Category Archives: Rules to Establish

Internet Safety for Kids: How and Why Parents Should Learn About the Internet

Internet Safety for Kids

Are you the parent of a child who uses the internet or the parent of a child who will start using the internet soon?  If you are, you should know that the internet is a great way to stay up-to-date on the news, do research for school projects, and communicate with friends, but it can also be very dangerous.  As a parent, it is your responsibility to make sure that your child stays safe online.  Unfortunately, for this to happen you must know your way around a computer and the internet.  Do you?

Internet Safety for Kids: How and Why Parents Should Learn About the Internet Explained

A child should never know more than a parent does about the internet.  At the very least, you should know about the same.  If you are looking to block adult websites or websites that have offensive language, it will not do you any good if your teenager knows ways to get around the parental controls that you set.  That is why it is important that you know how to use a computer and the internet or learn if you don’t know.

Another reason why you should be well educated on the internet and computer use is because you are better able to fully understand the dangers of them.  You may hear that an internet predator approached or kidnapped a child on the news, but you may automatically assume that it will not happen to your child.  Unfortunately, until you understand how the internet works, you really have no idea.  Does your child use internet chat rooms or social networking websites?  If so, do you know how easy the internet makes it for someone to create a whole new, fake identity?

Internet Safety for Kids: How and Why Parents Should Learn About the Internet

Internet Safety for Kids: How and Why Parents Should Learn About the Internet For Preventative Measures

A good understanding of computer and internet use can better enable you to protect your child.  Do you know that Internet Explorer, the browser that comes standard, has a free parental control option that just needs to be activated?  A few easy steps and you can have certain websites blocked from your child.  Unfortunately, you won’t know this if you don’t know all that you can know about the computer or the internet.  Speaking of the internet, additional online safety tools for parents can be purchased online as well.

Now that you know the importance of staying in the know about the internet and a computer in general, you may be curious as to how you can go about doing so.  The good news is that there are a number of ways that you can learn all that you need to know about computer and internet use.  A few of these ways are outlined below for your convenience.

Teaching yourself is an easy way to learn about the internet and computer use.  In fact, what better way is there than to just jump on the computer and see what you can find.  For starters, examine your computer or your internet browser for free internet safety tools for parents. You may also want to visit some of the websites that your child visits, just to see what they are subjecting themselves to.  Visit their online profile for MySpace, Facebook, or another social networking website.  Does it make you uneasy?  Are the discussions taking place in your child’s favorite chat room too adult?

You can also ask a trusted friend or relative for help.  Do not ask your child or teenager for help though.  If they know that you want to set up parental controls or keep tabs on their internet use, they may withhold important information from you.  Instead, invite a trusted friend or relative over for coffee and lunch and let them show you the ins and outs of the internet.  All you really need is a couple of hours.

You can also take an internet or computer education course.  These courses are sometimes offered for free or for an affordable fee by local community groups, colleges, or vocational training centers.  In fact, see if your child’s school offers anything.  Some schools host informational seminars for parents on internet safety about once a year.

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Internet Safety Rules to Establish with Your Children

Internet Safety Rules to Establish with Your Children

Are you the parent of a child who has recently started using the internet or are you the parent of a child who will soon start? When a child reaches about junior high school, they rely on the internet to do many school research projects. However, as a parent, it is important to remember that research isn’t all that the internet is used for. Many children and teens use the internet as an easy way to communicate with their friends or even to make new friends.

The ability to use the internet to make new friends and communicate with current friends sounds pretty neat at first glance, but it is important to take a closer look. Did you know that sexual predators often use the internet to target unsuspecting children and teenagers? Anyone can hide behind a computer and create a new identity. That is why it is important that you, as a parent, set rules for your child when they use the internet.

Internet Safety Rules to Establish with Your Children Explained

For starters, let your child know that they cannot give out their personal information online. There is absolutely no reason why they should give anyone their address or phone number online. Make sure that your child knows that just because the person they are talking to online claims to be a 16 year old boy or girl, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are.

It is also important to prevent your child from posting personal pictures or videos of themselves online. Unfortunately, this is something that many children do. Visit MySpace.com, which is a popular social networking website. You will soon see that just about every member, even children and teenagers, post pictures of themselves online. This can be dangerous, especially when other information, like a city or town or school, is divulged. If your child wants to post pictures or videos online, be sure to at least review them yourself first.

Internet Safety Rules to Establish with Your Children
Education
Internet Safety Rules to Establish with Your Children Without Compromise

Make sure your child knows that they are not allowed to meet, in person, with anyone who they meet online. This is important, as this is how many children and teenagers fall victim to internet predators and sexual predators. Yes, the person who they are talking to on the computer may be who they say they are, but are you willing to take that chance? If an in person meeting does take place and you know about it, attend with your child. Let multiple people know where you are going and who you are meeting with. Be sure to do so in a public place.

It is also important that you set rules for the use of internet chat rooms and social networking websites. For starters, if you don’t want your child to use these things, don’t let them. Monitor your child if use if they do. For example, make sure you are in the room if your child is using an internet chat room. As for social networking websites, make your child set their profile to private. You will also want to regularly check it yourself to make sure that personal information, like your home phone number or home address, isn’t posted.

One problem that many parents face is checking up on their children online. It is no secret that most children know their way around a computer nowadays. You cannot check the internet history of your computer, which tells you which websites have been visited, if your child clears it on a daily basis. That is why you should establish rules on this and other similar practices.

The above mentioned rules should help to prevent your child from running into problems online, but you honestly never know. Make sure that your child knows to come to you immediately if they receive threatening, harassing, or sexual messages online. Make sure they also know to show you the message or to save it for your viewing, as opposed to just deleting it from the screen. Protection may be available for you by way of your local police department.

Finally, make sure that your child knows that all of the rules you set concerning internet use apply to all computer use, not just on the computer at home.

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