How to Limit Kids' Use of the Internet at Home
The National Institutes of Health and the advocacy group Common Sense Media released a report in 2008 linking media exposure to adverse health effects in kids. The New York Times quoted Jim Steyer, head of Common Sense Media, as saying: "If you plop your kids down in front of the TV or the computer for five hours a day, it can change their brain development, it can make them fat, and it can lead them to get involved in risky sexual activity at a young age." Parents who want to restrict their children's Internet usage can use any of a number of methods.
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Instructions
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Keep the computer in a communal place so you can keep tabs on its use. Make exploring the Internet a family activity that involves making discoveries and working on projects together.
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Set limits for your child and be consistent in enforcing them. Try using a timer to signal that the child's time is up or use verbal countdowns, such as "10 minutes left" and "five minutes left."
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Download software--such as Cybersitter, KidsWatch, and iNet Protector--that will control your kids' Internet usage for you. The programs limit time online, restrict access to inappropriate websites and provide reports of usage.
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Provide enjoyable alternatives to the Internet. Get your child involved in activities that will stimulate his development, such as art classes, team sports, dance classes, cooking lessons, etc.
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Connect your child's online interests to real life. For instance, if she enjoys an espionage video game, buy her a book on famous spies or take her to a museum of criminology.
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Set specific requirements for time online. Link the completion of homework or chores to Internet use, or barter time spent outside for time spent online.
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Limit Internet usage to the weekends only, except when using the Internet as a research tool for homework.
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Tips & Warnings
Set a good example for your children: Don't spend excessive time online.
