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Keeping Kids Safe in Cyberspace

Screenshot of the free instant messenger gossip.

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The news has been full of stories about how kids are more net-savvy than their parents, meaning that parents are less equipped to protect their kids from the many evils of the Internet, from viruses to sexual predators. Parents need to step up and recognize the ways that they can help protect their kids, even in the cyber world. Here are three reasons why you need to know how to protect your teen’s Internet surfing:

  1. Sexual Predators: The first reason that you need to make sure that your teenagers are not talking to strangers online and giving out their personal information is because of the risk of sexual predators. The Internet offers these predators a much easier way to contact your kids and figure out where they are. It is very important that your children understand the risks of talking with strangers online and that you know what they are saying in chat rooms and on instant messenger.
  2. Online Bullying: Not only do you need to watch out for strangers, but you also need to watch out for other kids. Cyber bullying has reached shocking levels, as students are even more brutal when merely typing something instead of saying it out loud. You need to know if your child is being harassed.
  3. Inappropriate Content: There are more than enough websites for teens to accidentally find that contain pornography, graphic text, or bad language. Unlike the television and books in your house, you cannot review every website your kids will see before they visit it. You need to understand how to check your teen’s browsing history, and how to set up blocks for inappropriate websites.

Software like PC Tools is available to help monitor your teen’s access to questionable websites and to watch what they are saying to others in chat rooms or on instant messenger. Use your better judgment and watch out for your kids by setting up these protections.

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Three Signs Your Child is Not Doing Homework

Many young students return home from school each day complaining about the seven hour school day they just sat through. This is a gripe that transcends both time and place, because children since the beginning of dawn have been complaining about school. It makes sense that after complaining about such a long day the last thing they would want to do would be homework. Unfortunately, schools require that students do homework and most schools collect that homework and it constitutes a high percentage of their grade. Therefore, homework is important. Here are a few signs that the kids are doing their homework.

Three Signs the Kids Aren’t Doing Their Homework

1. Faking sick- The number one excuse for not having homework done is “I’m sick”. Most children pull this at least once, but some pull it quite often in order to compensate for not completing their homework. It usually starts the night before with complaining about not feeling good and ends up in the morning with fake coughing, a sad face, and a request to feel their forehead.

2. Early Morning Homework Sessions- If a parent constantly finds their child or children at the computer early in the morning or deep in a textbook at seven AM, it’s usually a sing that something else is taking precedence over the homework and now it’s getting done at the very last minute.

3. Call from Teacher- This is the most obvious sign, because it’s usually the teacher calling to say that the child is not completing, handing in, or try on their homework. This sign is self explanatory and usually stems from faking sick, or early morning homework sessions.

Whether it’s too much TV and video games, or the faking sick routine, students will find multitudes of excuses to not complete or hand in homework, however, because of the importance placed on homework it is the role of the parents to ensure that their children are keeping up to par.

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Claim Your Dependents on Your Taxes for the Largest Refund

The IRS has created a number of tax credits specifically to help families with children. Whether your child is still a baby or makinghis way through college, each one can make a significant difference to your tax bill. Here are some of the most common child-related deductions available to most tax payers:

Deductions for Dependents

You can take a significant deduction on your yearly income tax return for each child or other dependent. If you have a child living with you who isn’t yours, you may still be able to take the deduction if he or she is a blood relative and you pay more than half of his or her living expenses. Typically, this deduction stops when the child reaches 19, unless he or she is a full-time student or disabled.

Child Care Expenses

If you must pay for daycare in order to go to work, this amount can reduce your overall tax bill. When choosing a child care provider, make sureshe understands you will be taking this deduction. Although any large-scale daycare center will provide you with the necessary paperwork, some small child care workers who provide this service from their home try to slip this income under the table and not report it.

Educational Expenses

Although you won’t be able to deduct any educational expenses while your children are eligible for public school, tuition and many other expenses can reduce your taxable income once your children enter college. Generally, tuition and student loan interest can be reported, while books and living expenses are not eligible. This is just one little way the federal government tries to make higher learning a little more affordable.

If you’re not sure you’re taking every possible deduction allowed for your children, keep an eye out for free tax filing services when you do your yearly income taxes.

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Benefits of Health Insurance for Children

Parents and anyone who’s every been a kid can attest to the fact that children get hurt a lot. It’s not always their fault, it could have occured because of lack of balance, or running too fast, or doing something mom said no to like jumping the big wheel over the mailbox. However, the accident occurs it is usually painful for both child and parent. Not only because most parents hate to see their children in pain, but also because hospital bills are expensive and can become routine with little ones.

