Internet Safety
Background Information & Activities

© 1999-2012 BrainPOP. All rights reserved.

The Internet is a fun and educational resource, but all users should understand the importance of online safety. Children should be aware of threats to themselves and their computers before surfing the Internet and downloading files and programs. We recommend establishing rules and discussing safety tips with your children before allowing them to go online.

Pre-K and kindergarten children should not go online without adult supervision. Children in first through third grades still require supervision, but adults should teach them how to stay safe online. Computers should be kept in family areas at home and in easily monitored locations at school. Remind your children to never give out their personal information to strangers. Personal information includes their full name, address, phone number, e-mail address, and age. Details such as where they attend school, birthdates, and names of family members should also be kept confidential. Young children may have trouble distinguishing a legitimate and trustworthy website from a website that may take and abuse personal information. Therefore, if a website asks children for personal information, they should know to consult an adult first. Furthermore, children should never share pictures of themselves or their friends and family members with strangers on the Internet. Remind your children that they should apply the same rules with strangers they meet on the street to strangers they meet on the Internet. Explain that people online may not tell the truth about their identities, so children must practice caution even with people they think they know.

Some children may strike up friendships over the Internet and, under careful supervision, these friendships can be worthwhile. We recommend watching the Friends movie together as a review. Still, there are untrustworthy people who lurk on the Internet. If a child receives an e-mail, text, picture, or chat that makes them feel uncomfortable, they should tell a trusted adult immediately. Teach your children how to block e-mails and chats from a specific user. Children who wish to meet their Internet friends in person should only do so if they are accompanied by an adult. Furthermore, everyone should meet in a safe, public area.

Explain to children that keeping their computers safe is an important responsibility. Many families keep personal information on their home computers and children should understand that their actions on the Internet can compromise their whole family’s privacy. A virus is a computer program that can take over a computer and keep it from functioning properly. Computer viruses can spread to and jeopardize other computers. Children who wish to download a file, game, or program should consult an adult beforehand. Running anti-virus software and anti-spyware programs can also protect your computer and your family.

The Internet is an expansive resource and your children may accidentally navigate to pages that make them feel uncomfortable. You may wish to find and bookmark kid-friendly websites and search engines that will help your children use the Internet safely. Make sure to install pop-up blockers and consider using a firewall or parental controls to block inappropriate sites. Using strong passwords is an easy way to keep computers and personal information safe. Strong passwords are long and use a combination of letters and numbers. Some websites also allow symbols in the passwords. Passwords should never be a person’s name. Another simple Internet safety tip is to log out. Children should always log out of their e-mail, chat accounts, and computers to keep their personal information safe from others. Furthermore, when choosing a username for a chat program or an e-mail address, children should avoid using their own names and use nicknames instead in order to hide their identifies from strangers. Make sure children do not chose nicknames that are flirty or otherwise inappropriate. By teaching safe practices now, your children will be able to explore and utilize the Internet without bringing harm to themselves and their computers.

See more lesson plans and resources: BrainPOP Educators.

Internet Safety Teacher Activities

© 1999-2012 BrainPOP. All rights reserved.

Site List

Together as a class, brainstorm websites that your children like to visit. What is special about each site? Why do they like it? If possible, hook up a T.V. monitor or projector to a computer with Internet access and present the website to the whole class. Discuss how kids know that the site is safe. Is it sponsored or endorsed by a trustworthy source, such as a school, a public television network, or a television show? Keep a list of safe websites to create a resource that kids can use when they browse the Internet. You may also wish to bookmark the safe sites on your class computers so that students can navigate to them quickly. If possible, photocopy the list so that students can take them home to share with their families.

E-Pen Pal

If possible, find a teacher who you trust in your school or a school in another city, state, or even country. Then create a correspondence with the class. Together you can draft e-mails and send them to the other class. You may also wish to pair up individuals between the classes so they can exchange e-mails and chat with someone they know is safe. Review online safety rules and remind students of proper etiquette when e-mailing and chatting.

Internet Safety Family Activities

© 1999-2012 BrainPOP. All rights reserved.

Safety Rules

Discuss safety rules for meeting strangers on the street and surfing the Internet with your child. How are the rules alike? How are they different? Together draft a list of rules and Internet safety tips that your child can follow. You may want to set aside a specific time each day or week when your child can browse the Internet under supervision. Also teach your child how to block e-mails and chats from people they do not know and trust. This will empower your child to be help be responsible for his or her own safety. You may also wish to set the homepage of your family computer to a kid-friendly site or your child’s favorite site. Remember set your family’s e-mail spam filter to the highest level of security.

E-Directory

Put together a directory of e-mail addresses and chat usernames of your child’s friends and family members. Explain that these are safe people they can correspond with via chat or e-mail. Tell your child to only correspond with those in the directory and continue to add more names.

Keeping It Personal

What is personal information? Discuss with your child. Full names, addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, passwords, and pictures are all pieces of personal information. Remind your child that they should never share personal information with strangers on the Internet. You and your child may wish to create a sign to warn against sharing personal information and post it near the computer. Also review how to create strong passwords with your child. Remind them to change their passwords every so often in order to stay safe.