Do You Know What Your Kids Are Looking Up?

There is one question you should always ask your kids when they go online, "What are you going to do?" The reason you ask this (and tell them why) is to reinforce for them that when they go online, they need to have a reason. There are too many harmful things online for our children to simply "surf the web." It also instills in them a sense of accountability. I wouldn't let my children simply wander through the neighborhood without a destination. The same goes for children exploring the more global virtual neighborhood.

Online Family Norton recently published the top 100 searches of kids in 2009. Sitting at number one, two and three are Youtube, Google, and Facebook respectively. Then at four and five? Can you guess? Sex and Porn.

Now, you might be thinking, "That's because this includes teenage boys, and teenage boys are bound to search for stuff like that." Well, when you take a look at the breakdown in ages the number four search for children 7 and under is porn... beating out Club Penguin (#5) and Webkinz (#7).

Before you run to yank the cable modem from the wall, there are some less reactive and more effective ways of helping your children make wise choices on the internet. Over the next few days, I will share some ideas.

In the meantime, I'd love to hear what you all do to help your children navigate the internet with integrity and wisdom.