App access, whenever you feel your child “needs more time”, at a touch.

●Block all apps (eg. Facebook, SnapChat, Instagram, Twitter, etc.), as you see fit.

I let my tween son know I was doing this and he was “cool” with it. I told him that I had the ability to block things and that if I felt like he was spending too much time playing that I would. He understood and then we teased that maybe he needs an app for me too. 😉 Now to get it for Android (coming soon) so I can use this on G’s tablet as well… that kiddo LOVES games too!

You can get a family contract here. I may need to sign one as well.

Click to go to iTunes store and download app

From their site: