Caching with children?

[+zsav]

Hi, I have just gotten started in caching and my 9 year old son has become very interested. He was very disappointed that he could not sign his name and wants to create his own account. Should I let him or should I create another account that is more of a team name?

Thanks for any input.

Z

[Neos2]

If I still had a nine-year old, I let him create his own account.

 

I'd keep an eye on the email he was getting/sending and have it sent to an account I could monitor (Not everyone on here takes the few seconds to think before they send off a smarmy email to a fellow cacher).

 

But I'd let him make his own logs and even create his own caches if he wanted for sure (With the usual supervision, naturally).

[+xjjoe01]

Hi, I have just gotten started in caching and my 9 year old son has become very interested. He was very disappointed that he could not sign his name and wants to create his own account. Should I let him or should I create another account that is more of a team name?

Thanks for any input.

Z

 

I have a 3 year old and an 11 year old. We use my account as a family account and let the oldest child sign the log. Seems to work and I can keep tabs on what my oldest is doing.

 

Joe

[ao318]

I also have a 9 and 12 year old that geocache. After 100 finds they wanted their own profiles. We had to go back and log all their finds to update their account. I have their email sent to me for just the reason Neos mentioned. It is easier to start it now than after 100 finds like I did.

 

Since they didn't sign the log you could do as we did when we started logging them. We just stated in their log that "I just created a user name and had found this cache with my mom/dad, "your name".

Edited December 30, 2008 by ao318

[+Morningofthesun]

We are fairly new at it as well, as we also have a 9 year old and a 6 year old. I feel like there is so much to learn about geocaching, and reading the clues on each page, and really reading through pages that describe Multi's - that my 9 year old just wouldn't understand it all. Therefore we always log in as a family and I oversee the account. They take turns with the GPS - I think it's incredible that at such a young age, they can understand reading one. That's excellent in itself. As well, they love trading trinkets. But as far as the computer - that's something IMO that Mommy or Daddy need to stick to. Good Luck!

[Maine Family]

Hi, I have just gotten started in caching and my 9 year old son has become very interested. He was very disappointed that he could not sign his name and wants to create his own account. Should I let him or should I create another account that is more of a team name?

Thanks for any input.

Z

We created an account for our grandson because he caches with us. We decided to do it because he likes caching and we knew he would eventually have his own account but then he wouldn't have the caches he went to with us. I do the logging for him but it is a special part of his history that shows how much fun he had with us finding the caches.

[+uxorious]

He was very disappointed that he could not sign his name and wants to create his own account.

 

Do you mean he wanted to sign the log at the cache, or the on line log?

You don't need an account to sign the log that is in the cache. Plenty of Muggles do that. I wouldn't stop any kid that was old enough to sign his name, from signing the cache log.

 

As someone else noted, setting up an account for a child would be fine, but you would need to monitor it. However, there are cachers who have set up account for their pets, and log on line for them.

[+Bear and Ragged]

Hi, I have just gotten started in caching and my 9 year old son has become very interested. He was very disappointed that he could not sign his name and wants to create his own account. Should I let him or should I create another account that is more of a team name?

Thanks for any input.

Z

 

Nothing stopping him from signing his name in the log.

Avoid confusion by saying in your log you were caching with "his name" so if the log book is checked against the logs on the cache page it makes sense.

 

Own account?

Why not. If he likes cacheing, and goes off on his own when he's older, he has the finds he's done with you.

[+SkellyCA]

Yes, get him his own account, he'll feel more connected, be more motivated.

[+mfamilee]

We are a family of 3 who go geocaching together as a team & all use this 1 account. Our jr. explorer (10 yr. old girl) does sign our username on the log in a cache from time to time when she asks and isn't off doing more exploring. In our case... the simpler the better.

[+jbar]

I have 2 boys 12 and 14. They both have thier own accounts. They keep saying they will pass me in finds.

 

Yes, get him his own account, he'll feel more connected, be more motivated.

[+Allanon]

Here's a kid with a well known caching dad and he has his own account.

 

Edit foe speeling...

Edited December 30, 2008 by Allanon

[+jamberwil]

Here's a kid with a well known caching dad and he has his own account.

 

Edit foe speeling...

 

I set our account up 'for the kids' Our name is a combination of their 3 names (10, 7 and 3 yrs) We're only just starting and they're happy so far. I'm figuring out how it works but it's their 'team'

[+rtyrie]

I have a 9 year old son as well. He is more interested in the hiding aspect rather than the finding. I allowed him to create his own account. He usually enjoys the hunt, but does not care about logging his finds. He sometimes signs his name in the cache log, but never submits an online log. He has hidden 2 caches so far and enjoys the logs he receives from the finders.