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Equipping your children with mobile phones may sound extravagant. After all, does a child in elementary or middle school really need to return important calls on the go? Probably not, but that child may need quick access to you. That’s why many parents choose to give their children cell phones.

While your Android tablet may offer many conveniences and be an essential part of your routine, your child doesn’t need a device with that much functionality. A simple cell phone can make life easier and safer for your kids.

Sometimes after-school activities get canceled or moved to a different location. Kids with cell phones don’t have to wait around for their parents to come back a couple of hours later or find a ride, both of which can be dangerous.

When your family attends a large-scale public event, it’s easy to get separated. In those cases, you can track down your children by simply dialing their cell phone numbers. This can eliminate a lot of anxiety, especially in situations where you can’t visually locate your children right away.

Cell phones are also great tools when the family visits a museum, county fair, or theme park. When kids get stuck in line at a ride and choose not to meet their parents at the designated time and place, they can simply call their parents to let them know where they are.

One of the most important things to remember when using cell phones to communicate with your kids is that they only work when they’re turned on.  If you’re in a noisy place, be sure to check the screen of your phone often for missed calls from your kids. This technology is just another way parents can keep tabs on their kids.

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Today, there are many dangers to our children that are on the Internet. It is imperative that, as parents, you protect your children while they are online. Here is a look at several ways you can implement this safety plan.

Internet filtering and monitoring software should be considered an option. These packages can range from simple to complex and can also include specially design children’s browsers.

Browsers, in general, have several levels of protection that include being able to set certain levels of protection. However, consider using a children’s browser. These browsers are available free and will only allow access to sites that you have selected. These browsers can also filter out pornographic and other dangerous sites. It is also advisable that you keep the computer in a supervised area of your home.

Filtering software can be purchased, usually on a subscription basis, and provides customization features. These features allow parents to provide the proper level of filter that is age-appropriate. Sites can be disallowed or allowed. In addition, this type of software can be remotely accessed.

There are also programs available that will allow you to track the sites that your child visits. Some packages also are able to track actually keystrokes to add a greater level of monitoring.

While these tools are valuable, one of the most important things you can do is to discuss the dangers that are present on the Internet with your children. Help them understand that not everyone on the Internet is a friend or has good intentions. Also, make sure that they never give out any personal information.

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These days there is plenty of technology to track kids. It would seem that it would be very easy to keep track of sneaky kids who might be looking to get into some mischief. The question is whether this technology works or not.  On many leves it definitely works, but in more ways than one, it may not be such a good idea. As a parent, you have to figure all of that out.

The Pros of Technology Tracking Kids

The pros are as old as parenthood. Parents want to know where their kids are and that they’re safe. Therefore, GPS tracking on cell phones works good when the phone is on and the device has a clear shot at the sky. If a kid is supposed to keep the phone on, and it gets turned off, it’s going to be tough to explain that to Mom.

As for software that tracks computer use, the many incidents involving molesters and bullying are the best reason to do this. The Internet is a dangerous place. Parents can even tell the kids they’re tracking computer usage.

The Cons of Tracking Kids with Technology

The biggest hurdle to jump is “trust.” You have to find the balance between spying and caring. Your kid won’t grow up responsibly if he isn’t give the chance to try. Again, make sure he knows it’s for his safety.

Where GPS tracking is concerned, there are still some problems with accuracy. That could scare a parent and get a kid in unfair trouble. The old fashioned phone call to check in is still the best tracking tool for kids.

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When your teen gets on the phone, who knows what they’re saying? While you can’t tap their phones to find out if they’re planning anything nefarious, you can check out who they’re calling and how long they’re spending on the phone. If they have minutes to be tended to, you can check out all of those things on your bill. Overall, monitoring your teen’s cell phone use is a fairly easy thing to do.

While your teen is downloading unlimited music, they can be talking to their friends about anything. While this can lead to a lot of possible problems, the real problems happen when they go over their minutes. In cases like that, an unlimited plan can be useful. However, you might want to actually limit the number of texts your teen can send and make them pay for any they send or look at over and above that number. While it might seem cruel, it is a good way to get your teen to think about the future and how to use resources.

Of course, making your teen actually pay can become a serious issue. After all, if he or she refuses to pay, you have to cancel their cell phone plan as a punishment, which can be a serious hindrance to a person in this day and age. “I’ll call you” has replaced almost any sort of real planning, as people tend to think only about right now and keeping in nearly constant contact through technology. But having consequences for inappropriate cell phone usage teaches powerful lessons that every teen needs to know.

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Boundaries are meant to be challenged. This is the philosophy of the modern parent, the certainty gained from endless experts and their opinions (offered with loud frequency). Children are meant to shove at limitations. They’re meant to push at the rules until they discover any weaknesses. Independence is the intention — and many mothers now find themselves offering freedom in all elements of life, allowing their family to explore the days without restrictions.

You, however, are not so sure of this.

And you would be correct.

It can’t be denied that children must be offered the chance to define themselves. It can also not be denied, however, that such definitions require care. Youths are impulsive. They will do what they please without acknowledging the potential dangers, the obvious consequences. Behavior adults deem reckless will instead be considered easy. It’s imperative therefore that all parents — including you — recognize the need for protective measures: such as technological tracking.

Too often is this a source of controversy. Mothers think that it represents a lack of trust, are certain it will only spark discontent among their families. The truth, however, is that tracking devices (found in smartphones, computers and more) offer security. They enable parents to note all movements, to register any problems. This is vital. In an age where statistics favor tragedy children must be protected — and this is the way to do that.

It must be understood that youths will battle this idea. They’ll assume it to be an invasion of privacy. What parents must stress, however, is that privacy is a privilege but safety is a requirement.

Companies understand this innate need of tracking your teenager’s activities without their knowledge. Hence technology has developed various devices and softwares that can be installed in your kids’ phone without their knowledge. There are softwares that help you to track your teen’s calls and messages. You can also screen their calls and messages. There are certain other features that you can activate via the spy softwares. Some advanced softwares send you a copy of the message that your teen receives and sends. It also gives a report about frequently dialed numbers and the conversation timings. These all features help you to be vigilant about your kid’s behavior without letting them know. These devices are a boon to parents. Existence of these devices has taken off the worry from the parents head about their kid’s messaging and call taking trends.

It is good idea to handle the issue of inappropriate messages and calls with your teen very tactfully. You do not want to be loggerheads with your teen and spoil your relationship at the same time; you may not want to ignore such behavior. It is important to nip such behavior in the bud, so that it does not snowball into something big. It is important to be vigilant all the times.

Self defense techniques are basically martial arts. There are various institutions that teach you how to defend yourself when you are attacked. Kung-fu, Karate, Kick boxing, Tai-chi etc are various types of self defense arts. Self defense arts give you the confidence about yourself. It allows you to be flexible and healthy. Research has shown that self defense techniques are also an excellent form of exercise. Practicing self defense techniques regularly, keeps a person’s body fit. That’s not all it also increases one’s self confidence because they know that they are in control of the situation and they will not panic. People who practice defense fighting are more calm and are capable of taking calculated risks.

Learning self defense is a resolve. It allows you to improve your basic fighting instincts. There are several institutions’ that offer short term courses, inter-mediate courses and long term courses in self defense techniques. Each advanced stage in the self defense art is marked by color of the participant’s belt. The beginners wear a white belt and move on to yellow and then red, brown, blue and finally the black belt. Black belt has various degrees that can be earned by passing self defense examinations. It is important that we learn self defense arts.

If you are traveling with a kid who is below 4 years of age, the best bet is to pick it up in your arms while traveling. This will ensure that your kid does not feel suffocated and gets fresh air. If you leave your kid on the ground, there are chances of it being pushed around or being bruised. If you are traveling with kids between the age group of 5-9 years, it is best to hold their hands or have a monitored leash around them. This will prevent them from being carried away in the crowd. This is also a preventive measure to avoid your child being lost in the crowd.

Do not let your child wander alone in crowded places. Ensure that you a leave your complete address and emergency contact numbers in a chit that is placed in your kid’s pocket. This helps in retrieving your kid easily.  If you are traveling with a kid who falls in the age group of 10-12 years then make then stand ahead of you in crowd so that they are protected and you can have a close watch on them. It is good idea to pin them up against the wall and shield them so that they are not lost.

