+ WEEK FIVE REFLECTION POST

I just finished the prep work for our class next week since I have so much going on, so this post reflects some of what we will discuss next week and what we discussed this week. This week I wanted to write about how I hope my children will use technology and to what extent.

I love technology. As we have talked about in class, it is such a great blessing that Heavenly Father has given us to use in this day. I can't imagine my life without a computer, phone, the internet, and so many other modern conveniences. I can't imagine having gone through school without using Google! Or living in another country and not being able to communicate with my family back home. It is amazing just how dependent I am on technology. I know that my children will share this with me, maybe even more so. In one of the articles we were assigned to read it mentioned that technology is increasing the rate in which our culture changes because we can communicate so easily. It seems like this will just continue to happen and evolve more and more as technology develops further.

So, how do I want my children to use technology?

Back home I babysit for a particular family all the time. I love the system that they have set up in their family. They use a token system. The kids have to read for an hour to earn 30 minutes of play time on their iPad's/the Wii. I really love this. I think that with anything in life, moderation is key. We can have a healthy relationship with our phones, the internet, everything really. And the best place for our children to see this is in our example.

I also like the things that we talked about as a class in what we can do to protect our children against pornography. I loved all the steps from the article we read, especially the one about having an open relationship. I love that even when the parents heard something shocking, they waited until their children had left the room to be shocked/surprised. That is something that I want to practice in my own family! I have really learned the past couple of years how important communication is to the strength of any relationship, and I want my children to know that they can talk to me about whatever they are facing.

I think that the more we talk with our kids and model moderation with technology, we will set a good example for our children to follow.