Parental controls

It hadn't come up for a while, but I recently asked what parental controls I recommended someone use on their child's iPad. They really didn't like what I had to say:

Try actually being a fucking parent.

If you want your kids to get hands-on with tech, that's cool. But you need to be involved. You need to supervise. To guide. Advise. Teach. In short: you need to be a parent. You can't just shove an iPad in their hands and walk away, and then act surprised when they're doing something you don't like.

Kids are supposed to be curious. They're supposed to explore, to push boundaries. That's one way they learn - and if left alone, pretty much the only way they'll learn.

The boundaries bit is important. If you go erecting artificial boundaries or trying to restrict their activities, I promise you they will find a way around your controls. They are smarter than you are. If you start this war you will lose.

Or, you can be a parent instead of letting the iPad take that role.