Information is power and power is freedom. With technology advancing daily, people find it easier to get their information through the internet. This saves them a lot of time, energy and money.

Browsing the Internet is like when a child enters a toy store- there is so much to explore that once you get in, you never want to leave.

The internet has so many benefits for children, such as research access, entertainment and is a great communication tool for families and friends.

However, parents need to establish a monitoring system to their kids. As much as the internet has become a good source of information for our children, it also has set backs especially for teenagers.

There are so many sites that are very unpleasant and one can never know what will pop up after a typing error while on Google or the new Bing.

The One Laptop Per Child initiative will ensure that eventually every child in Primary school in Rwanda owns a laptop. This is a good idea that ensures that children develop various skills like reading which develop their minds.

Also we should remember that playing with friends and doing sports are a vital part in helping them, develop a healthy body and mind.

As much as we would all like to be modern, and be in the right pace with the rest of the world, whatever our kids are being exposed to from the internet is not all safe.

Not all lessons are learnt from their parents, the internet has become a great teacher of both good and bad habits among children.

Though we may not be in a position to ban our children from these sites completely, the only solution is breaking the silence between parents, teachers and children. Talking about these issues and their negative effects will definitely help.

Finally, as we all embrace technology, we are who we are today because of our culture and background, it is also our identity.

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