1. Talk to other parents.  Find out what management strategies work and which ones don’t. Appreciate that you are probably in the same boat as other families.
2. Best to put rules in place from the very beginning.
3. BOUNDARIES … but it seriously is a case of having to constantly be on guard and monitor their use.  Be consistent and persistent.
4. Try and keep use to restricted hours and that will control the socializing and messaging that can go on through the night.
5. Setup the ability for parents to be able to access and view content on all accounts like iTunes, iMessage, Facebook, Instagram etc.
6. These devices will be a part of your child’s future. Best to embrace them and work with the students to try and ease them into this new world. Preventing the use of these devices or severely restricting the use will simply disadvantage your child from an education and social point of view. Students need to grow up with the new technology and learn for themselves how to manage the negative aspects of these devices (bullying/predators/adult content).
7. View technology as an adventure and embark on the journey with your child.
8. Find how the iPad works and what it can do. Get involved.
9. Use a Docking station in an open area of the house where iPads are to remain during appropriate times.
10. Ensure that when homework is being done, all social apps are turned off, or ignored as it is the biggest distraction for completing homework. We have set aside some time each day where we allow our daughter to check her messages and respond if necessary. This has been a trust issue.
11. iPads are not to be taken into bedrooms.
12. Have a negotiated deal with your child so that the iPad is used only as a school tool. It belongs to the parents and is made available for use for school work only.
13. Be careful with credit card use.Do not link one to your child’s iTunes account. Better to use iTunes gift cards.
14. Ensure you have a protective case. Our expensive cover saved the iPad on one occasion already.
15. Purchase the iPad at the beginning of the holidays to work out all the issues early.
16. Use a few games as a reward for good behaviour & restrict/un-install the games as a punishment for bad behaviour. Note you can reinstall apps that have been paid for at any time later for free. Effective behaviour management tool.
17. Trust your gut. You know your child. Set rules based on what you know of their behaviours.
18. Embrace change.
19. Don’t use the iPad as a babysitting device.
20. Talk with your child – educate yourselves in this technology.  It is not going to go away.
21. Keep the children off Facebook until at least age 13.