Internet Safety for Kids
Posted at 4:12 am on November 16, 2009 by McMama
**GIVEAWAY ALERT- Read on for details!!**
A couple of weeks ago, LeapFrog came to Chicago to throw a mini blogger party and enlighten us on the topic of Internet safety. About 20 bloggers were invited to the Four Seasons hotel in Chicago to hear a presentation by Larry Magid (creator of Safekids.com and the author of the original Internet safety brochure – in 1993!), to have snacks and wine and good conversation, and of course, to take a sneak peak at a new product.
I’ll admit, I was a teeny bit leery of the night’s intended topic. I’ve seen giant billboards equating the Internet to an open window and online predators to someone outside just waiting to crawl in, and the fear tactic always made me roll my eyes. But, I thought, this is LeapFrog, and their core demographic is a younger generation. Maybe there is something I can learn from this. Besides, with my nearly five-year-old spending every allowable moment online scouring YouTube for Scooby Doo videos, I was open to a recommended way to keep him away from the things I’d rather he not see.
Given my hesitation, I was pleasantly surprised when Magid announced that Big Scary Online Predators are really a concern of Online Safety 2.0 -this is Online Safety 3.0. The Internet has changed, and safety concerns have changed with it. Today, Magid would go on to explain, young children are more at risk of too much screen time than anything else on the Internet, and for older kids, the Internet has become just another part of their social lives. Cyberbullying is an extension of playground (or hallway) bullying, and “sexting” doesn’t happen in a vacuum – it is a reflection of the culture.
Today, one in ten children between the ages of 5 and 7 have their own cell phone, one in two have a television in their bedrooms, and 85% have access to gaming consoles. That’s a lot of screen time. And as parents, Magid asks, what kind of example are we setting for our children? I know that more than once, my two-year-old has closed my laptop on my hands when he wants my exclusive attention. Magid encourages us to provide distractions from television and computers for young children, to practice family togetherness, do other activities, and to encourage physical activity. The number one way to keep kids safe, according to Magid, is to eat dinner together.
Shared meals provide for open communication between parents and children, a critical aspect of Internet safety. No matter how many virtual fences you put up around the swimming pool of the Internet, you must teach your children to swim. Shared meals provide an opening to discuss with your children what behavior is acceptable (Online and off), says Magid, and teach them how to handle unwanted contact, whether it is from a stranger or a school acquaintance.
Magid’s entire presentation can be found at http://safekids.com/mommy.ppt and safekids.com is chock full of good, research-based information about kids and the Internet – from social networking to spyware and sex offenders.
You may be wondering, as I was, how this all relates to LeapFrog? Well, the exciting news in our household is that early next year, LeapFrog will be opening a virtual world tied into (read: free with!) its Leapster2 product. Kids will be able to create their own avatars, explore the virtual world, earn coins by playing Leapster games, and “build” their own virtual house. This being LeapFrog, there are also plenty of educational games for kids to play online. They will be able to do everything from cleaning up a polluted lake to controlling the weather. As with all LeapFrog’s newer products, the virtual world will be tied to the Learning Path, allowing parents to follow along with their child’s learning. The demo looked spectacular, and we are eagerly awaiting the launch of LeapWorld!
Want to try it out for yourself? We have a Leapster 2 to give away to one lucky reader. Just comment below and let us know a little about your thoughts on how to keep kids safe in our cyber-driven society. Blog about this giveaway post or tweet it or FB it to your friends and leave a separate comment below for additional entries. Make sure we can find you to let you know if you won. The giveaway will close next Monday the 23rd and we will notify the winner via e-mail.
they should not be online with out a parent
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I really haven’t given much thought to my kids being protected from things in cyberspace, but now I realize I really need to! My daughter is almost 6 years old and uses the computer at home and now at school, and I just hadn’t realized that this could even be an issue for her yet…but my husband and I will be talking about this soon!
My family uses the Safe Eyes software program on our kids computers to monitor where they go and block offensive websites. It also only allows them a certain amount of time online.
Beyond that, my husband and I are very aware and involved with what they are doing on the internet. We keep a close eye on their activity at all times and ask lots of questions. And our kids won’t have cell phones until they are in their teens.
I think the number 1 best way to protect out kids is just to stay in the loop with your kids and what is going on with them. The family dinner time is such a great moment to reconnect and find out what is going on with everyone!
every paretn should be resonsible for checking up on the sites there child visits and have a program installed to protect from most of the nasty stuff, but also keep a tab on there facebook freinds, and myspace,
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by mcmama: Win a Leapster 2! @DupageMamas is giving one away next week! http://www.dupagemamas.com/2009/11/16/evening-with-leapfrog/...
My child is not old enough to surf the web BUT when she is, my husband is going to put strict internet restrictions on her computer. When she is old enough, her restrictions will be less limited but we will log every website she visits and every email she receives and sends. There will be no MySpace or Facebook.
Most importantly, we will be involved with our child’s activities.
nancy at 513ventures dot com
I tweeted this http://twitter.com/nanceattack/statuses/5876511788
nancy at 513ventures dot com
We have all our computers in public common areas of the house. Whenever the kids are on the computer I can see the screen & I know what they are looking at. We keep the volume low, but don’t use earphones because I prefer to be able to hear what is going on in whatever game they are playing.
I have the computer set up so that I have to enter my password for the kids to be able to install new programs or download things.
tweet
http://twitter.com/Fullnest/statuses/5876717113
facebook
http://www.facebook.com/posted.php?id=692846885&share_id=185772011405&comments=1#s185772011405
blogged
http://ourfullnest.blogspot.com/2009/11/learn-about-internet-safety-for-kids.html
I tweeted!
http://twitter.com/StealsDeals/status/5878373568
One in ten children between the ages of 5 and 7 have their own cell phone?!? Wow that just boggles my mind. What would they need a cell for??
Anyway my daughter is 6 now, we only let her do online game when we are around and that don’t have chat rooms, etc. We also only let her play games where where we have the software for it so there is not outside contact.
WOW! I can’t believe children that young have cell phones!!! We monitor every site our children access online and they are not allowed to add or speak to friends that we don’t personally know.
Tweeted! http://twitter.com/CinnamonHollow/status/5894362530
Great post! Glad to see this discussion.
We limit screen time in our house, but some days the use is heavier then others depending on who’s sick and which parent is working or in school, etc. We try to get babysitters to follow our same rule about screen time. But overall we try to enage in other activities for most of the day.
The thing about setting a good example for them is challenging though because my husband and I are both constantly just popping onto the computer for a minute or two…which turns into longer ofcourse.
We also only allow the kids to do websites with supervision. They do pbskids.org and starfall.com. Usually playing computer games are a reward for them.
Make sure an adult is around while a child is using a computer. Knowing exactly what they’re doing while they’re using it will reduce the chance of something bad happening.
http://twitter.com/mommy2libras/statuses/5930262395
Tweeted giveaway- thanks!!
Our son has to have permission to use the computer. We have our son hearby and know what site he is on.
This is a whole new world for me so I am happy to read that their are resources out there. We were actually thinking of getting a laptop for my daughter to use exclusively. She will only be able to use it in our presence and we will monitor everything.
i have the passwords to all my kids email and facebook accounts. i can check them when i want to. my 5 y/o is only allowed online w/me. but he just plays free mario bros games and visits nick jr.
i think parents need to always be aware of what their kids are doing. peek over their shoulders. always have their account passwords or they aren’t allowed on. just being aware of what your children are up to.
http://twitter.com/rockdrool tweeted @rockdrool is me.
thanks for the awesome giveaway!!