That’s why it is always important to provide medical insurance for children. For some parents this means adding their children to their work insurance plan, but for others it means find and personally purchasing a health insurance plan for them. Here are the benefits to having insurance for children.

Benefits of Health Insurance for Children

1. Money Saver- Because of all the added costs that go along with the doctor today, a simple examination could cost 200 or 300 hundred dollars and an emergency room visit could cost in the thousands. Having medical insurance for those rainy day accidents is an effective way to make a little money go a long way. Especially if the children or child are prone to accidents.

2. Peace of Mind- For a parent, knowing that if anything happens their child can be rushed directly to the hospital with no questions asked is a relief that can’t be matched. Also knowing that operations or medical bills will not bury them in debt is a stress reliever.

3. Young Childhood Care- Young children also require many check-ups and first shots in order to vaccinate them from certain diseases. These costs can be high. By having insurance, an in network doctor will become the child’s primary care physician and everything will be taken care of.

Health insurance is not required by law for children but it is a great way to save money of medical bills and ease the stress of high payments for procedures and other rainy day surprises.

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Three Signs of Teen Drug Use

Similar to alcohol and tobacco, drugs are just as prevalent among teens and young adults as they have ever been, if not more. Because of the easy access kids have to drugs these days it is not surprising that the rate of drug users and drug deaths goes up every year. Whether it’s using those drugs to cope with family problems at home, problems at school, or just for plain fun, kids are getting ahold of them quicker, with more potency.

In order to protect children from the dangerous side effects and down falls of drugs it is important to know whether that child is taking drugs. By examining their behavior, and physical appearance parents can do their best to stop the problem before it spirals out of control.

Signs of Teen Drug Use

1. The eyes- It’s impossible to hide the eyes with out wearing sunglasses. Drugs such as marijuana, prescription pills, and designer drugs like coke, Ecstasy, and meth will either cause the eyes to dry out and be blood shot and/or dilate. Looking at the pupils to see if they are the size of pin needles is the best way to pinpoint drug use. The pupils will also have a hard time adjusting to light.

2. Apathy- Drugs will create a high while on them, but after coming down from drugs users will usually become apathetic and lose motivation in things they were normally motivated to do. If a child begins quitting things they once liked or falling behind in school, drugs can sometimes be attributed.

3. Smell test- Smelling a child when they come home from being gone can be intrusive, but is a very effective way of determining drug use. Marijuana has a strong odor and other drugs can to. Being aware of different smells coming from your teen can help to quell drug use.

These are not fail safe ways to determine drug use, but the most important thing is to be aware, and show interest. Simply being aware can be the best way to stop drug use.

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Your Child is Heading for Mars

Okay, so not really–but as a parent, admit it, you feel like your kid’s going on a space mission when he or she’s about to head off for college. Yes, it’s an emotional time; your child is no longer a child. It is also indeed a scary time, one when as a parent you have to make sure your soon-to-be college student has everything checked out–

You have your notepad, check. As you look around your child’s old room, you make sure all clothes are accounted for–check, check. Making sure he or she has enough socks, underwear, sweaters, and every necessary pair of shoes. Another important point to make is transportation–how is your kid going to get there? Are you going to drive him or her? Or is he or she going to drive himself or herself? That’s important to know because of some of the policies about parking–

Which brings you to probably the most important aspect of preparation for college: room and board.

With room and board, some colleges have policies about where you can park or if you can park at all. Bringing a car might not be an option. Moreover, whether or not you want to spend extra dimes for a dorm room is important. Do your research on apartments, specifically Virginia Beach apartments if you’re looking at a university in that area; the same goes for any other area in the United States. If you grab a good deal in an apartment and your star student child lands a decent part-time job along with grants and loans or maybe even scholarships, and you can lose the whole roommate issue, sharing a bathroom, and having to go to a mess hall for food–not to mention an apartment usually lends you more space than a dorm room.

Sounds like a lot to put on your head? Well, it is. After all, your child is heading to Mars!

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Help Your Teen Plan Their College Education

If you have teenagers, they are not as much “children” now as they are “inexperienced adults.” What that means is that college is just around the corner, even if it is years away, and those few years are going to bring a lot of changes in their lives.

During this time, they are experiencing new social situations, grades are becoming ever more important, career aspirations bloom, and college is at the forefront of their focus. Subsequently, they should be thinking about what college they want to attend and what options are available to them, including obtaining a scholarship, financial aid, and the advantages and disadvantages of different schools. It is also important that they consider online universities, which can provide them convenience, flexibility, and even affordability in some instances.