It is important that you protect your kids and teenagers from such people. However you need to so it tactfully, most importantly because your kids are going through a very fragile transition phase in their life and last thing that you want is a cold war between you and your teenager. Many parents add their kids on social networking profiles, so that they are aware about their kid’s friends and his interactions. If they find anything objectionable, they talk to their kid and sort it out or ask the kid to take off the particular person off their friends’ network. Similarly, many parents keep a tab on the browsing history of their kid by using a spyware. Some parents prefer their children using a desktop instead of a laptop. Many parents insist on computer being placed in the living room so that the kid does not indulge in anything that is objectionable. It is always a good idea to know your kid’s friends personally.

These are some preventive measures for the older kids, however how would one track their kid in a mall when they are busy shopping? Companies have come up with different solutions for this. The simplest solution to keep a track of your toddlers from running away is the leash. A leash has a small opening that needs to be worn around the mother’s wrist and the other end is tied around the kid’s waist. Your toddler can roam around freely up to a specific distance that is set on the leash, after that it just feels tugged if it tries to cross the specified boundary.

Another solution offered by the manufacturers is the tracking bad. This band needs to be worn by the kid around his wrist. This band works on the GPS navigation technology. Parents can track the real-time location of their kid. This is especially important for youngsters because they tend to evade the restrictions and venture out to forbidden places. This is an ideal way of checking if the information relayed by your kid is correct or not. However many kids would take off the bands or switch off the system and make it impossible to track them, now this GPS navigation facility is available in cell phones. You can track your kid’s whereabouts through the hidden application in their cell phone.

The first word that the kid learns to utter is mom or mommy. When we are hurt or we falter while walking, the first thing we do is we remember our moms. Mothers are wonderful creations of God. Being a mother includes various responsibilities. It includes teaching you to take the first step in life. It involves teaching you to differentiate right from wrong and good from bad. It involves, developing the child into a responsible citizen and a matured adult. They that mother’s are the most influential factors of a person’s life. Look at all the great men in history; the driving force behind their success was their mother. Being a mother means setting an example for your kid. A mother never holds a grudge; a mother is always forgiving and caring. However the same loving and caring mother can turn into a tigress to protect her child. She will always be there to shield her little one from all the troubles in the world.

A mother is a teacher and a guide. She will always show the righteous path to her child. She will pamper him but at the same time be stern enough to correct your wrong doings. Being a mommy isn’t an easy task. It’s a life time commitment to care for your child without expecting any reward.

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When my children were babies, I thought always having to drag a stroller around with us was a hassle. It took up half the space in the car’s trunk, was awkward to put in and take out, and made it harder to get through the aisles in the stores. If it wasn’t for the little detail of having to carry the kids and their diaper bags through the mall, I think I would have gladly foregone the stroller.

That was then; I’ve gained a little wisdom since those days. One of the things I’ve discovered that a stroller is great for is protecting my children. All right, they’re too big to get in a stroller now, but they’re still great for protecting my grandchildren. Children in strollers aren’t running around the store getting lost. Not only that, they typically can’t grab any merchandise and bring it crashing to the ground. At the same time, I don’t have to watch to make sure that nobody steps on my child when they are in a stroller.

Actually, a stroller makes a pretty good all-around child protections system for taking your children out in public. In a sense, it works like a combination shell to protect them from things hitting them, and a (dare I use the word) cage, to keep them from getting to things. They can sit, strapped into their stroller, looking at the world around them, playing with a few small, attached toys, and even drink a bottle.

As a parent, okay grandparent, I have found that I can feel more secure, knowing that my child is protected wherever I go. Now, that doesn’t mean I can walk off and leave them in the stroller, I obviously have to bring the stroller and the child it contains with me, wherever I go. But, you know, the hassle is actually worth it.

Many parents try and put off buying their child a cell phone for as long as possible. Understandably, they don’t want their children spending the whole day texting their friends, instead of doing their schoolwork. They want to, and should, control their children’s access to the telephone; who they call, how much they talk, and when they talk as well.

With some of the phones designed especially for kids, parents can let their children have a phone, and control how it’s used as well. The control comes in the form of programming the numbers that the child can speed-dial. If the parent doesn’t program the number in, the child can’t call them. On the other hand, they can call the people who the parents want to allow them access to call; people such as grandparents, teachers, siblings and most important the parents themselves.

This can be a great aid when going shopping with your kids. Typically, it’s almost impossible to keep a family together in the mall, or even a large department store. Your kids don’t want to stay there with you, while you’re trying on shoes.

Okay, so if they go running off in the mall, how do you find them again? Simple, call them on their cell phone. I’m not saying you should get them a cell phone for them, but for your convenience. It gives you are ready, easy way of maintaining contact with your children, and making sure that they aren’t getting in trouble.

Actually, in many cases, we have that affordable option right there in our homes and don’t even realize it. Dogs are natural bodyguards; they’re territorial, protective, social creatures, who readily adopt your family as their own. As such, if there is any danger to a member of your family, they are ready and willing to jump into the breach and protect your family.

This is especially true when it comes to the one person who that dog decides is “his person.” If you’ve been around dogs, you’ve seen this; as puppies they pick one person, and that’s the one they connect to. That’s the one they always try and be with, the one they try and play with, and the one they get the most excited to see when that person comes home.

For dogs to be the best possible protectors for our children, each child needs its own dog. That dog should be brought into the home as a puppy, and immediately put together with that child. The child should be the one who feeds it, takes care of it, plays with it, and even sleeps with it. In fact, the more time the child can spend with “their dog” the better, causing the bond between child and dog, which causes that dog to be your child’s bodyguard.

I’m not saying you need a large, mean dog either. While a large dog can do a better job of attacking an assailant, any dog can set up a pretty good alarm. The alarm, more than the attack, can be your child’s protection. People naturally turn to see a barking dog, and that attention is the last thing any assailant wants to have.

Leaving the kids point of view aside and looking at it from my point of view as a parent, I like the idea of my children, especially my small children having some sort of identification. Kids get lost sometimes, whether because they get off at the wrong bus stop, make a wrong turn, or decide they’re going to run away from home. A child’s world isn’t really all that big, and once they step outside of the part they know, they’re lost.

It used to be that children would be taught their address and phone number by their parents. But, c’mon, we’re in the information age, everyone uses cell phone; who bothers to learn phone numbers anymore? We just program them into our phones, and put them on a speed dial.

Okay, that works, as long as everything works, and of course nobody loses their phone. But, what about a child, who manages to get lost, and doesn’t have a phone with them. How do they find their way home again? You see, that’s where I think the idea of having a child ID card really pays off. Your child doesn’t need to have your address and phone number memorized, which they might easily forget for a moment by being rattled, that information is on their ID.

Company’s who provide these cards, also provide fingerprinting and home DNA sample kits along with the cards. That way, if your child should happen to be one of the thousands per year who get kidnapped, the police have something they can use to properly identify your child. Extra security for your children, you know, you can never get enough of it.

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Like any parent who has teens, I regularly wonder where mine are. Now that they’re in college, it’s gotten worse. I generally get to see my kids for a few minutes in the morning, and then don’t see them again until late at night. Between those times, their days are filled with school, work and friends.

I think I’ve done a good job raising my kids. They are mostly obedient, usually call to tell me where they are and where they’re going, and actually do their homework. But that doesn’t keep me from wondering if they’re always where they say they are. I’m not so old that I don’t remember how much we used to try and fool our parents when I was a teen.

A new application of GPS technology can put an end to this worry. These units, which mount on your kid’s car, regularly update you as to their location. With the online application that is part of the service, you can easily program locations that your child is supposed to be at, and locations where they aren’t supposed to be. The moment they cross one of those “fences” you hear about it. As an added bonus, you get notified every time your child exceeds the speed limit. Ha, who needs cops giving our tickets, when parents are watching?

