“Underage” Use of Facebook

I don’t know how many of the middle school parents know about our Synergy blog yet, but I read this in School Library Journal, a professional resource I use at the library. We all know the potential misuse/abuses with Facebook, and not to be suspicious, but kids are curious. The study says 7.5 million “underage” kids (under Facebook’s 13 year old age requirement) use Facebook, and 5 million of those are 10 and under.

I have first-hand experience with this myself. My 11 year old cousin made up a birthdate that put her older than me (graduated from Penn State Class of ’99!) so that she could get on Facebook with her friends, after my aunt had said no. Being 11 and not supervised, she has no clue what all’s out there, the viruses, let alone inappropriate behavior possible. She even sent me a message saying , “Shh! Don’t tell Mom!” (Of course I did tell mom.) I know, in her mind, it’s a harmless site, like Webkinz that she used to spend hours on. A place where she can talk to friends, take quizzes and play games. But there’s still too much potential for misuse/abuse, especially when kids aren’t being supervised or haven’t been educated on privacy settings, what not to “click” and all the new potential safety risks with our increasingly online generation. And my cousin? Despite being a “good kid”, she got into a fight with a friend at school, and the two girls started arguing online. The principal had to call my aunt and the other girl’s mom to talk about cyber-bullying.

I’m not suggesting you always be suspicious of your child, but be aware of their curiosity and face it head on so they don’t go behind your backs.

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