Arizona Family Council

Parents,

Did you know:

• Nearly one-fourth of teens in relationships communicate with a boyfriend or girlfriend via text between the hours of midnight and 5 a.m. (Source: Teenage Research Unlimited)


• On average, teenagers ages 13 to 17 send or receive 1,742 text messages a month. (Source: Nielsen Mobile)


• Recent studies show that teenagers write roughly half of all blogs today, with two out of three providing their age, three out of five revealing their location and contact information, and one in five revealing their full name. (Microsoft Online Safety)


• If teenagers send obscene pictures of themselves or teenage friends over their cell phones, they can be prosecuted for possession and distribution of child pornography which is punishable with minimum of 10 years in prison per image.

AZFC wants to empower parents in the struggle to keep children and families safe in the fast paced media and technology world. Often, by the time parents find out what the new technology is and how to use and monitor it, children have moved on to something else.

We want to help parents understand technology and how your family can use it in the safest way. In order to give you quick, easy ideas, we will post media and technology tips in the coming weeks that will get you up to speed on:

• 4 critical conversations to have with your kids about online safety
• 5 Safety guidelines for cell phones and how to monitor cell phones
• 5 questions you should ask your teenagers monthly
• 5 must reads for parents about family online safety
• Our favorite products to help control media use for families
• Examples of family media rules and contracts
• Who to contact if you or your child stumble upon online pornography
• 12 Blog safety guidelines
• 5 things parents should know about texting
• Which video game systems and handheld devices give children access to the Internet and how to filter the systems

Please email us with any questions or topics you would like addressed.