While I’m sure there’s going to be a great outcry, from the youth of our country, about how these devices are stealing their liberty, I think it’s a great idea. Where did our youth get the idea that liberty meant hiding things from their parents anyway? As responsible parents, we should know what our children are doing, where they are going, and who they are with. These devices give us the opportunity to keep tabs on our kids, so we can help them avoid many of the pitfalls of growing up.’

To take advantage of this service requires buying the GPS device, which is installed in a hidden location on the car, and pay a monthly fee. While that might seem a little steep, what’s your peace of mind worth?

1. Desire to be alone. If you start to notice that the person playing the game has no desire to be with friends or family, there would be a problem. Often, those addicted to games will want to be alone and refuse to socialize with people in real life situations.

2. Financial crisis. If the gaming addiction is a problem with gambling, you may notice that your loved one is often in a financial crisis. Online gambling can be extremely hard to spot, as a person does all of their gaming online, instead of running off to a casino. However, it’s just as dangerous to gamble online as it is in a casino.

3. No longer enjoys other activities. If your once social child or friend now never wants to go out with other people, this could be a sign of addiction. Gamers want to “conquer” the next level and often become obsessed with the game, caring more about the computer than people.

If you suspect someone in your life is addicted to gaming, there is help. A great place to start is Rehab-international.org. You can find many helpful resources to deal with the gaming addiction in your life.

Who would have known back then what would be done with that technology. Now, anyone can place a “bug” on somebody, and track them from here to Timbuktu. While most of us don’t have much need to play James Bond, and track the bad guy across the world, we do have one thing, which is highly valuable, that we need to keep track of… our kids.

Child kidnapping for profit and other reasons is still going on in the world today. There is even a market for kidnapped white children, to be sold in other countries. While the odds are against your child becoming a victim of this type of crime, the possibility does exist.

One of the newest applications of GPS technology is specifically for keeping track of our kids. With it, a device which can be as small as a postage stamp, regularly calculates your child’s position, down to a few yards, and transmits it to the GPS service company which provided the device. You can access this information at any time to see where your kids are. Are they late coming home from school? Check on the Internet, and find that your child stopped off at a friend’s house. More importantly, if they don’t come home, the police can track on the same device, and see where your child is.

Slightly more sophisticated devices include a panic button for your child to use, in order to call for help. Both you and the service company will be instantly informed when your child hits that panic button, and informed of where they are. The company immediately contacts the police, giving them an exact location on your child. That’s enough to give many parents peace of mind.

Don’t Relive Your Childhood

Just because you were the head cheerleader or a star soccer player doesn’t mean that your child has to be.  Don’t try to have a second chance at your own childhood through your child.  Children like to please their parents.  Don’t show any signs of disappointment if your child wants to do a different activity than the one you choose at their age.

Look at Your Child’s Strengths

Look at what makes your child happy and what natural talents that they have.  If they are very coordinated, they may make a great soccer player or hockey player.  If they are very fast they may be good on the track team or basketball team.  If they are creative enroll them in an art class or acting troop.

Know When Enough is Enough

One activity per season is enough for the average child.  Don’t force your child to be in six different activities at once.  This will put them on a path to be a constant over achiever and will begin to stress them out as they get into their teen years.  It is also hard on the family to coordinate this many drop offs and pick ups, dinner time and activities for other children.

Don’t Discourage

If your child wants to try an activity you think they will not be good at, don’t forbid them just to keep their feelings safe.  There are many people not born with a natural skill who are great learners.  Your child may excel after proper coaching and training.  It is also good to learn at a young age what you like and don’t like.  Maybe after a few practices or meetings your child will see that the activity is not for them.

When you have several children in several activities each week, it can feel like an unending treadmill:  school, chores, homework, dance lesson, karate lessons, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts,  basketball, baseball, tutoring and piano lessons.  As a parent, you’re exhausted.  As a child, you’re burnt out.

Psychologists tell us that children need down time, just like parents, maybe more so.  Children need to know how to entertain themselves.  Over-scheduling can dampen a child’s creativity and reduce the child’s ability to become self-reliant.  So if you think you may be over-scheduling your child here are few Dos and Don’ts to get your child’s schedule back into balance.

Do

• Limit your child to one or two organized outside activities, such as dance lessons, basketball, or scouting.
• Let the child choose what activities to keep and what activities they are willing to give up.
• Do schedule family time. Experts agree that regular family time increases a child’s self-esteem and emotional balance.

Don’t

• Give up your regular date time with your spouse to add activities for your children.  Children are more apt to form healthy happy relationships in adulthood, when they see it modeled in their home.
• Give in to a sense of guilt or competition, if other parents in your social group are scheduling more activities for their children.

The truth is, that no amount of money, no secret combination of classes, skills, and knowledge, will ensure that our child will attain perfect happiness forever after.  It is an ideal that doesn’t exist. What we can give every child is a solid foundation in themselves and unending love.

The Buddy System

If your child walks to school or likes to walk around the neighborhood to play or get a slice of pizza, make sure they always have a buddy to walk with.  Predators are more likely to bother an individual child.  Always make sure that your child’s buddy will be present.  If your kid’s buddy is sick and won’t be going to school, drive your child or find other children for your kid to walk with.

Internet Safety

Teach your child not to talk to strangers on instant messaging systems or social networking websites.  It is very easy for grown men and women to impersonate teenagers to make children trust them.  Monitor your child’s internet usage and question friendship links with any name that you do not recognize.  Teach your child to never ever meet anyone off the Internet in person even if the individual claims to be the same age.

Be in the Loop

Give your child a pre-paid cell phone to keep in their backpack.  Have your child notify you if there are any change in their plans.  Getting a ride home instead of walking or going to one mall instead of another is something that they need to tell you upfront.  If they ever did fall in harms way, it will be much harder for you to track your child down if you do not know their actual whereabouts.

Never Trust Strangers, even if they are Children

Teach your child never to go off with any stranger, even another child.  Predators sometimes use other children as decoys to lure new children in.  Your child can also find trouble if they wander off with a new friend who puts them in a situation involving smoking, drinking or other bad behavior.

Trial Run

Don’t allow your tween’s first time home alone to be when you will be out for the entire day.  Simply start with leaving the tween in charge while you take a quick half hour run to the grocery store.  Based on how your tween does during the trial, stay out a little longer on your next attempt.  Maybe a two hour period when you and your spouse are seeing a movie.

Tips

Make sure that your younger children are well behaved enough to respect your tween as a temporary authority figure while you are gone.  Don’t leave your tween in charge of a rowdy child who you know has trouble following instructions.  Make sure to leave a list of phone numbers including your cell phone number, emergency numbers and the number of a trusted family member or local friend.

Don’t Let Outsiders In

Make sure your children have lunch or dinner before you leave the house.  Even if they are having pizza, order the pizza while you are still home.  If the pizza delivery person comes while you are gone, that gives your child a reason to open the door.  Your child will be the safest if the door is locked for good until you return home.  Don’t allow any of their friends to come over either.  You don’t want to be responsible for something happening to someone else’s child.  Another very important issue to discuss with your tween is social networking safety.  Your child should never use their Facebook or Twitter account to announce that they are staying home unsupervised.

The key, according to experts, is to gear the chores to the specific age or developmental stage, and to lower parental expectations to what a child can accomplish.  In other words, set your child up to succeed.  So what chores are appropriate for which age groups?  Here’s a general  list.

Toddlers and Pre-Schoolers (ages 18 months to 5 years old.) At this age children love to help and to feel they are doing the same things their parents are doing. Some easy chores would be:

• Help make their bed.
• Pick up their toys.
• Take dirty clothes to the hamper.
• Feed Pets
• Bringing in groceries and helping put them away. (Make sure that bags are not too heavy or two bulky for little arms to handle.)
• Setting and clearing the table.

School age children. (Ages 6-8) Be sure to tie the additional chores to additional rewards.  Think about adding these chores:

• Vacuum and mop the floors.
• Take out the trash
• Fold the laundry and put it away.

Pre-teens (Ages 9-12).  Allow children of this age to choose which chores to add.  Some chores to add are:

• Clean the bathroom.
• Wash dishes.
• Use the washer and dryer.

