Online Safety
I will pass along some great tips and advice from CommonSense Media, a leader in online safety education and new owner of our digital citizenship curriculum, CyberSmart! and other resources in my Online Safety articles.
Other Resources
The Federal Trade Commission has a new initiative called OnGuard Online (Net Cetera) to help parents educate their children about staying safe online and in other technology media. They have videos, a list of other resources for online safety and information about talking to children about online safety.
Now a part of Common Sense Media, this is the curriculum used at Blessed Trinity to teach Digital Citizenship in the middle school enhancement class. There are many activities and “lessons” for all ages that can be applied at home as well.
Activities and information about risks in online activity for kids of all ages, including tools for families. Online Safety Guides by age and Tools for Families include helpful information about different ways to monitor use and tools specific to your needs. More information about social networking is also available.
A free DNS (Domain Name Service) to use at home for web filtering and to administer/monitor web traffic. This points all of your internet browsing through a proxy server that filters at a level you choose and maintain.
Education and Community Outreach programs for parents, educators and kids about online safety. Includes information about a student mentor program empowering kids to promote internet safety peer-to-peer and a Virtual Training Academy for educators and parents.
Information about things to look for, tips for how to keep your children safe on the internet at home, warning signs and cautions for vulnerability. Sponsored by the Nemours Foundation.
Games for kids about staying safe online.
Videos, Workshops and activities for adults, teachers, teens and kids about safety on the internet. NetSmartz Kids area includes games to teach and encourage online safety. Also includes Real Life Stories about Cyber-bullying and other online issues. Sponsored by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
Suggested guidelines and rules for parents and kids. Includes helpful resources such as Kids' Rules for Online Safety, Online Safety Guidelines for Parents and a Family Contract for Online Safety to post by your home computer.
U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
Information for parents including activities and advice for how to keep your children safe. Separate informational page geared for kids is also available.