Parents keep tab on kids on Facebook Cathy Valentine (centre) is a Facebook friend with her children (from left) Frances, Jessica, Finbar and Lachlan. MORE than half the nation's mums join Facebook to keep an eye on their children's social networking. A survey has revealed the site is a crucial tool for mothers to stay in touch and keep an eye on the content of their offspring's Facebook pages. Tech-savvy teens, however, are often suspicious of maternal friend requests, and some block access. The Telstra study revealed more than three-quarters of mums used Facebook every day - higher than the national average of 47 per cent. Telstra consumer executive director Rebekah O'Flaherty said social networking was the norm for mums keeping tabs on their brood. But that didn't mean kids were happy about it. "Children over 16 are most likely to decline friend requests from their parents to avoid the embarrassment of baby photos, parent posts and grammar corrections on their home page," Ms O'Flaherty said. The study also revealed: 11 PER cent of mums used Twitter at least once a week. MORE than 40 per cent of mums rated visiting their children's pages as their favourite thing to do on Facebook. MUMS aged over 55 were more likely to lack confidence when it came to using social networking compared with younger counterparts. ONE in 10 mums admits being worried about doing something embarrassing on Facebook. Psychologist and parenting expert Andrew Fuller said parents had become social media detectives. "It's amazing how often kids forget they are friends with their mum on Facebook," he said. Parents are often surprised at how much stuff they learn that they never would have found out before.