Teens (Ages 13 to 17).  While teens can handle almost any domestic chore, they also have hectic schedules.  Be sure the chores you assign don’t overload your teen.  Teens can:

• Make grocery lists
• Prepare simple meals
• Clean out refrigerator

Children who grow up doing chores, grow into individuals who know that everyone has to contribute to keep a household going.  That’s the goal.

Software Features

Look for software that has all or most of the following features:

• Blocks objectionable websites.  The best software lets the parent grant access to some sites on an individual basis.
• Email filters.  The software will keep objectionable mail from hitting your child’s email box.
• Pop-up blockers.  Blockers keep out provocative pop-ups.
• Chat room monitoring.  Allows IM and some chat room discussions, but monitors for objectionable chat rooms and chat.
• Ability to customize.  The best software will allow you to customize all the filters, will offer frequent upgrades to keep up with changing technology, and will give parents alerts of dangerous situations in real time.

Easy to Use and Easy to Install Software

No matter how many great features the filtering software has, it is useless and a waste of money if it is not easy to use.   Most software companies will allow you to try out a sample version of the software before purchasing.  This is the best way to determine whether the software is easy for you to use and whether you are going to have problems installing and maintaining the software.

Internet filtering software is a great tool to help parents monitor a child’s internet usage and the sites they are visiting.  However, software alone is not enough. True safety comes when parents are present and engaged with their child on the computer. Educating a child about what is and isn’t acceptable is the surest way to keep them safe on any computer they use.

All About Colors

Have every member of your family wear the same color clothing.  Go for something bold like red which will stand out.  If your children are older and will not agree to wear matching outfits, make everyone wear their own bright and distinct color such as hot pink or yellow.  Avoid dark colors like black or navy blue.  People wearing these color clothes can easily be lost in a sea of people.

Use the Buddy System

If you are at a fair and not everyone in the family wants to do the same things, use the buddy system.  Make sure a parent or older teen is always the buddy of a younger child.  Make sure each pair of buddies has a cell phone to contact the other members of the family incase of an emergency.  Pick a meeting spot and a time when the whole family should meet back up.

Link Up

When going on a trip with younger children have everyone hold hands.  You can purchase a backpack for your younger kids that has a string that you can hold onto.  It’s almost like a leash for children.

Have a Plan for if Someone Does Get Lost

Accidents do happen.  Make sure that your family has a plan for if someone does get lost.  Pick a prominent landmark and tell all of your kids to report there if they go missing from the group.   This is the first place you should check for your missing child.  Also, upon entry of the event point out to your children where the security guard booth, ticket booth and other areas where event workers are.

You also want to make sure that they aren’t getting involved with games that are just for you and other adults, like online casino games. If they find those kinds of things they could be doing something illegal – and they could also end up costing you money by betting and losing. That’s not a good thing, and they shouldn’t be exposed to things like gambling until they’re legally old enough to do it themselves. There are privacy settings on your computer, and many browsers have them, as well. Be sure you use them, so you aren’t compromising your safety or your children’s safety online.

In addition, be sure to spend some time playing their games with them, whether it’s World of Warcraft or Dora the Explorer – or anything in between. The age of your children will have a lot to do with what kinds of games they want to play and what they’re allowed to play. Giving them as much freedom as is safe can really help them learn to explore their world and make wise choices. Those kinds of skills will stay with them throughout life.

GPS Cell Phone Trackers

One of the most popular and common ways to track your child is by using the GPS cell phone tracker.  Once you activate this service, you can always know what radius your child is in as long as their cell phone is kept on.  Depending on what you are willing to spend, some trackers will pin point exactly where your child is while others will bring you within a half mile.  Either way you will have an easier time searching the neighborhood than your own parents did.

Car Trackers

Your teen will get excited the first time you give them the keys to the family car.  However, they better not go to a concert when they tell you that they are going down the road for a pizza with their friends.  Using car tracking GPS tools you can tell if your teen is lying about how far away from the house they are.  The device will track how many miles the car has gone.  You can use this data to tell if your teen is lying to you.  Some devices can even let you know if your teenager has been in an accident or was speeding.

It is imperative for parents and children to form a bond of trust, but every young person will go through a phase where they test the waters and try to get around their parent’s rules.  If you suspect your child is doing something that is a danger to their safety, these devices can help you out.  It is important only use these items when you truly believe your child is in danger or has been on a lying spree.  GPS stalking them every time they leave the house can be unhealthy for both you and your children.

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It can happen in a blink of an eyelash.  One minute your child is playing quietly on the blanket  next to you in the park, and the next moment the child is gone.  Whether the child has just wandered off or something more sinister has happened, a parent’s heart races with panic.  Today technology has provided a number of tools to track children and alert parents.

Child tracking devices fall into two broad categories: limited distance devices and GPS devices.  Both have their practical applications.

Limited Distance Devices

Limited distance devices operate, as the title implies, within a specific distance range.  I small tag is attached to the child’s clothing or shoes, and when the child goes beyond the distance the parent sets on the monitor, the parent is alerted.

On example of the limited distance tracking devices is the Mommy I’m Here device which alerts the parent when the child wanders more than 30 feet from the parent.  The tag is a cute little teddy bear which can be attached to the child’s shoe or clothing.  The parental monitor is small enough to attach to a  key ring.  What is really attractive is the price: under $50.

GPS Tracking Devices

GPS tracking devices are a good choice for at risk children and families with child custody issues.  The GPS device is quite small and depending on the device, is attached to the child’s watch, backpack, or clothing. Most devices also have a panic button that allows the child to alert the parent if they feel threatened.

Some GPS devices hold their charge for 24 hours, while others will hold their charge for up to two weeks.  GPS devices are more expensive the limited distance devices.  Prices begin at about $150 and can run as high as $800.

It is tough to put a price on peace of mind, particularly when it comes to the safety of your child. Every family situation is different. But it is good to know that there are tools available to handle any child tracking situation that may arise.

Reasons to Use a Nanny Cam

• You’ve hired a new daycare provider or babysitter and you want to see how your child adjusts and how the new provider performs.
• Your child has medical issues and you want to keep close tabs on both your child and the care provider.
• You just want to be able to check in and see your child from time to time during the day.
• You suspect that the care provider of abuse, neglect, or theft.

The Ethics and Legality of Nanny Cams

The use of nanny cams, even hidden nanny cams, is legal in all 50 states.  However, 15 states forbid  covert  voice recording.  Those states are: Washington, Pennsylvania, Oregon, New Hampshire, Nevada, Montana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Louisiana, Illinois, Hawaii, Florida, Delaware, Connecticut, and California.

Ethically, babysitters and other care providers should be told that you use a nanny cam.  Most providers welcome nanny cam use; they just want to be informed.  Advise any potential care givers that you plan to use a nanny cam and give them the opportunity to accept or decline employment.

Price and Placement of Nanny Cams

Prices for nanny cams start at under $100 and go as high as $500.  You want to think carefully about where you place your nanny cams.  Parents who report success with nanny cams say they place the cameras in the room or rooms where the child will spend the most amount of time.

Nanny cams provide a way to stay connected to your child during the day.  They give you the opportunity to catch a precious moment you may have otherwise missed.  When you do, be sure to praise the child and the caregiver.

Set Up Your Web Browser

Set up your web browser using parental control settings so that your computer can not access x-rated websites.  This protects curious teens who may be tempted to search for something inappropriate as well as innocent younger children who may type in a keyword while looking up a school project that accidentally leads to mature results.

Talk to Your Children

Talk to your children about the danger of instant messaging with strangers and adding people they don’t know on social networks.  Think of it as the modern day equivalent of your parents telling you not to walk up to a stranger’s car.  Teach them how adult predators can pose as teens and kids online.  Tell them to never meet anyone off of the internet no matter how old the person says that they are. Even meeting someone with a group of friends can still be dangerous.

Monitor

Have your computer in an open family room or den.  Only allow younger children to use the computer when you are home.  Sit next to your child from time to time to see what sites they visit and how computer savvy they are.  If you have older teens who you believe can handle private computer usage, you should still make them give you a list of all their passwords so that you can periodically monitor what they are doing.  Also, become their friend on any social networking website that they join.  There should be nothing that they are posting that they should be ashamed for you to see.

