Porn is like a virus in many people’s brains, and we’ve probably found a way to live with that fact, but it hits differently to know that your child is using their WiFi to watch pornography. There are multiple sites and ads everywhere, and it all gets to the point where we ask ourselves what the future is really holding for these kids, if they actually have a future.
The good news is, there’s always a way to solve every problem, and the internet might have lots of loopholes, but there is a lot of ways that you can fix them. About the children and their attitude, together with a strong factor that is their friendship circle, you have a lot of ways to change them or even prevent them from watching pornographic content online. That’s what this article is about.
STEP 1: GETTING INSIGHT
First of all, I don’t know how this sounds to you, but you’ve got to know your enemy before you even start to fight them. This applies to this thing; you’ve got to have knowledge about porn before you find ways to prevent your child from watching it. Here’s how:
a) Know the sites
Today, we’ve got multiple sites that anyone can visit and watch as much porn as they want. You don’t have to visit these sites, but do what your child would do If their friend didn’t recommend a site for them–Google it.
You’ll find a whole list of sites to choose from, and there you’ll look at the logos of each. This will help you notice when your child is having their share of porn, even when you get into their room and they hastily close the program. Just a glimpse is enough for you to notice.
b) Find out What they already know
This is quite optional, but of you haven’t had enough motivation to stop your child from watching porn, you’re free to get there and see all the available content they can consume, and it’s almost crazy that they might have results for any of your keywords.
Knowing all these things about this subject gives you a broader view and makes you more certain about your goal to keep your child safe.
STEP 2: TALK TO THEM ABOUT PORNOGRAPHY
It all seems like I’m getting back to the topic of whether it’s good or bad to teach children about sex. For a brief context, many parents subliminally believe that the best way to protect their children is not talk about the danger they’re facing, or when you talk about it, it might just make them go into the direction of the danger. Yes, this is true but only to a certain extent, because talking to children about the danger they’re facing will either help them evade that path, or refrain them from going further if they start to walk along it.
a) Ask if they know about these sites.
As you probably already know, our schools are filled with many students, from many backgrounds. This is a really good thing but one of the side effects is learning vices from their peers.
Now, that’s probably the way that your child found out about pornography sites, and even though they might not give you a straight answer, you’ve got their attention.
b) Tell them about the side effects of watching pornography
Your child probably doesn’t know, but you know that there’s nothing good about porn, because it’s not even the best way to learn about sex in the first place. These are the side effects you can tell them about;
- Addiction to pornography.
- It gives you the wrong idea about sex and how it’s done.
- Development of habits like masturbation, fornication, etcetera.
When your child learns about these effects, they’ll get a better understanding, and don’t be afraid to get into details , because their peers will give them the wrong details.
c) Bring the talk to the religious and moral angle
Children are loyal followers of religion, culture and other moral attachments available, as long as parents and other elders teach them effectively.
Bringing it to the moral aspects is one way that you’ll get your child to feel ashamed to indulge in such acts, and even if they do, be sure that they’ll hear your voice inside their conscience, and that’s a good thing.
STEP 3: PROTECTING THEIR SEARCH
Here is where you join the struggle too. As I told you, the internet has a lot of loopholes but every single day, we always find ways to fix them. This is where you can help your child, so that at least they can’t come into contact with random ads or search this content and find it.
a) Use google safe search.
This is a great tool as far as protection of the internet is concerned. This is where your child can’t view content that’s rated 18+ and they don’t get those nude ads either.
On the positive side, you can always trust Google that they’re always right with their algorithms, and you won’t find loopholes unless Google has been miraculously hacked.
b) Plug the internet connection.
This is better when your child uses your WiFi. This is because you’re the one that determines the content they can’t see or search on the web.
On the positive side, this will keep your child in a safe internet search zone, and this one is even harder for them to break through, because it won’t just work with Google, but their entire device.
On the other hand, the routers that enable such functions are usually overpriced, and that might not be so convenient for you.
STEP 4: KEEPING AN EYE ON THEM.
Now, I’m not suggesting modern day stalking as a shortcut to your child’s safety in the cyberspace. However, this is an effective way that you won’t let them feel secure about being on the wrong side of things. This is how you can do it;
- Watch if there’s anything suspicious.
As a child, you think you’re better and wiser than your parent, until you become a parent and realize how dumb you were. You can always watch your child’s movement, tone and even the sound of their voice and tell that something is wrong. Use this same skill to always observe how they use their gadgets. Just make sure it doesn’t get creepy.
- Check their search history if possible.
Borrowing your child’s gadget like you were going to use it for your own search and quickly running through their search history is not a bad idea. However, just don’t warn them yet if you see something weird in there. Act like everything’s normal and wait for the right time when boyb of you are cool enough to communicate, then get your point across.
Conclusion;
If you haven’t faced or seen someone face the effects of pornography when they’re still young, you might think of it as something they can get into and easily pull themselves out of. The worst thing about this, is it can cause depression and stress, and yet it’s hard to disclose it to anyone because children that battle this fear to be judged.