We have children aged four and three, and they have already started using digital media. In the beginning we sat down with them and told them a little about the computer and the games, and helped them get started. Now they can manage to play on their own, but they still need help to start the games.

The four year old has also surfed the net a little with Dad. Her favourite thing to do is to watch little films with horses on YouTube, and to look at pictures of animals on Flickr.

"Because the children can’t write well yet, they need help to search for what they’re interested in," Dad says. "But even if they had managed on their own they wouldn’t have been allowed. There are so many webpages online not suitable for children, so we as parents need to keep a watchful eye."
 
Different challenges
As parents we can see that our children will meet some challenges as they grow up.
“For now it’s just a matter of limiting the time used on the computer, and giving each child an equal amount of time,” says Mum. “It’s not been a big problem yet, but as they grow older we’ll have to think of an arrangement on how much each of them will be allowed to spend on the computer each day.”
 
“It’ll also be a challenge to navigate in the maze of media there is on offer, so that we can spend our time on something good,” Dad adds. “It’s great to have an organisation like Kids and Media, which helps us with tips and advice so that we can avoid games and webpages that aren’t suitable for children.” The couple also think they’ll be especially aware of digital bullying as their kids grow older and begin to communicate with others online and via mobile phones.
 
Many games, few webpages
“We haven’t bought many games yet, but we think there are many good games to choose among. We prefer to buy the educational games,” says Dad. “We also like the games we can play together. The children love it when the whole family comes together to play Playstation.”
 
When it comes to webpages, on the other hand, the four-year old girl says the variety on offer for children isn’t good enough. “There are few sites, and most of them have too many commercial messages,” Mum thinks. “We would have liked to see more good webpages for the youngest kids, with appropriate content and focus on user friendly solutions.”
 
Tips for families with young children
The family’s tips:

• Create good “media memories”. You can for example go to the shop together to buy a new game or film, and later you can enjoy playing or watching it together. It can also be good to make the experience into a special occasion, with popcorn or other things the kids enjoy. You can talk about the contents, and find out what you liked and what maybe wasn’t so good.
• Be proactive. It’s better to present the children with games you’ve bought, than for the kids to find games themselves and then make a fuss about getting those particular ones.  
• Talk with other parents (in person or via different online fora). Share joys and challenges. This is an area everyone struggles with from time to time, and together we can help and encourage each other.
• Have your PC in a room where everyone can be together, spend time with the kids and explore the positive sides to the net.
• Create good alternatives to the use of games and TV. Our family has tested out something we call “Daddy date.” It means that each child gets a bit of special time alone with Dad. Activities we like for these occasions include going to cafés, shopping or taking a little hiking trip.

Do you want to share your story?
Do you have a story or tips you’d like to share with other parents? Send your story and your name, age and address to:
post@kidsandmedia.org

Kids and Media select stories to be published. The story should be short and shouldn’t contain information about your children that compromises their anonymity. All published stories will be presented without names.