Social Networking for Kids

Recently my girl asked me about Facebook so I showed it to her. However I did not create an account for her nor did I encourage her to do so. We did however find that about a dozen of her classmates are on it.

Ok ok. I know its the new age the internet age. Afterall I am a blogger myself with several blogs. So what is the harm of letting her have a facebook account? However, I prefer to tackle that a little later on. She is afterall only 8, just discovering how to make friends and socialise in the real world. She does not need the complications of learning how to socialise in the cyber world and deal with all its fascinations, complications etc plus other issues that it will inadvertently bring.

I was amazed that some of her friends has over 250 friends on facebook and lists Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber as favourites. I mean they are only 8? Isn't that growing up a little too soon, too fast? They just graduated from Nursery Rhymes!

My girl asked me about Lady Gaga. She said her friend's favourite song is by Lady Gaga. Her friend told her that all she needs to do is press number 2 on the radio/tv and you can get to listen to Lady Gaga. :) That remark is charming in its innocence and tells me that number 2 on the radio in her home was set not by her. I tried to find some suitable videos on YouTube on Lady Gaga to show her but I could not find any. I find her dressing and manners inappropriate for a child of 8. Imagine wearing a piece of meat to an event. Oh well, it takes all kinds.

Back to Facebook, at the moment I am not prepared to teach my girl about social networking and educate her about safety, cyber bullying etc etc. I am also not prepared to deal with her spending too much time on it, playing games, updating her status etc. So I shall leave it for now. There is no escaping it or course and in time, she will have an account but not now.

Now, she can spend her time reading, instead of updating her profile. And she can worry about which friend to "friend with and not friend with again" the next day at school instead of counting the number of friends she has on Facebook and the number of comments she gets. There is a certain fascination and addiction in it and I prefer that she and I not have to deal with it at this moment, when she is just 8. We also don't have the time for  it and I do not see it as one of the must haves for an 8 year old kid to learn about life and socialising.

Perhaps I am outdated and old fashioned and my girl will suffer from peer pressure of not having a Social Networking account but I think it is the right thing to do for now, for us. In time, she will have an account and I will teach her how to be safe online and deal with all the things that comes from having cyber friends ie friends that she has never met in real life but for now, I shall concentrate on teaching  her how to be a friend in real life. Ok. So now shoot me because I know there are a lot of bloggers with kids who have an online presence who probably think I am making a mountain out of a molehill but then that is just me and that is why I continue to remain anonymous after so many years online. :P