Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

I understand that parents want their children and teenagers to be safe from online sexual predators. Some parents however, go way over bored. If your child is under the age of 14 then I understand if you'd like to have their password & check on them. But after that age, you're going to push your kids away. They're going to feel like you don't trust them & they'll be scared to tell you things. If your child is smart enought, then they will set their profile to private & not add anyone unless they are ACTUALLY their friend in real life. Myspace is a great way to communicate with people & it has many uses. I personally also use it to talk to my friends from school & get any homework assignments that I may have missed. Parents need to loosen the reins on myspace more. Trust your child to make the right decisions & they won't feel overprotected or pushed away later in life.


Sit down and talk with your child. Instead of completely overlooking their entire myspace, just check a few things:
1.ask to look at their pictures. This way, you can see what people say about your kid & who they hang out with.
2.Ask them to keep their profile private and be careful who they add.
3. tell them not to give out any information that is too personal, ex. phone number, city they live in.
4. instead of saying "let me see your comments!" & "who are you talking to?!". say "hey can i look at your friends myspace?" or "so whos that boy who's been calling all week? can i see his myspace?"

by keeping things more low-key but still checking in, you'll learn more about your child & your child won't be more afraid to share with you about what goes on in their life.

I hope this was helpful =)