on technology

my 2 boys in middle school each have their very own ipod.

after they got these powerful little boxes, they were always in trouble.

they turned into these weird rude zombie boy humans.

  they always had their faces glued to those tiny screens and ignoring all of life going on around them.

 after a while I realized that the problem was not the boys.

it was our parenting.

we had turned them loose with those little powerful boxes
and had never given them any guidelines to follow.
 

 here is the list of our guidelines/rules.

and I know in 50 years these rules will seem hilarious to all of us!
 

........................................
no ipod zones:
anywhere in public
school
upstairs after 9pm
in the car - unless approved for long trips

no texting after:
school nights:  8pm
weekends:  9pm
or before 9am

no playing on your pod until after supper and all homework is finished.
you may quickly text your friends before this time.

all passwords will be known.
no bad language, no ungodly things, no porn.
do not be disrespectful to others or yourself.
real live people in front of you come before the ipod.

you can:
download good music.
take pictures of your life.
play puzzles and word games.
download the rosary and use it.
turn off the ipod and be a kid:
talk, play, run, ride, read.

be a kid as much or more than you play your ipod.
and it is okay to be bored.
.......................................

these rules have helped our family.
the boys are no longer zombies.
they are pleasant again and learning how to use technology-
which i think is appropriate for their age.

more thoughts -

the husband is the only one who knows the password to download apps.
they do not have access to the internet.
they do not have access to you-tube.
i read their posts and texts.
(there is no such thing as privacy in our house.
that is proven every single time i walk into the bathroom.)

now, will we let our other 3 boys have an ipod this young?

 we do not know.
but so far this is working for us.