There’s a difficult balance between monitoring your child’s everyday activities and giving them the space to grow, make mistakes, and think as independent learners. Placing a device in your child’s hands and saying, “Go!” is certain to cause problems, as is managing their usage at all times. It’s up to each parent to decide how strict or how loose to be when it comes to parental controls on their child’s devices. Regardless of your feelings on the matter, open and honest parental involvement can often be more effective than monitoring tools in keeping your child safe (University of Central Florida, 2018.) Still, options are out there and can be used in addition to honest communication about internet safety with your child.
Below, you’ll find some information on parental control options offered directly from Apple and Google for iPhones and Androids respectively. To see a more comprehensive list, including Windows, Mac OS, and even individual apps, check out Common Sense Media’s Ultimate Guide to Parental Controls.
Be aware, there are both paid and free options available for parental controls. You may first consider using free, first-party parental control options (such as those offered by Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon for their respective devices) then look into third-party options. Thoroughly review any tool or app before you trust it to run on your family’s devices.
Use parental controls on your child's iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch - Apple Support
Use Screen Time on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support
Google Family Link - Apps on Google Play
Android phones may also have other parental control options based on the manufacturer of the device (e.g.: Samsung, Google, Motorola, LG.) Search up which options are available based on your child’s phone model.
Parental controls can’t replace open communication between a parent and child, but it can be hard to know how to start these conversations. Check out our “Activities” folder full of family activities, along with grade-appropriate conversation starters by Common Sense Education.
If you’ve decided to enable parental controls on your child’s device, check out these articles with tips on how to have an open conversation about the reason for their use.
5 Tips for Talking with Your Kids About Parental Control Apps
10 Tips for Building Trust With Parental Controls - Spark & Stitch Institute