Track Your Kids while they Trick-or-Treat

kids halloween safety

Halloween brings back wonderful memories. Dressing up, grabbing that big plastic pumpkin or pillow case and running out to fill it with goodies was a ton of fun. It was great going to Halloween parties with friends, walking through haunted houses and feeling the rush of being scared or trying to trick your friends with different pranks. We all want our children to have the same memories when they grow up, but today’s parent seems to have more to worry about – different threats to tamper with making memories.  At what age is trick-or-treating appropriate without us at their side? Should we let them go to the neighborhood over with their friends? Who are they sharing their Halloween pictures with on social media? Who’s going to be at the Halloween party?  Thinking about these questions can make any parent nervous. Answering them in a way that makes you rest easier is possible.

There will come an age when your child won’t want you to come with them when they go trick-or-treating. We all want to encourage independence and let them enjoy such a fun day with their friends. You can ease some anxiety using GPS tracking from your kid’s phone or a separate device.  Deciding to let them go without you can also depend on their level of maturity, proving to you that they are responsible enough to make good decisions. Or, you may base the level of freedom on the friends the child will be around. As a group, can they be accountable?

As a parent, you may want to track your kids, no matter where their level of maturity is. GPS tracking will let you know right where they are and if they’ve crossed any landmark boundaries. There are apps and devices that can send you notifications about their location to tame some anxiety while you’re handing out candy at home.  And now with so many of our children using their phones to share pictures, get ready to see more photos of costumes than ever before on their Facebook and Instagram profiles. We definitely won’t be able to keep up with our kids’ photo sharing pace, yet it’s highly recommended you know what pictures they are posting or are tagged in. If you need a helper, there’s an app for that.

Whether you decide to give your child the freedom to trick-or-treat without you with the reassurance of a tracking device, or a social media monitoring tool we wish you a happy and safe Halloween! Have fun and let the MamaBear app make it a less anxious celebration.

Monitor Your Kids’ Facebook and Instagram

monitor kids facebook

When your children are on Facebook or Instagram, they may be exposed to people and things that they may not be ready to see. Or, they become curious, as children do, and click on something they may not have the maturity level to understand. Using tools that help you monitor your kids’ Facebook and Instagram profiles, gives you real-time knowledge about their social media activity. This saves time and worry and can also create some great conversations between you and your child.

In order to properly monitor your kids’ Facebook, it’s important to know some of Facebook’s basic rules. The number one rule to remember is that no child under 13 should have their own Facebook account. There are ways to bypass this rule, but Facebook complies with COPPA, the child online privacy protection act, by asking for date of birth when creating an account. Once they have a page, many parents will be curious about what they are posting, who their friends are, etc. Continue reading “Monitor Your Kids’ Facebook and Instagram”