As a parent, it is very important that you understand that parenting today is not what it used to be decades ago. In fact, a lot has changed when it comes to parenting a child today. Let’s start by understanding that we are in an era of information and this shift has demanded parents to pay a lot of attention to their level of communication with their child.

In the past, it was very easy for a child to talk to their parents or siblings as that was the most reliable source to get information or answers. That isn’t the case now. With the advent of the internet, a child would rather surf the net for answers than share their worries with their immediate family.

Every parent needs to understand how the internet and social media can affect the health of their children and the relationship with them. It is pertinent that parents pay close regulation to how much time their kids spend on the internet. Here are some questions that you need to ask yourself:

• What websites are they visiting?
• How long do they spend on the internet?
• What kind of relationships do they keep online?
• Has their time on the internet changed their habit and behavior?

The internet is a big place that a child can get lost in if not properly monitored. There are a lot of negative contents online like pornography, cybercrime and cyberbullying. It is your responsibility as a parent to guide your child on consuming the right contents online. Some of the ways you can do this include:

• Restricting the access to the kinds of website they can visit.
• Have a data limit to watch how much they use the internet.
• Regulate the time they spend using the internet.

With this in check, you can stay relaxed that the internet can in no way influence your child negatively. Lastly, always make out time to spend quality time with your children. Let them feel free to ask you questions that they may want to get from the internet. This way, you enhance your relationship with them; reducing the time they spend online searching for answers.