Bear and the Internet

I hear lots of stories about young lads finding all sorts on the internet and how we all need to be careful.  Bear is now seven and one half and we not only have all sorts of protection on his computer (including DH getting emails if bear tries to access dodgy sites) but if bear is on the computer I am usually in the same room because that is what I consider parental control.

That said, we are pretty easy going when it comes to what bear looks at.  He can go on Cbeebies website, Nickelodeon kids, Disney etc without any fuss.  I'm happy to encourage him to have a look around and when he is on YouTube he is getting quite discerning.  I watch that quite hard, but as I type I am watching him watch someone playing minecraft with a lot of genuinely nice banter.

As the parent in charge of homework supervision (DH would do it but I am here after school) I have explained Wiki to him and bear has not only looked up stuff on wiki (I explained that some of the entries were by silly sausages but you could check it and most of the history etc was probably okay) but also minecraft wiki and Doctor Who wiki as well.  

Yesterday bear heard a reference to the Periodic Table so I was struggling to explain the concepts of elements to him.  Today he found a list of all the wars that England had been involved in.  It started, as far as I can see, around 1066 and I found myself floundering.  I was okay explaining what the Marcher Lords were (powerful lords based around the border of Wales who wanted the king to Do What He Was Told) and I was okay giving good guesses on who he actually meant despite his very interesting pronunciation of things like 'Genoa' but how do you explain the Crusades to a seven year old given that he goes to a very multicultural school?  Before 8.30am I was trying to explain why the Hundred Years War didn't last 100 years.

I have just been broken off to explain what copyright means.

Bear is a lot better, but still off school.  I am now suffering with what he has had and aching all over.  I was up in the middle of last night dosing bear with calpol.  I was up at daft o'clock with bear the night before.  Friday I spent most of the night being extremely ill when I found that the random food intolerance extended to chocolate Baileys.  I am not sure I'm up to this.