Bullying no longer just a playground problem

A couple of weeks ago I was fortunate to have a lovely long weekend away with my family.  There’s nothing I enjoy more than sitting by the pool watching my gorgeous kids happily play without a bother in the world.  And I must confess it was even better to be away without all the “screen thieves” – you know the ones: Nintendo DS, Wii, Computer, Television. However, an iPod is a holiday must in our family. My iPhone is also my iPod and my kids like to use it to play games, which I’m fine with.  But I’m now finding my kids are asking more and more often “when can I get my own phone?” 
I like the idea of my eldest having his own mobile phone, particular as he is nearing time to go to high school.  I can see the positives; what if he misses his bus, he wants to go and do some extra study after school in the library and wants to let me know his whereabouts (I live in hope!), however what scares the pants off me is the not so good things, like unwanted and hurtful text messages and inappropriate use.  Almost every day now you hear stories on the news about teens being bullied by text messages and instant messaging on their computers.  For today’s “tech native” kids cyberbullying (continue reading...)