Be in the Know

Stay on top of the latest trends.  Things are constantly changing.  Just because your teen may be into websites such as Facebook or MySpace one day, there can be a whole new crop of sites popping up soon.  Be in the know and make sure your teen doesn’t have a sexy or inappropriate profile on a website that you don’t know about.

Set Up

Purchase the dry erase board at any office supply store or art supply store.  Also invest in a variety of colored wipe away markers, one color for each child.  Don’t forget to purchase the eraser if it doesn’t come with the board.  If you forget to buy an eraser, most boards can be wiped with a paper towel and water.

Utilizing the Chart

Set up a grid with each day of the week and each child’s name.  Have each kid write their activity in their designated color on the day of the week that the activity falls.  Don’t forget to have your children include start and end times.  Next to each activity in a different color, come up with a coding system for how each child will get to the activity.  For example, a red star can symbolize you having to drive the child.  A black circle can be used if it is your spouse’s responsibility.  Use a green triangle if it is another mother’s turn to drive the car pool.  If you have a teen with a driver’s license and access to a car, have them put a blue smiley face next to any practice that they will drive to and from on their own.

Keep Up with the Routine

Make sure to update the chart weekly.  Make this your Sunday night activity to start your week off right.  Keep the chart in a common and highly used room such as the family room or kitchen so that all members of the family have access to the chart at all times.

Talk to Your Children

Talk to your kids about online bullying.  Make sure that they know to come to you if another child is saying mean things to them online.  Kids may react to their online bully by typing mean things back or simply sitting back and reading the cruel incoming messages.  There needs to be adult intervention in order for the bullying to stop.

Monitor Your Kids on the Computer

All parents should have full access to a child’s online passwords to instant messaging accounts and social networking pages.  Know who every person on your child’s friend list is.  There is no reason for kids to add every single person from school.  Make sure no bullies are forcing your child to be their friend on a social networking website.  Teach your child how to use privacy settings and blocking features to keep contact with non-approved people to a minimum.  It is also important to keep personal information private so that bullies can’t find out anything personal about your child that they could use to make fun of them at school.

Limit Internet Access

Many young people feel the need to be online for several hours a day.  Limiting the time your child can spend on the internet will reduce their availability for bullies to contact them.  Do not allow your child to have a computer in their bedroom were they can sneak on while you are away.  Keep the computer in an open family room, kitchen or playroom.

According to Parry Aftab, executive director of wiredsafety.org and an expert in cybersecurity, you and your child should remember and follow the 4 P’s. If parents, principals, police, and predators should no see it, don’t post it. What you put on the internet is there forever. Having a social networking profile has many benefits, including keeping in touch with friends and family and when used with caution by parents and children, it is usually a safe and positive part of modern families.

The parent should have a profile and connect to their child’s page, so they can see what their child and friends are posting, to help monitor what is appropriate. While, your teen may object to you being their “friend” on a social networking site, if you set guidelines and rules and your child follows them, there is no need for your presence to cause any problems while they network with their friends.

Sexting (texting sexually explicit comments and photos) is another potentially dangerous activity, but this does not mean you have to forbid the use of texting. If you talk to your teen and require them to get your approval before sending any videos or pictures of themselves using their cell phone, apps, or social networking profile, you significantly reduce the risks. Make sure your child knows the dangers of sexting and ask them to report any text or images that they receive that may be inappropriate to you.

You should discuss internet safety, sexting, and other behaviors that can lead to harmful consequences. Having open communication about the dangers of the internet and cell phones could save you and your child from getting into a potentially dangerous situation.

In science-fiction films, television shows, and books, people are implanted with tracking devices regularly.

There was an article at guardian.co.uk posted on 3 September 2002 about an 11-year-old girl in the UK, whose parents were going to have a tracking microchip implanted. If she is abducted, they can track her location. The microchip will use the cell phone network and can be tracked on electronic maps.

Many pet owners have their pet’s micro-chipped in case they are lost or stolen. According to some statistics 1 out of every 3 cats or dogs will get lost in their lifetime, which makes the use of microchips seem more practical. The microchips are inexpensive, easy to implant for a vet, and easy to activate and register for the owner. These microchips are scanned using a special device, which then gives a read out of the registration information, however, the pet microchips are not equipped with GPS or any locating technology, you must have a scanner, or call the chip number into the company to get information.

As technology advances, it is possible GPS type tracking implants will become a reality. What does that mean for parents and the children who may be implanted with the devices? Does it cross the line of protection into something else? Is there a limit to what is acceptable for monitoring your children? There are no cut and dry answers to these kinds of questions. Some are human rights issues; some are individual, based on your personal ethics and beliefs. Once upon a time, tracking microchips were only in sci-fi fantasy, but they are looming on the horizon of reality, what will be next?

In Great Britain, a wristwatch has been created that is also a GPS Child Locator device. Using a subscription plan, the device texts an emergency message to the designated cell number when the device is removed and where it was when it was last attached to the child. You can also text any time, to find out the GPS location of your child at that moment. The feedback the company has received is about 50/50 positive and negative.

Cars can now be equipped with monitoring devices, like a black box, or even real time GPS tracking. In addition to basics, like how many miles were driven and where the care went, some programs can even tell the parent the speed the vehicle travel at during the trip.

Computers have filtering and monitoring programs that can tell parents when and where their child has been on the internet, even transcripts of chat messages.

Cell phones have GPS chips and providers offer access and locating using the chips. The drawback is that GPS works best outdoors on clear days, so it can be inaccurate indoors or in poor weather conditions.

In am emergency situation, all of these can be helpful tools to rescue your child from a dangerous situation. The keys to determining if it is too much are why you are monitoring and how you use the technology.

If you text your child’s GPS wristwatch every ½ hour to see where your child is, maybe you have gone too far. If you check your teens cell phone GPS when they miss curfew and are not answering your call or text, you are probably not crossing the line. Most of these devices can help keep you child safe, if you use them discretely and sensibly.

K9 Web Protection features allow you to restrict internet use to designated times, pre-set limits based on age, plus customizable allow or block lists. You can set times, such as between 10:00 pm and 7:00 am internet access is not allowed, thus, ensuring your child or children are not up in the middle of the night on the internet. The downside is that if you have a child who plays computer games without accessing the internet, this program will not prevent the use of the computer during blocked times for the internet.

You can block entire categories, like pornography, or specific sites, such as MySpace or YouTube. You have the option of over-riding a block with the parent password. This is handy if you only want to allow your child to visit sites while you are present, you can over-ride the block and monitor use of a specific site and next time your child tries to access the site, it will be blocked again. We only allow our children to watch videos on YouTube when we are present to monitor content.

Reports for use and website categories are available. The Safe Search part of the program, blocks offensive search results from showing when your child does an internet search. This feature can block images as well as site results.

One thing to remember is that web filter parental control programs, like K9, are not anti-virus, spam blocking, or firewall protection, they simply filter websites through your browser. K9 Web Protection from Blue Coat is compatible with several common and popular anti-virus, and firewall protection programs, such as Avast, McAfee, and Norton.

We began using KidsWatch http://www.kidswatch.com/ to see limits on computer usage. The program allowed us to limit how much time per day he could be on the computer, we chose 1 hour on school days and 3 hours on the weekends. We were able to limit when the computer could be used, only between 4:00 pm and 8:00 pm on weekdays and 8:00 am to 9:00 pm on weekend. It was such a relief to not have to list for the sounds of the computer games in the living room while I slept, or sleep on the couch to monitor the computer.

The program allowed him the freedom to use the computer, while giving us the piece of mind that he was only accessing what and when we thought was appropriate. The program offers email alerts, activity reports, and more. You can set the program up by child, ensuring that each child has age appropriate access.

The only complaint I have about this program is that changes to setting are not immediate. If you make a change to time limits, or hours of usage, they do not go into effect until the next day. This was offset by the fact that we could give extra time, in 30-minute increments, as a 1-time event immediately. KidsWarch was a great solution for our family.

The site offers a free 15-day demo or you can purchase the program, with a 30-day money back guarantee.

When does your child really need to have a cell phone?

