INTERNET SAFETY FOR KIDS
From the day our children learn to crawl, it is our responsibility to ensure they are safe. We teach them not to touch when they are babies and as they grow, we teach them street and bicycle safety.
When young children go online, it is our duty to teach them Internet safety. A few basic rules will make life easier for you and ensure your child’s safety while he/she is online.
RULES
1. Stress the importance of never giving out personal information over the Internet. Name, address, phone, parent’s work address and phone number as well as the name or location of the child’s school must never be given to anyone online.
2. A child should never agree to “meet” anyone they have met online without their parent’s permission, even if that “someone” professes to be a child. If parents agree to such a meeting, they should accompany the child and arrange to meet in a public place.
3. A child must never answer messages that make him/her feel uncomfortable. Assure your child that he/she is not to blame if they receive such a message. In the instance that such a message is received, instruct your child to let you know immediately so that you can inform the service provider.
4. If a child finds information on a web site that makes him/her feel uncomfortable, he/she should tell an adult immediately.
5. You and your child should set rules for the child while online. This includes the length of time, the time of day and appropriate areas to which the child is restricted while online. These rules must be strictly monitored. Set down terms of punishment if the rule is broken.
6. Children must never send a photo or any personal information to anyone online.
7. Encourage your child to be a good online citizen. He/she should never hurt other people or break the law while on the Internet.
8. Be sure your child is aware that he/she should never give out his/her password to anyone – not even his/her best friend.
9. Parents should be familiar with the Internet and the services that their children are using. Log on and have your child show you what he/she does while online.
10. If your child’s online activities cause you concern, talk to him/her. Communicate with your child and seek advice from librarians, teachers and other online service users in your neighborhood. Utilize computer resources and use the Internet yourself. This will allow you to get the full benefits of the system. It will also alert you to potential problems that can occur while online.
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