“Friending” your kids on Facebook

I confess: I have a mild addiction to Facebook. It hasn’t taken over my life but it does take up my time. Instead of working, I find myself taking a quick peek and checking on my friends’ status updates. Before I realize it, I’ve been on Facebook for at least half an hour – reading witty comments from old pals and trying to come up with something equally compelling to share.

While it’s a way for me to catch up with friends, some parents actually use Facebook as a tool to keep track of their kids, according to a story in the San Jose Mercury News, “ Don’t worry, kids, Stanford will teach Mom, Dad about Facebook .”

The four-part lecture series at Stanford University is already full, according to the article. It also includes a lab for parents to get one-on-one Facebook tutoring.

They don’t necessarily see it as spying on their kids, experts say. Facebook and other social networking sites have simply become “a new form of dinner table conversation.”

Some teens, however, are mortified by the idea of having their moms and dads on Facebook. “Some kids say that a “friend” request from parent is like discovering Dad at your beer pong game,” according to the story. “Or bumping into Mom in the dressing room of Forever 21 .”

Are you on Facebook? Do you “friend” your kids? Do they accept your friend request? What do you think about Facebook becoming “a new form of dinner table conversation”?