The answer to this question is going to be different for every family, but if money is an issue, needing a phone, not just wanting one, is when a parent will find a way to get their child a phone. Many factors will help determine when you child actual might need to have a cell phone.

Do they talk on the phone often? Do you need to get them their own phone so you can use your phone?

Are they away from a phone or out of contact regularly? Such as playing sports, traveling with a school team or club, out with friends or dating.

Do they need to call you for rides, etc. and have to borrow or find a phone every time?

Do they have a job or drive? If they have a job, maybe they should pay for part or all of their own phone. If they drive, having a cell phone for emergencies can be a good idea, especially if they drive alone or at night.

Are they responsible enough to use it properly and no lose it?

As the price of phones becomes more and more affordable, the age of children carrying them seems to get lower. The newer, more affordable pre-paid phones offer an option for a trial period, if you are trying to decide if your child is ready to be responsible for a phone. Though, they often cost more per minute, the phones can cost as little as $10.00 and require no contract. This is a good way to start out with little investment and obligation. Since our son washed his cell phone 3 times the first month, we were glad we chose this option first.

The following are three, user-friendly, free sites that offer a variety of printable chore charts. The charts are PDF files, so you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print them. Download the program free at http://get.adobe.com/reader

http://www.handipoints.com/printable-chart/chore-chart.html This site offers a customizable chore chart, so you can create exactly the right chart for each child. This site also has the option of having your child check off their chores online to earn points they can use to play games, adopt cats, and more. Creating a free account is required to see and print the charts you design. These charts are monthly. This site has been recognized by Real Simple and Parents magazines.

http://www.chorecharts.com/Free_Chore_Charts.html You and your child can chose from more than 45 different designs, such as penguins, dogs, or horses. Maybe your child is an explorer – this site offers The Great Wall, Egypt, and Space chore charts. The charts are monthly and blank for customization. They also offer weekly versions, but with fewer design choices.

http://www.freeprintablebehaviorcharts.com/ is a site that offers a variety of popular characters charts, such as Batman, Backyardigans, Hannah Montana, Tinkerbell, and Spongebob. This site also offers charts for various types of chores, behavior, allowance, saving money, homework, hygiene, and more. This site also offers printable rewards, calendar pages, stickers, and cards.

One suggestion, other than printing a new chart each week or month, is to laminate your chart and then it can be reused. If the chores change often, this may not be an option for your family. At our house, we use stickers and allow the child to color their chart, so we use a new one each time. The chart design changes with their mood, season, and current interests. I keep my favorite sites bookmarked to return to them easily.

As children get older, they feel they can be more independent, they want to be trusted, and they want some privacy. But, at the same time, a parent wants to make sure their child is making good choices. When a parent learns how to unobtrusively monitor their child, they can be assured that the child is safe, without embarrassing the child, or taking aay their feeling of independence.

One of the easiest places for a child to get into trouble is online. There is a false sense of security online, because there is no way to tell if people on the other side of the chat window are really who they say they are. Parents can install monitoring software on the computer and regularly check the history on the internet browser to see what types of sites the child is visiting.

The parent should have the names and phone numbers of all their children’s friends. This way, if the child is going to a friend’s house, the parent can call to make sure the other parent is on-board with the visit. The child doesn’t even have to know about the parent to parent phone call, but you will be assured that your child is safe and that there is another adult around.

Communication is key. If you keep the communication lines open with your children, they will be more apt to tell you the truth and keep you updated with what is going on in your life. Then, you won’t have to sneak around to see what they are doing.

There are many different types of these products on the market. Some have special receivers that can be clipped to a child’s clothing, others are inserted into the sole of their shoe, and some are embedded into cell phones. The large variety of options make it easier for a parent to choose a product that will work best for them.

Electronic child finders may help save lives because when a child is abducted, the first few minutes are the most important. When a parent looses sight of a child, the device can be activated to locate the child. The parent can follow the signal and find the child before any harm is done. If the parent is unable to locate the child, the police can then use the GPS child finding device to locate the missing child. Sometimes the shear knowledge that a child has a GPS on them will scare the abductor into letting the child go without harm, for fear of being caught by authorities.

An electronic child finder will also help in smaller emergencies, like when a child gets lost in a store or a mall. It has happened a billion times, and it will happen a billion more times. When the child has a GPS device on them, the parent can easily find the child and have a happy reunion.

Even the simple fact of owning an electronic child finder can help ease the minds of nervous parents. So go ahead, take advantage of technology, you could be saving your child’s life.

A simple pocket calendar is small enough to fit into most mom’s purses or diaper bags. They provide an easy way to glace at the appointments for the current day, as well as future dates. But, writing space is limited. There are larger wall calendars, which provide a lot more room, but are less portable. These calendars are the least expensive of all the ways to keep track of appointments, activities, and special days.

A basic electronic planner usually includes an electronic phone book, which can be very handy for a busy parent. These devises are more expensive than the paper products, but still relatively cheap. They are also small and will fit into just about any bag or pocket. The screens may be rather small, and there is limited customization ability, but they will hold a lot more data than a paper calendar.

A personal data assistant is an electronic device that is small, yet extremely functional. There are countless bells and whistles to these little electronic friends, from holding hundreds of contacts to a calendar with several viewing options in which all your events and appointments can be indicated. Newer PDA’s are in color and can even handle spreadsheets and word processor software.

To really get the most for your money, a Smartphone has many of the same capabilities as a PDA, but with the convenience of the device also being a phone. This way, you only need one product to do the job of many.

Computers are a part of everyday life, and the use of computers will continue to grow in intensity. Just think, less than 20 years ago email wasn’t even heard of.  There was no such thing as YouTube or file sharing software like ares p2p and aresgalaxy. The internet was something only the military and government used. Computer and internet usage started to rapidly grow and now even tiny little cell phones can access the internet.

With the popularity of the internet and the invention of children’s games and websites, the number of online child predators and other people with malicious intent has also increased. Children are susceptible to these nasty people because they are naive and often do not understand the importance of keeping personal information, well, personal.

The first thing that a parent of a child using the internet should do is discuss what can and can not be said to friends online. Create a list rules that can be placed next to the computer so the child can clearly see what is and is not acceptable internet behavior. These rules should include computer time limits, acceptable websites, and reminders not to provide their real names, addresses, phone number during online interactions.

Another important way to keep kids safe on the internet is to place the family’s computer in a high traffic area of the home. This could be in the kitchen, family room, or living room. The computer desk should be positioned so the screen is easy to see, allowing parents to easily monitor the child’s online activity. And, the parent should do just so.

Next, install parenting controls on the computer, which can limit the accessibility of websites that are not geared towards kids. These programs come with various tools so parents can see exactly which websites their children are using. There are many free monitoring tools available online.

If your child is using social networking sites, than be their friend. This will make it easier for you to see what they are doing on the social site.

A chore chart for a younger child should be simple and placed in a prominent place in the home, and hung at the child’s height. A simple grid with the chores listed down the side and the days of the week along the top works great. Place a sticker in each box for every chore that is completed. At the end of the week, provide the child with a reward if all chores have been done. Rewards can include money, special snacks, staying up later than usually, helping mom to bake, watching movies with vlc media player or playing a game of their choice.

Older children should be given more responsibilities, such as sweeping, dusting, and putting dishes away. A chore chart for an older child can be a little more sophisticated to keep their interests. There are many magnetic charts that are fun for an older kid to use. Cute pictures and fun colors will capture the child’s interest more than a simple sticker chart. When all your child’s chores have been completed for the week, provide an age appropriate reward such as more money, a package of trading cards, or the ability to spend extra time playing their favorite video game.

Use Traveler’s Checks
Traveler’s checks are great because if they are stolen or lost, it is easy to replace them. This way, you won’t loose money and can continue on your fabulous family vacation.

Use a Fanny Pack
Using a fanny pack that is located in the front of your body will make it a lot harder for thieves to steal your wallet. A person can feel the zipper of a fanny pack opening a lot easier than a pocketbook that is placed behind you. Get a pouch that is large enough to hold your money, credit cards, cell phone, passport, camera, and any other important information. Do not leave these items in your room because they can be stolen. If you do have to leave these items in your room when you leave, make sure they are safely locked up in the in-room safe.

