Grandchildren and the internet

Sadly don't see enough of my grandchildren, as they all live abroad.
Just a couple of observations:
One family came to stay with us for a week last year. Children aged 9 and 11. I was worried how to entertain them, but they were fixated on their ipads or whatever half the time. Their parents had to make rules about doing something else more productive.
The other thing - I started corresponding by email with an older grand-daughter, 17 yrs, and was floored by her use of strange language and spelling - text-speak or something.
I live in the past obviously.

So are they up at 4 am jingl?

Oh heck! You sound tired.

Yes [gin]

I learned to play Minecraft as well!! We can then play together. I take my lead from their parents in terms of time spent on devices which, fortunately, we all tend to agree with. I have parental controls set as do their parents. All the devices they use are handheld, mainly ipad minis, which means they're in the same room as us so we can see what they're up to. DGD is very much aware of inappropriate online behaviour as her mum has had conversations with her about it, but she is the kind of child who would tell you if anything was amiss. It's just the way she is...8 going on 80. DGS, on the other hand, is football obsessed so that's pretty much all he'll look for. Small DGS (2) has not been allowed to watch tv/iPad until very recently and he gets 15 mins per day of Night Garden or Thomas.

Anyone else watched hours and hours of Stampy Longnose?!?

Have you done it yet Cari?

Only the two eldest are allowed to use my computer and I tend to make occasional checks on what they are doing at the time and look at the sites they have visited afterwards. It is located in a separate office so not directly under my eye when they are all here. They generally use it for playing games, sometimes "educational" ones, doing homework or listening to music. There are no filters on my computer but as they are not very familiar with a Mac, they would find it difficult to conceal the sites they have visited. I don't think they are devious enough to want to at the moment – maybe it will be different when they hit mid-teens.

The younger ones may not use it on their own because of their tendency to bash the keys, especially the space bar, and put sticky fingers all over the screen. However, I do sometimes show them things that I think they might find interesting and the three-year-old is obsessed with the Irish dancing teddy bears that a fellow Gransnetter provided a link for on St Patrick's Day.

It's good to watch the You Tube vids with them. (I had never heard of mountain boarding)

When they stay with us there is a rule, imposed by their mum. No screens after 11am.

And then of course, there's Amazon. And the "Granny, do you know you can get...."

The first thing his dad did when he got his Nexus was to put the filter on.

My 13 year old GS loves you tube for things like watching other kids mountain boarding (latest craze) Younger one (7) likes anything funny he can find.

They have both got filters on their internet devices. The 13 year old has a mobile phone but not an Internet one - that I would worry about. The younger one is very keen on games on his WII U and his Nexus 7, both of which I gave him. (yes, I get "blamed" He does spend a lot of time on them, but it's his thing. He's not such an outdoor type as his older brother is. DD makes sure he gets exercise - he rides his scooter to school. And he has other interests, so we think it's ok.

Kids are different. Some like tech stuff, others are not bothered. But the filters are very important. I dread them asking for smart phones. I suppose it will have to come though.

Sorry Cari my DGCs are a bit too little for me to be of much use to you.
One DGD has her own kindle but DD and SiL have blocked YouTube for anything other than Peppa Pig and Ben and Holly.
I've been very impressed with the little number games and letter games she plays on it.

I teach my grandson at home so use the internet with him a lot to find out information. He would love just to use you-tube, but that is banned when he is in learning mode.
In the "If you can't beat them, join them" mode, I am now trying to teach him to programme online.

Both he and his sister enjoy Minecraft, so we buy everything Minecraft to get them playing together. Today, he showed me a Minecraft video on Galileo, so we spent the next hour looking for important facts about Galileo, poor man, who was imprisoned for heresy after supporting Copernicus in his finding that the earth moved round the sun.
Because his mother and I both teach him, we have a lot of discussion about how much he uses the internet, and what he should look at.
When in my house, I always know what both he and his sister are on, because the computer is visible wherever I am. Any sign of hiding anything and it gets switched off.