Fellow parents- your opinion on kids and Facebook (or Myspace?)

[tigereye]

I have a 13 year old whom I think might enjoy some aspects of Facebook - curious what your experiences with your teens have been...


Do you make sure that you can see what's on there and whom they are talking to, or do you let them have privacy. Just curious.

[Kali]

1. I let my kids have privacy

but that is a huge value in my family so that may be more freedom than some others are comfortable with. Having said that, my son just sent me a friend request...AAAWWWWWWWWWW isn't that sweet?


he is now my second friend:P

[HopeHoops]

3. I don't know about MySpace, but I got a Facebook account to see what it was about.

My eldest was on a well-supervised trip to Europe last year (at age 17) and Facebook was the means by which everyone (from all over the world) agreed to keep in touch. She asked permission to get an account and I granted it. Then I got one to see what it was about. It seems pretty safe. Curiously, I've been contacted by dozens of old friends from high school, college and other avenues. Two of them are girlfriends I had long before meeting my wife. No threat involved. That's just weird.

At 13, I might suggest some supervision at first (at least), but I suspect it is fairly safe.

[tigereye]

10. I love it, and it seems like a nice way to connect with friends

and I suspect that would probably be true for teens - we always supervise stuff anyway - like youtube, etc. The only thing that seems to happen for some teens is internet/ gossip-stuff that can be really unkind and unbalancing.

[tigereye]

6. I see some of my friend's kids (or kids from my son's school, but I usually

ask them if it's ok to see their Facebook info. I don't want to intrude on the teen vibe, so to speak. :D

[seabeyond]

2. kids dont do it

they dont have much interest. kids, 12 and 14, dont have "privacy" on puter. and even if they did have interest in either of the two, hubby and i say no. there is too much trash.

but then i have also done tons over the years with kids, talking, telling my position, back and forth discussions, all the ground work on our position so it isnt even kinda a battle in our house.

as i said in another post

i am a hard ass in some ways and mellow and laid back in others.

[seabeyond]

4. tell ya something else about facebook

i have never done, didn't want to do. an acquaintance, i barely know, see her at eye doctor, set me up as a friend. i registered, went in and looked and was done. k, big deal. NOW.... i am getting emails about writing something on my wall. what wall. i didn't ask fro a wall. dont even know what wall is. and they know when you go in. and now she wants me to be a friend in her husbands facebook and i really dont know him

i just got my third friggin message about my wall.

nag
nag
nag

[tigereye]

5. I really like it - although the "feed" (wall) can be a bit annoying

I kind of like seeing what old and new friends are thinking about. And I get lots of cool music updates (I'm an alternative music person, so it's all good.)


The wall is part of your profile, or on the main page.


:hi: sea

[PassingFair]

7. My 13 year old met a 14 year old on her MySpace.

They chatted back and forth for about a
year....he lives in Montreal and we live
in Detroit.

They wanted to meet, and we needed a vacation,
so we contacted his parents and set up a visit
to their home...we joked with friends that we
were going to visit our daughter's on-line sex
predator...

We got along great with his parents, loved his
little twin sisters and had a GREAT week schlepping
the two kids around. His parents even took our daughter
out for a Ringette http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringette
match his sisters were playing in
and made reservations at a wonderful restaurant so
my husband and I could get some time alone.

The two kids hit it off so well, it seemed that
they were male and female versions of the same
person. I don't think they ever would have had
the opportunity to meet if they hadn't "clicked"
on the internet and been determined to meet each
other.

They are snail-mail pals, he has a girlfriend
and my daughter has closer crushes to worry
about now, but I think they will always be friends.

As long as parents are kept in the loop, I don't see
a problem with FaceBook or MySpace, just make sure
that the computer is in a public room that EVERYONE
can see if they walk by.

Just MY experience....your mileage may vary.

[tigereye]

11. what a cool thing- kind of like the pen-pal thing from the past, but on a

larger scale, I suppose. Great that they connected...

[Kali]

12. aww what a sweet story

I get so tired of the fearmongering. There are a hell of a lot of good people in the world.

[PassingFair]

13. At first, he was afraid to tell his parents that he had

made a friend on line...the two of them wanted
us to drive to Montreal and meet up at a MALL!?!!

I told her that if it was really going to happen,
he had to suck it up and tell his parents, because
there was no way in hell that I was going to drive
across an BORDER to meet a teenage BOY at a mall!

The initial phone call was a little awkward...
but meeting them was fun, after all, they were
raising the male twin of my daughter!

I know that trip will be one of my daughter's
best memories when she grows up. My other daughter
(16) was in India at the time, doing a student
exchange, so the little one was kind of lonely.

[Mojambo]

8. I think a fair compromise position is only allowing them to friend people YOU know or have met.

[tigereye]

9. well, that makes sense - I would probably want that anyway