From the Editors of Common Sense Media

June 7, 2007

Club Penguin, Disney's Toon Town, WeeWorld, WebKinz, and BarbieGirls all have something in common: Besides being social networking sites for the preteen (6-12) set, the ability to buy things is

baked into their activities. What lessons are our kids learning from this? Are they turning into Web-savvy consumers who begin to understand that money supplies aren't endless (we did say preteens)? Or future consumer brand loyalists (there are countless Skittles merchandising options in WeeWorld)? The answers depend on which sites your kids visit and what lessons you help them learn. Have a "value"able conversation with your kids today.

Here are a few things your kids can learn about being a savvy online spender:

1. Spending is optional. Even though the sites make it really unappealing to play without purchase, point out to your kids that they can still do it.

2. Point out that spending is encouraged. Show your kids all the ways they're encouraged to "buy." In fact, kids quickly figure out that the more time they spend on a site, the more money they eventually get. Plus, they're rewarded by "leveling up." This is a loyalty ploy, pure and simple. It's designed to keep kids on a site in an increasingly competitive environment. And when your kids get older, this gets really expensive on other loyalty-based sites.

3. Detach purchase from pleasure. Ask your children whether they feel they have more fun when they're buying and spending. Try to detach the act of purchasing from pleasure -- unless you want to set up a mechanism that you will pay and pay and pay for. Remember, kids become teens all too quickly, and the sticker shock on the buy mechanism ratchets up exponentially.

For the full article and set of 7 tips, visit http://www.commonsensemedia.org/parent_tips/commonsense_view/index.php?id=239 .