Making E-Mail Fun!

Jun 1, 2001 - © Irene Taylor

other than your parents.
4. If someone sends you something abusive or that makes you uncomfortable, let your parents or teacher know. Never respond to it yourself.

Kid's Domain had a complete list of safe surfing rules for kids and parents, as does Time for Kids.

And a few etiquette rules to e-mail by!

The Internet has adopted certain etiquette "rules" that good e-mailers should know. These are commonly accepted, and those that don't follow them are often considered to be inexperienced, or sometimes even rude. Here are a few of the basic ones.

Use good grammar and spelling. Just because it is e-mail is no reason to toss out all grammatical conventions. Use the spell-checking feature of your e-mail program if it has one. And always use both upper and lower case. Typing is all capitals is the Internet equivalent of SHOUTING and is considered to be quite rude. And it is very hard to read!!

E-mail is not a secure way of communicating. Teach your child that he should never send private information via e-mail, unless it is something he doesn't mind sharing with the world. You never know where that message of yours might get forwarded and to whom!!

Teach your child to be careful with the e-mail addresses of others. Sending an e-mail message to many people all at once is a way for addresses to be passed around on the 'Net and can lead to lots of Spam for the owners. I had an experience with that myself that brought the point home. I had exchanged an e-mail with a former student. He forwarded my mail to some other friends, and soon my address was on many "kid lists" and I was receiving a lot of unwanted mail. Thankfully, it was a Hotmail address, and not my "private" one, but the damage was done. So, teach your kids to have respect for the privacy of e-mail addresses.

Here is a more complete set of rules for good e-mailing. And for those grownups who may need a reminder or two, E-mail etiquette for grown-ups is a site not to be missed.

So - have fun, stay safe and remember - e-mail is a reflection of you. Follow these tips and be sure to make a good impression with every e-mail you send.

The copyright of the article Making E-Mail Fun! in Tips for Teachers is owned by Irene Taylor. Permission to republish Making E-Mail Fun! in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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