It is never too early to have your child start thinking about college. In fact, by around the age of sixteen they should be thinking in terms of what aspects are important to them when it comes to college and what area of interest they want to pursue. For instance, ask them what colleges have they been considering attending, and help them narrow down a few choices based upon not just their desires, but the merits the college has earned and the reputation it has.

To help with this, consult lists that come out yearly and rank colleges, providing information about curriculums, degree options, the instructors, and costs. A great place to start (and to obtain lists like this for online universities) is a website like elearners.com. This site can help your teen to jumpstart the planning process and gives them clear, concise, and vital information about attending various online universities. By checking out college information early, your teen will be a step ahead in their academic career, and will also be motivated to keep their grades up and make smart decisions for their bright future ahead.

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Importance of Youth Education

Even though “No Child Left Behind” did not accomplish what it had intended and even though it created economic shortfalls in the national education system, it shed light on an important subject that had been overlooked for years: Youth Education. Laura Bush’s goal to re-educate the system on how children’s education should be cared for was the first time in a long time that the nation took a hard, comprehensive look at the national education system and realized it was failing the children.

States across the country are struggling to provide enough money for schools to operate adequately. Students are provided less than adequate lunches and expected to graduate using the least amount of resources available. Some states have more money and understand the importance of education while others don’t have the resources to change even if they could.

Importance of Youth Education

1. Tools to Succeed- There are plenty of students who go to private high schools, expensive colleges, and then never do anything with their life. What a person does with their life is their choice, but every child should be given the same opportunities and the same chance to succeed. By providing adequate educations students will have a better chance of accomplishing something in life.

2. Quality of Life- Public education systems in some cities and states ensure that children will have a lower quality of life than those who are educated to the highest standards because these children will have a far lesser chance of getting into college and in turn getting a good job.

3. Legacy- With the understanding that education can be changed by pushing forward, schools and students can create legacies in which their children will also succeed, which will erase the inequities of certain school systems.  Change doesn’t always happen fast, but with perseverance it does happen.

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Give Your Teen the Gift of Internet Security

When your teen goes off to college, there are plenty of things he or she will want to take along. That’s great, but as a parent, you’ll probably want to send a gift or two, as well. That way your teen will be reminded of how much you care about him or her, and he or she will feel close to home, even when there’s a lot of distance separating the two of you. If you’re going to buy gifts for your teen to take to college, they should fall into two categories: fun and practical. If you can get them to fall into both categories at once, that’s even better – and it’s also very hard to do. The best option is generally to get a gift from one category and a gift from the other.

One great way to give your teen something practical is to use a Carbonite offer code so that your teen can keep his or her computer information backed up correctly and safely. While you’re at it, consider some computer tools and games so that your teen will have something to use for schoolwork and something to play either by him or herself or with friends who come by the dorm room and want to get together. There are plenty of fun things to do, but you don’t want your teen to be partying when studying should be a priority. If there are things to do in the dorm room, your teen will have less interest in going out.

Giving your teen home decor can be a good choice, too. It’s a great way to provide that homey touch without spending too much money. There usually isn’t too much space in a dorm room, so you don’t have to buy a lot of home decorating items. A few small things will do, and your teen will feel right at home.

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Opening Eyes to an Unseen World

Children in Jerusalem.

Image via Wikipedia

Some may say that that’s a disadvantage of home schooling. It’s like putting your child or children in a plastic bubble and never allowing them any interaction with other kids in a defined school setting. Learning social skills might go out the window, not to mention the joy of putting a smile on a teacher’s face when that teacher gets to present the good grades to the parent, which also puts a smile on the parent’s face, and then a smile on the kid’s face!

Without a doubt, some students are still to this day better suited for traditional schooling. But that’s not the issue here. The issue is, what do you do if you’re a parent saddled with the prospect of your home-schooled child turned soon-to-be college freshman actually going into the traditional school setting. What can you expect? Will your child succeed after being in the home for so long, learning from mom or dad? It’s a tough situation.

But it can be resolved easily. Just keep this in mind: what your child would need is a sense of self, personality. As a parent, make sure you foster that feeling as many times as possible, every year, maybe even every month. Moreover, you also still have the option of your soon-to-be college freshman attending an online university through the use of the web site EarnMyDegree.com, maintaining the same stability you’ve preferred with the online schooling.

Regardless of the supposed disadvantages of home schooling, your tips to help prepare your child for college are cut and dry and must be followed to the tee if your child will be successful in the college setting. He or she will most definitely come across situations he or she might not be used to–such as drugs, drinking, sex, and many other difficult issues. Be understanding of your child and talk to them about it. It’s an unseen world; so help your children open their eyes.

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