Instagram

goodfin

Looking for advise. What age should children be allowed to have an Instagram accoun . My 10 yr old son says all his friends have one and he wants one too. I don't like the idea of him on social media just yet however I don't want him being the only one not allowed either.
Thanks all

ElleEm

goodfin wrote: »

Looking for advise. What age should children be allowed to have an Instagram accoun . My 10 yr old son says all his friends have one and he wants one too. I don't like the idea of him on social media just yet however I don't want him being the only one not allowed either.
Thanks all

Your answer is in your question, if you don't want him in social media yet, then that is your decision.

Not being allowed use it won't do him any harm. The internet is a scary place for curious kids- unless you can monitor every click or picture viewed, you should keep him off it for a while longer.

goodfin

I have been told by other parents that I need to go with the times and if social media is the way forward I should let him get on with it.

Toots

I think 10 is way too young for a kid to have instagram. In fact the terms and conditions say that they must be at least 13 before they can create an account, and to me that's still a bit young. Honestly I think at that age they just won't be able to grasp the wider ramifications of social media, ie: once it's up there, it's up there for good. If you're not comfortable with the idea, then go with your gut.

Orion

My kids are 11 and no social media is allowed - Facebook, twitter, instagram, etc. They have gmail accounts - which I have access to if I want to - but that's it.

goodfin

Thanks al . I just wanted to make sure I wanted to.make sure I wasn't being overly fuss . Glad I'm not on my ow . Tks

Chocolate fiend

My son has Instagram and he is younger than you have mentioned. As long as you monitor his usage (ie use it with him and don't allow him to log in otherwise) then it is actually a good introduction to social media. His account is private, he does not accept followers and he is not allowed to comment on any photos. He follows all sorts of minecraft guys and some other gamers and sports people. I monitor it very carefully and he does not have his username or password.

jacksie66

This post has been deleted.

jammybhoy

Hi our older kids (10yr old + 12yr old girl) have smart phones but they are not on facebook or instagram unlike many kids in their class which have particularly the girls.
I feel facebook and instagram wouldn't be beneficial to their personality's im not knocking anybody who's kids use these social networks but myself and my wife have made a conscience decision to not allow or encourage them.
Because of the number of classmates that are using instagram now i think my wife feels like the girls will become left out and feel the worse of it but so far they haven't been asking to create accounts so i guess it mustn't be that bad?
At this stage i am starting to think are we doing the right thing

syklops

goodfin wrote: »

Looking for advise. What age should children be allowed to have an Instagram accoun . My 10 yr old son says all his friends have one and he wants one too. I don't like the idea of him on social media just yet however I don't want him being the only one not allowed either.
Thanks all

Facebook dont like anyone younger than 13 to use their services. My niece is younger than that but her usage is heavily monitored. About the most salacious thing you will see on Facebook is "Girls in Yoga pants". Maybe try a social experiment and go looking for the most adult content you can find on Facebook. You won't find very much. Nothing more than what you would see in a music video with Miley Cyrus.

Instagram is a different kettle of fish. Interesting article here:

Queen-Mise

I set my daughter up on FB two years ago (she is now 9) for one reason - Games. She was clogging up my husband's and mine's FB with Farmville, Pet Rescue Saga, Candy Crush, Princess This/That, Restaurant stuff, etc.

I check up her account every now and then. I check all her friends (mainly family really), her chat, what pages she likes etc etc.


For me it is not so much the age appropriate usage of whatever social media is in question - it is more down to how easy it is to monitor. Facebook is easy to monitor. It doesn't take long to have a look around and see what she is doing/playing.

For example, children's passwords should not be private till at least 16. You should be able to go in and check and have a look around.

I go into my son's FB and look around (he is 13), most of the stuff is inane, typical of the age. I'm looking to see can I spot any potential problems or inappropriate stuff.

I'm not sure how Instagram works, never used it. I'd use it yourself for a few weeks, and see what the potential problems, pitfalls are to it. And then you are coming from a place of knowledge, and you can give your kids specific guidelines for using it.

Ham Sambo

Hi, if you do decide to let him surf the ner make sure his lap top or pc is not in his bedroom, the room where his Mum and Dad sit in the evenings would be more approprite.

Depraved

I sense a lot of fear in this thread about social media. That's a shame.

You see...it's here to stay, and it's a huge part of young people's lives.

Crossing the street is dangerous. But the solution is not to keep children away from streets. Instead, you teach them how to cross safely. You watch and guide them until they have mastered the skill.

It's the same with social media. It has the potential to be dangerous, which is exactly why you should be teaching your son how to use it responsibly and safely now. Keeping him ignorant of the technology, and its dangers, is not going to do him any favours when he finally does start using it.

Teach him about the dangers. Have a very open relationship with him about social media so that he knows he can come to you if anything disturbs or confuses him. Monitor his usage (with his agreement) until you know that he will/can use social media safely.

Social media can be wonderful and very positive if used correctly and with other, decent friends etc.

Ham Sambo

It's the same in our house... 'All my friends are on it' to be honest 10yrs is way too young, buts that only my opinion.

shedweller

Depraved wrote: »

I sense a lot of fear in this thread about social media. That's a shame.

You see...it's here to stay, and it's a huge part of young people's lives.

Crossing the street is dangerous. But the solution is not to keep children away from streets. Instead, you teach them how to cross safely. You watch and guide them until they have mastered the skill.

It's the same with social media. It has the potential to be dangerous, which is exactly why you should be teaching your son how to use it responsibly and safely now. Keeping him ignorant of the technology, and its dangers, is not going to do him any favours when he finally does start using it.

Teach him about the dangers. Have a very open relationship with him about social media so that he knows he can come to you if anything disturbs or confuses him. Monitor his usage (with his agreement) until you know that he will/can use social media safely.

Social media can be wonderful and very positive if used correctly and with other, decent friends etc.

Its when it gets used inappropriately is the problem. I had a chat with my lads (8 and 10) after i saw their search history on their tablets. I locked the tablets down with safesearch etc so that stopped that. But they got ps vitas recently and i saw they were looking for dodgy stuff again so i had to lock them down as well. They bitched and cried at me a little but they knew they blew it. I explained to them about it but kids will be kids and they are naturally curious. But curiosity can lead a person very far down that rabbit hole to very nasty things online. So i'm locking down all devices on our household till they can buy their own AND their own mobile data. At least by the time they are teens they wont have years of hardcore porn embedded in their brains by then which is exactly whats happening everywhere.
So yes, social media is great but needs sometimes painful amounts of supervision. I cant supervise much while im making dinner or servicing the car can i? (Not directed at you btw, im just saying!)
Sorry about the rant, its just a pet hate of mine.
And dont get me started on screen time....jaysus!

fValerie

I think children come across the restricted content more by just browsing the web. Even when you think that you have installed the service which protects your child from what he can see on the web and that he is safe now, I am sure he still has his phone through which he can use the Internet... or his friends have such phones, and they can browse whatever they want together.
Instagram is cool to have. Don't forbid him too much, or else he will do it without you knowing it.
By the way, doesn't Instagram have the age allowed written on their website?