Road Safety
Do not pull over if someone is flashing their car headlights behind you. Wait until you can pull into a well-lit gas station or store parking lot. Emergency vehicles, like police or fire will have flashing red and blue lights. Even then, if they are not in a clearly marked car, find a safe and populated place to pull over.

Avoid Unsafe Areas
When traveling to a destination you’ve never been to, ask the hotel staff if there are any specific areas that should be avoided. Locals will be able to tell you where unsafe areas are, as well as any other special precautions.

When a family is traveling together, especially with young children, the last thing a parent wants to think about is money. It takes a lot of energy to chase after little ones, especially when they are all wound up and in a new environment. Using your money smarts when traveling with family will allow parents to focus on having fun and keeping their kids safe, instead of worrying about money.

Cards Instead of Cash
Never flash around large wads of money as that is like having a flashing sign above your head saying”Hey, I’m a tourist, come steal my money!”. The best option is to use credit cards or debit cards as they are the easiest form of payment to challenge if the card is stolen, and it makes returning purchased items pretty easy too. If you do not have credit cards, bring an ATM card and take out only small amounts of money at a time. This way, if you are robbed, the bad guys won’t get away with all your money, leaving you stranded.

If you must carry cash, divvy it up amongst the family members so that if one person is robbed there is still plenty of money being protected by the other family members. Only carry enough cash to cover such things as tips, phone calls, and taxi fares. Cash should be stored in a fanny pack in the front, your front pocket, or a purse that is kept close to the front of your body.

Traveler’s Checks Are a Great Option
Consider using traveler’s checks because if they are lost or stolen, they can be replaced. Thus, parents don’t have to worry about loosing money and they can continue to provide a wonderful vacation experience for their children. Always store the traveler’s checks serial numbers in a different place than the checks themselves.

With the wonderful world of Smartphones, millions of apps have been created to make life easier. People love toys that make their lives easier, especially busy parents. So why not create a cool app that helps parents keep track of their kid’s chores and assistance with allocating allowances? Well, it has been done!

Penny Johnson, mom of 2, created the”hore Piggy”, which is an app for the iPhone. This app provides parents with the means to keep track of each child’s chores individually, what has been completed and what has not, on a daily basis. It also keeps track of how much allowance has been earned.

The parent can create a Chore Piggy list for each child, and add specific chores for each child. Then, simply mark off each day that the chore was completed. At the end of the week, the app will count up the completed chores and calculate each child’s allowance, based on criteria that the parent input into the program.

This fantastic little app just may be what you need to get your kids motivated to help out around the house and earn some money. The app costs $1.99 and sold 13 copies in its first week! Chore Piggy can be purchased from the Apple iTunes app store onlin

First, take the time to properly show the child how to complete each chore. First, you demonstrate it as the child watches. Then, let the child help you. Next, let the child do it with your assistance. Finally, let the child try it on their own. It may take a few sessions of training and observing to make sure the task is done correctly. Having patience during this learning time will go a long way. Some kids will take a little longer than others to learn how to properly do their chores. Age is also a consideration as an older child will be able to pick up a new chore a lot easier than a younger child.

Each child should have their own list of chores or a chore chart that they can easily look at and know what needs to be done each day. They can also see their accomplishment as each chore is marked off as completed. There should be some sort of reward at the end of the week that is based on how well the child did at completing her chores. This could be in the form of an allowance or some sort of special treat.

Children of all ages benefit from doing chores around the house. Having kids do chores will build great self-esteem, teach responsibility, and instill a healthy outlook towards work and life. Chores must be done; they are a part of life, even though no one likes to do them.

Children as young as two years old can begin to help out around the house. The idea is not to turn your kids into Cinderella, but to give them a few tasks that they can complete each day. Here are some suggestions for chores to assign your children, based on age group.

Ages 2 – 3
Chose one or two simple jobs, like putting dirty clothes into the hamper, dust, pile books, fill a pet’s food dish, put toys away, and wipe up spills.

Ages 4 -5
Pick two or three jobs, such as empty trash, bring in the mail, pull weeds, clear the table, water flowers, make their own bed, use a dust buster to clean up crumbs, empty silverware from the dishwasher.

Ages 6- 7
Children in this age range can do three or four tasks from the above lists, as well as sort laundry, set and clear the table, sweep, weed, rake, pour own drinks, keep bedroom clean, and answer the phone.

Ages 8 -9
Choose three to six tasks, including the previously mentioned items or they can load the dishwasher, vacuum, help cook, put away groceries, make snacks, put away own laundry, sew buttons, wash table after meals, make easy breakfast, mop floor, cook simple food, walk pet, run own bath, peel vegetables.

Ages 10 +
These kids can handle just about any job the parent is willing to teach them, such as folding laundry, unload dishwasher, wash car, wash windows, iron, mow lawn, clean kitchen, change bed, care for pets, yard work, some cooking with supervision, laundry, watch over younger siblings with adult in the home, and change bedding.

When children do chores, they should be rewarded daily or weekly; weekly is ideal. Do not wait until the end of the month, as that is too long of a wait for a child and they will end up seeing their chores as a negative thing instead of a positive thing. Consider the child’s personality and age when deciding on the reward. Providing a child with a weekly allowance is the most popular form of reward system for completing chores. Younger kids may not understand the concept of money and may do better with a special treat or the ability to stay up a little later on a weekend night to watch a movie with their xvid codec media player.

Other forms of rewards for doing all their chores can be in the form of a special activity with mom and dad, having a family game night where the child can pick the game that is played, cooking with mom or dad, going to see a new movie, or anything else that you can think of that your kid would really enjoy doing or receiving.

It’s also a great idea to make one day a month a special chore day by hiding little treats or small coins for the child to find as her chores are completed. She can keep all the treasures she found that day if all chores were completed satisfactorily. You can also provide an extra special reward if the child completed all his chores for the entire month.

Chore Charts

These can be made with any size paper, from a big piece of poster board to a sheet of printer paper. Create a grid with the days of the week along the top and the child’s chores down the side. The resulting squares can hold check marks or stickers as each chore is completed each day. Get the kids involved and decorate their chore charts with their favorite colors, stickers, markers and anything else you can imagine. You can also find magnetic or Velcro versions of chore charts online and in retail stores.

Online charts

For the less crafty and more technical people, there are many online chore chart and responsibility charts available online. Some are free, some are not. Simply type in the information into the software and print out your chart for the week. At the end of the week, simply pass out the reward and print out a fresh chart the for the next week.

Check lists

A simple checklist is sometimes all that is needed to remind a child of their daily responsibilities. Post the checklist in a prominent part of your home, like next to the front door so that the child can easily see where he is at in his daily list of chores. Simply cross off each task as it’s completed.

Pegs and tags
Those with more creative juices can use a peg board that is made for handing keys and hang tags off of each peg with a chore on it. The child can complete a chore and then turn the tag backwards to indicate it is complete.

Your child should have age appropriate rules and guidelines. This includes a decent bed time, a nightly curfew, daily and weekly chores, household rules, and supervision so that when they do something wrong, they can be corrected. A great way to keep household rules and guidelines in check is to hang a list of rules up in prominent locations around the house. When the rules are in clear view, and everyone understands them, children can then be held accountable to following the rules without excuses.

Young children should be supervised the majority of the time. Obviously, young children should never be left home alone. There are a million things that can go wrong when a child is left home alone at a young age, most of which are not safe and can be life threatening.

Children will protest the rules, arguing about bedtimes and trying to stay up later, doing what ever possible to get out of doing chores, and they will plead to stay out late. Be firm and stick to the rules, just as you expect your child to stick to the rules. If you allow the rules to be broken it only shows the child that the rules are not really serious.

Kids constantly test their boundaries and their parent’s patience. But, the parent must stay firm and enforce the household rules. The rules are set to ensure safety and teach important life lessons.

