How Young Is Too Young to Use Social Media?

Many children nowadays have at least an iPad or tablet, if not the newest iPhone. With this in mind, many parents either don’t think about or don’t realize how much access to the internet their children have. Too much internet access can be damaging for anyone, especially someone with an innocent and malleable mind.

While it might seem like a good idea to hand your child a device to distract them or keep them occupied, it does inevitably end up harming them. Not only does it expose them to inappropriate material, but it also convinces them to upload their content which puts them at risk of predators online.

Many parents decide to give their children access to the internet. Whether it may be because the children’s begging got through to them, or just because they think that the exposure is a good idea. Either way, there is a great risk of them seeing things that they don’t understand and shouldn’t be seeing at their age.

There is almost a 100 percent guarantee that without the proper limitations, the child will be exposed to something that they shouldn’t. Even as an adult, one will almost definitely see something they weren’t looking for. Children are extremely curious, so if they stumble upon something that isn’t intended for them, they will keep searching and digging deeper to see more.

Many people who were exposed to the inner workings of the internet at a young age explain that they wish that they had kept a few years of their innocence before being let loose on the internet. I had a lot of my childhood taken away from me just because of what I discovered on the web which I should have been able to find out on my own as I grew older and matured.

However, some argue that children being able to use technological devices is a good thing. The internet can be a great learning tool, as well as a great distraction. Some may also argue that young teenagers should be granted some freedom when it comes to the internet. But, the cons definitely outweigh the pros.

A solution to this could be to add restrictions on devices before giving them to your child. Additionally, you could also just prevent letting your child use the internet unsupervised until you deem them mature enough to handle all the internet has to give.

Because parents want to give their children and pre-teens technological freedom, they normally ignore most of the downsides. Keeping these suggestions in mind before letting your child roam the World Wide Web freely could save them a lot of trouble and allow them to fully experience their childhood.