Technology gets more and more ingrained in society and daily life with each new generation. There are plenty of internet horror stories and statistics to scare you as a parent working hard to rear healthy, happy, and functioning humans.

You are not alone if you are concerned about technology and your child. The Pew Institute reports that over a third of parents of grade-school children express concern over their child’s use of technology.

Yet technology is now, and will forever be, a large part of human existence. For instance, over 65% of the jobs children entering school now will hold as adults don’t even exist yet!

So it just makes sense to take a proactive approach integrating technology carefully and wisely into your family’s life.

Digital Time Capsule

If you are expecting a little human, set up an email just for Baby, and encourage friends and family to send messages and pictures to Baby as a a wonderful digital “time capsule” for your child. It will also expedite sending out birth announcements once Baby is born, and give the recipients an easy way to send their congrats in return.

Build Baby’s Skill Sets

Is a proven fact that computer games help your developing toddler improve manual dexterity and  hand/eye coordination. What a wonderful time you will have with your child too, helping them get ready for pre-school, by playing games that teach the alphabet, numbers, shapes and more, while introducing healthy technology habits.

Useful Tech Activities

Older children will love the responsibility of taking photos on the family vacation. When you get home, you can work together to download the photos, select the best ones and create a fun digital scrapbook to capture family memories, building your child’s computer skills and self-confidence.

If your family enjoys a special hobby such as gardening, kiting, bird-watching, sewing or fishing, help your child build a website using one of many easy website templates to chronicle and share your adventures.

Family Game Night

Who said family game night is dead? Just move the games from the kitchen table to the living room, where everyone can join in the fun, spending time together playing everyone’s favorite digital games.

Embrace Social Media

Along with these suggestions, incorporate social media sensibly into your child’s life. It’s here to stay with some 83% of people believing it’s a helpful way to keep in. Teach your child early about who – and how – to communicate properly family and friends online through Facebook, WhatsApp, Skype and more.

Review these suggested rules to institute in your home about proper social media engagement.