How much time does your kid spend on social media? What exactly does s/he do there? Here’s what my friends told me: “3-4 hours a day on social media in general, sometimes even more during the weekends”, “she’s on Facebook all the time practically”, “I don’t know exactly what he’s doing there, perhaps, playing games or something…"

In the world of rapid internet technologies growth, social media are becoming your kid’s daily routine. And many alarming factors make us become aware of the two basic points when we allow our kid to enter a digital world. They are protection and education. Teaching our kids the basics of the moral concepts, vital truths about the world can be done through social media as well.

Many parents do explain it to their kids what good they can do for the society, how they can help others. And still many parents don’t know what microvolunteering is and how to actually microvolunteer and teach children to help others. How to do it? How to do it through social media? How to make it exciting for your kid? Let us look at the following points to keep in mind, if you are ready to teach your child microvolunteering.

1) Why you should Сare about Microvolunteering?

Microvolunteering is a chance for somebody outside the community or association to give a hand by executing some little assistance from home, normally on the web. It does not require as much responsibility as usual volunteering and costs practically nothing. Members can direct these activities with only a little exertion, more often than not from a smartphone or other electronic gadget.

For instance, an association may solicit followers to put the URL from their site in their e-mail signature. Another opportunity to microvolunteer is sharing a post, image, video via networking media or, basically, reading site pages, commenting, suggesting recommendations or editing help. Likewise, Essay Dune scientific research team has started a campaign with the American College of Rheumatology on microvolunteering that includes the following research oriented part:

• Clinical Research Conference agenda reviews;
• Help with Rheumatology Research Workshop on annual publishing basis;
• Recommendations and tips for speakers from the ACR/EULAR Exchange Program;
• Editing help for the Committee on Research's MD/PhD Recruitment Proposal, etc.

And it’s not only about scientific help. I’ve started helping kids with rheumatic diseases, when I myself was a kid. My mom worked in the hospital and she used to take me to the volunteering centers in Chicago where we played with kids who had arthritis. I made friends with them and then I understood how important our support was for them.

You can also teach your child how to microvolunteer engaging in different activities. For instance, helping animals. Thousands of pages and groups are devoted to environment and nature protection too.

This sort of volunteering is ideal for you and your kids, if you are eager to help in a bite-sized and convenient way and if you don't have a great deal of time or cash to contribute to a noble purpose.

2) Facebook is Option #1 to Microvolunteer

Facebook is now one of the best platforms for effectively promoting an association, on the off chance that you know how to manage it. It’s one of the most popular social media platforms among kids as well. But it’s also the best option to start microvolunteering.

The easiest way to microvolunteer through Facebook is to like and share the posts of the volunteering nonprofit organizations, like the pages, and comment.

Likewise, UNICEF elevated a microvolunteering campaign in November 2015 to engage fans in their BeAThinker crusade.

3) Show Proactive Kindness

Your kid may join the group, but the crucial thing for microvolunteering here is that s/he may be a part of engaged audience, trying to make a post in accordance with the group’s principles, and offer it to the community, liking and sharing.

If your kid’s devoted to animals, s/he may join some pet owners or animals lovers groups to interact with them too.

Helping Homeless groups can be also an option.

There’s so much suffering in the world… But you and your child can be the ones to help cope with it. Don’t be indifferent.

4) Assistance From Home

Join HelpFromHome community to be engaged in home based microvolunteering activities that advantage such a large number of worthwhile motivations.

HelpFromHome is generally comprised of less difficult tasks for community members. They suggest that microvolunteering meet the accompanying criteria:

• done from home;
• takes 30 minutes (not more) to finish;
• lasts not less than 6 months;
• doesn't include specific aptitudes or talents;
• has a web page that plainly explains what's required in the microvolunteer project;
• does not include liking, sharing posts on social media or following.

On average, report said that teens spend 9 hours a day using social media. Using at least the micro part of this time, your child can become the part of a volunteering society and give a hand to those who are really in need.

By exploiting microvolunteering on Facebook, you can teach your child to help others with strong engagement in volunteering. And not just on Facebook. Make social media moral and educative tools for your kids.

Please, share your ideas and experience in comments.