The following are three, user-friendly, free sites that offer a variety of printable chore charts. The charts are PDF files, so you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print them. Download the program free at http://get.adobe.com/reader

http://www.handipoints.com/printable-chart/chore-chart.html This site offers a customizable chore chart, so you can create exactly the right chart for each child. This site also has the option of having your child check off their chores online to earn points they can use to play games, adopt cats, and more. Creating a free account is required to see and print the charts you design. These charts are monthly. This site has been recognized by Real Simple and Parents magazines.

http://www.chorecharts.com/Free_Chore_Charts.html You and your child can chose from more than 45 different designs, such as penguins, dogs, or horses. Maybe your child is an explorer – this site offers The Great Wall, Egypt, and Space chore charts. The charts are monthly and blank for customization. They also offer weekly versions, but with fewer design choices.

http://www.freeprintablebehaviorcharts.com/ is a site that offers a variety of popular characters charts, such as Batman, Backyardigans, Hannah Montana, Tinkerbell, and Spongebob. This site also offers charts for various types of chores, behavior, allowance, saving money, homework, hygiene, and more. This site also offers printable rewards, calendar pages, stickers, and cards.

One suggestion, other than printing a new chart each week or month, is to laminate your chart and then it can be reused. If the chores change often, this may not be an option for your family. At our house, we use stickers and allow the child to color their chart, so we use a new one each time. The chart design changes with their mood, season, and current interests. I keep my favorite sites bookmarked to return to them easily.

When does your child really need to have a cell phone?

The answer to this question is going to be different for every family, but if money is an issue, needing a phone, not just wanting one, is when a parent will find a way to get their child a phone. Many factors will help determine when you child actual might need to have a cell phone.

Do they talk on the phone often? Do you need to get them their own phone so you can use your phone?

Are they away from a phone or out of contact regularly? Such as playing sports, traveling with a school team or club, out with friends or dating.

Do they need to call you for rides, etc. and have to borrow or find a phone every time?

Do they have a job or drive? If they have a job, maybe they should pay for part or all of their own phone. If they drive, having a cell phone for emergencies can be a good idea, especially if they drive alone or at night.

Are they responsible enough to use it properly and no lose it?

As the price of phones becomes more and more affordable, the age of children carrying them seems to get lower. The newer, more affordable pre-paid phones offer an option for a trial period, if you are trying to decide if your child is ready to be responsible for a phone. Though, they often cost more per minute, the phones can cost as little as $10.00 and require no contract. This is a good way to start out with little investment and obligation. Since our son washed his cell phone 3 times the first month, we were glad we chose this option first.

We began using KidsWatch http://www.kidswatch.com/ to see limits on computer usage. The program allowed us to limit how much time per day he could be on the computer, we chose 1 hour on school days and 3 hours on the weekends. We were able to limit when the computer could be used, only between 4:00 pm and 8:00 pm on weekdays and 8:00 am to 9:00 pm on weekend. It was such a relief to not have to list for the sounds of the computer games in the living room while I slept, or sleep on the couch to monitor the computer.

The program allowed him the freedom to use the computer, while giving us the piece of mind that he was only accessing what and when we thought was appropriate. The program offers email alerts, activity reports, and more. You can set the program up by child, ensuring that each child has age appropriate access.

The only complaint I have about this program is that changes to setting are not immediate. If you make a change to time limits, or hours of usage, they do not go into effect until the next day. This was offset by the fact that we could give extra time, in 30-minute increments, as a 1-time event immediately. KidsWarch was a great solution for our family.

The site offers a free 15-day demo or you can purchase the program, with a 30-day money back guarantee.

K9 Web Protection features allow you to restrict internet use to designated times, pre-set limits based on age, plus customizable allow or block lists. You can set times, such as between 10:00 pm and 7:00 am internet access is not allowed, thus, ensuring your child or children are not up in the middle of the night on the internet. The downside is that if you have a child who plays computer games without accessing the internet, this program will not prevent the use of the computer during blocked times for the internet.

You can block entire categories, like pornography, or specific sites, such as MySpace or YouTube. You have the option of over-riding a block with the parent password. This is handy if you only want to allow your child to visit sites while you are present, you can over-ride the block and monitor use of a specific site and next time your child tries to access the site, it will be blocked again. We only allow our children to watch videos on YouTube when we are present to monitor content.

Reports for use and website categories are available. The Safe Search part of the program, blocks offensive search results from showing when your child does an internet search. This feature can block images as well as site results.

One thing to remember is that web filter parental control programs, like K9, are not anti-virus, spam blocking, or firewall protection, they simply filter websites through your browser. K9 Web Protection from Blue Coat is compatible with several common and popular anti-virus, and firewall protection programs, such as Avast, McAfee, and Norton.

Where is the line between monitoring for your child’s safety and protection and when is it spying? With all the new technology available, this question becomes more important for parents every day.

In Great Britain, a wristwatch has been created that is also a GPS Child Locator device. Using a subscription plan, the device texts an emergency message to the designated cell number when the device is removed and where it was when it was last attached to the child. You can also text any time, to find out the GPS location of your child at that moment. The feedback the company has received is about 50/50 positive and negative.

Cars can now be equipped with monitoring devices, like a black box, or even real time GPS tracking. In addition to basics, like how many miles were driven and where the care went, some programs can even tell the parent the speed the vehicle travel at during the trip.

Computers have filtering and monitoring programs that can tell parents when and where their child has been on the internet, even transcripts of chat messages.

Cell phones have GPS chips and providers offer access and locating using the chips. The drawback is that GPS works best outdoors on clear days, so it can be inaccurate indoors or in poor weather conditions.

In am emergency situation, all of these can be helpful tools to rescue your child from a dangerous situation. The keys to determining if it is too much are why you are monitoring and how you use the technology.

If you text your child’s GPS wristwatch every ½ hour to see where your child is, maybe you have gone too far. If you check your teens cell phone GPS when they miss curfew and are not answering your call or text, you are probably not crossing the line. Most of these devices can help keep you child safe, if you use them discretely and sensibly.

In science-fiction films, television shows, and books, people are implanted with tracking devices regularly.

There was an article at guardian.co.uk posted on 3 September 2002 about an 11-year-old girl in the UK, whose parents were going to have a tracking microchip implanted. If she is abducted, they can track her location. The microchip will use the cell phone network and can be tracked on electronic maps.

Many pet owners have their pet’s micro-chipped in case they are lost or stolen. According to some statistics 1 out of every 3 cats or dogs will get lost in their lifetime, which makes the use of microchips seem more practical. The microchips are inexpensive, easy to implant for a vet, and easy to activate and register for the owner. These microchips are scanned using a special device, which then gives a read out of the registration information, however, the pet microchips are not equipped with GPS or any locating technology, you must have a scanner, or call the chip number into the company to get information.

As technology advances, it is possible GPS type tracking implants will become a reality. What does that mean for parents and the children who may be implanted with the devices? Does it cross the line of protection into something else? Is there a limit to what is acceptable for monitoring your children? There are no cut and dry answers to these kinds of questions. Some are human rights issues; some are individual, based on your personal ethics and beliefs. Once upon a time, tracking microchips were only in sci-fi fantasy, but they are looming on the horizon of reality, what will be next?

According to Parry Aftab, executive director of wiredsafety.org and an expert in cybersecurity, you and your child should remember and follow the 4 P’s. If parents, principals, police, and predators should no see it, don’t post it. What you put on the internet is there forever. Having a social networking profile has many benefits, including keeping in touch with friends and family and when used with caution by parents and children, it is usually a safe and positive part of modern families.

The parent should have a profile and connect to their child’s page, so they can see what their child and friends are posting, to help monitor what is appropriate. While, your teen may object to you being their “friend” on a social networking site, if you set guidelines and rules and your child follows them, there is no need for your presence to cause any problems while they network with their friends.

Sexting (texting sexually explicit comments and photos) is another potentially dangerous activity, but this does not mean you have to forbid the use of texting. If you talk to your teen and require them to get your approval before sending any videos or pictures of themselves using their cell phone, apps, or social networking profile, you significantly reduce the risks. Make sure your child knows the dangers of sexting and ask them to report any text or images that they receive that may be inappropriate to you.

You should discuss internet safety, sexting, and other behaviors that can lead to harmful consequences. Having open communication about the dangers of the internet and cell phones could save you and your child from getting into a potentially dangerous situation.