Safe Search Kids - Education, Parenting, Internet Safety for All

The internet is a big place, full of stories, pictures, and videos about all kinds of amazing things. However, not all of the internet is as safe as it should be. Handy safe search tools like Safe Search Kids can help children to avoid the more upsetting parts of the internet that they don’t want to see.

But sometimes, parents can’t protect their youngsters from everything they might spot online. Content shared on social media and posted by malicious people on otherwise secure sites can sometimes slip through the cracks.

Kids need to know that they can turn to their parents for support and guidance when they see something on their screen that makes them feel uncomfortable.

So, how can parents make sure that they’re prepared to talk to kids about inappropriate content?

Starting a Conversation About Online Content

First things first, when a child begins to use the internet, it’s worth sitting down for a chat about the kind of things that they might find there.

Remind them that anyone and everyone can post things on the internet, which means that sometimes, your child might come across something they don’t want to see.

However, your child should know that they can always come to you for reassurance—no matter what happens, and they won’t get into trouble for what they saw.

During your discussion, agree on some ground rules based on what your child likes to do online. Help them to understand that some sites are specifically designed for people of their age, and these sites are more prepared to protect them from unsuitable content.

You might also want to recommend using Safe Search for online safety as a way to filter out any unwanted content.

Always Be Calm and Reassuring

Seeing something that you don’t like online can be a shocking and upsetting experience. Your child needs to know that they can come to you for some cuddles and reassurance when whatever they see upsets them.

Let your little one know that you’re never going to be mad at them if they come across something inappropriate online.

Instead, you’re just there to help them understand what they saw. For instance, talk about the things that they saw online that made them upset:

• Discuss what they saw: Why did the image, video or content make them feel uncomfortable? Was it nasty comments about other people, or people being hurt?
• See what you can do about the content: Maybe you and your child can report that content so no other child will have to see it.
• Let them know that you’re there for them: Remind them that you’re always going to be there to protect them from those upsetting things.
• Show them how to block the site or look for an alternative: If your child wants to avoid the site in the future, maybe you can find another fun alternative together?

Spend Some Time on the Internet Together

While your child might want to spend some of their time on the internet browsing alone—particularly when they’re talking to friends on social media—you can also have some time browsing as a team.

Do some homework with your youngster using the web and see how they use things like the safe search function.

Based on what you see, you might be able to offer some advice on how they can avoid some more dangerous websites.

Talk to your child about what kind of content you think is appropriate for them—but don’t undermine their opinions. Ask them what they think is okay for children of different ages, and make sure that they’re involved in the ground rules and guidelines that you have in place.

Encouraging critical thinking is always a good idea when it comes to helping your child use the internet safely.

You won’t always be hanging over their shoulder to advise them on which sites are safe and which might not be. Help your child to figure out for themselves what a “good” or “bad” site might look like.

Talk About Positive Ways to Use Tech

While there are some scary parts to the internet, the online world is full of wonderful things too. When you’re on the web, you can learn about countless amazing things by reading useful articles and watching videos.

Let your child explore some of the fantastic things that the internet has to offer using tools like safe search, and apps on their phone that you’ve already approved.

Giving your child a selection of pre-vetted apps and websites that you know are safe for them to visit is a great way to reduce the risk of them being accidentally exposed to mature content.

You can even check out some kid-approved apps on the app store with your youngster and create a list of options for them to explore as a team.

It’s far more common for children to end up on a website that upsets them when they’re left to browse the internet without any guidelines to help them.

Discuss Staying Safe on Social Networks

Finally, your youngster is probably going to be on a social network or two, as these websites allow them to stay connected with their friends.

However, social networks can be risky at times, particularly because you can’t predict what other people are going to post.

Ask your child if they know where the reporting functions are, how they can keep their information private online, and how they can block someone who might be upsetting them.

It’s also worth reminding your child that offers and deals that they see online that seem “too good to be true” often are.

If your kid sees a link promising them something amazing when they click, tell them to come to you to double-check the safety of that link first.

Staying Safe Online

The online world is an amazing place, but it’s also one that can be difficult to navigate for a youngster.

Setting rules and guidelines in place for safe browsing will help to reduce the risk of your child being exposed to inappropriate content.

However, you should make sure that you know how to deal with the feelings that your child has when they see something they weren’t supposed to.

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Michelle Laurey is a freelance writer who enjoys fitness, relaxing in the fresh air, trying to live a healthy life. Her best ideas and problem solutions appear while she’s riding her bicycle. Her superpower? Vinyasa yoga!
Talk to her on Twitter.

hat’s hot in fashion this season? What outfits are all the cool kids wearing? Can you show the world who you are by what shirt you put on? Let’s talk about it. First, there’s something very important that you need to know.

When you grow up you will look at what you are wearing now and roll your eyes or burst out laughing. Sure, you can wear loose pants that threaten to fall off, but when you get older, you’ll wonder why you did.

Fashion Tips for The Real You

Don’t dress to please an older, wiser version of you. Dress for now. Wear what fits the day you are living.

Here are a few points you can always keeping mind when you consider when striving to be fashionable:

Your clothes should let you live your life

Your clothes should let you live your life. You run, jump, sit, catch balls, eat, walk. Your clothes should let you do those activities. When you try on pants, walk around in them. Sit down in them. Do you still feel comfortable? If you don’t, try on a different pair. Does your new shirt let you reach over your head? If so, you’ve picked the right shirt. Does the shirt print bring out the best in your personality? If not, try another one! Fashion doesn’t matter when it won’t let you be you.

Your clothes need to fit the weather

Face it, you would look pretty silly wearing a windbreaker in a snow storm. You could also get sick. If you wear a big puffy coat on a hot day, you’ll be sticky and sweaty and might even get weak from the heat. When you dress to fit Mother Nature, you can enjoy the world. Check weather reports or listen to what your parents say about weather conditions.

Really think about the heroes and statements you wear on your t-shirts

When you wear a famous face, you tell the world that you admire this person. Beware. Many people whose faces are printed on shirts are not all that admirable. A good example is Lance Armstrong. For many, many years Lance was a hero to people. He won international bicycle races and an Olympic medal. He also fought cancer and won, which is admirable. In time, the truth came out. Lance had cheated to win his races and medals. He is no longer considered a hero or role model. So what should you do? Read up on people before wearing them on your body. Talk to your parents. Look for real heroes.

Always wear shoes you can run in

Color doesn’t matter. Style is up to you. They don’t even have to be officially running shoes. The important fact is this: If you can run in your shoes, you will have more fun and be safer. If you can run in your shoes, you can dance, play ball, quickly help a friend, carry grocery bags and move! Good shoes give you freedom.

Dress for the occasion

You wouldn’t shovel snow in a bathing suit. You wouldn’t wear a snow suit to play basketball. When you visit your grandparents or open your first bank account or visit a friend in the hospital, some fashion will make others feel uncomfortable. When you dress for the event, people won’t be staring at the funny fashion you have on. They’ll be looking at you.

What is fashion? Is it what your favorite rapper wears or what you see on the cover of magazines? Yes, but fashion is also what you put on every morning. Don’t let fashion rule you. Rock fashion yourself.

What Did Kim and Justin Give You?

There’s something fun and kind of cozy—and maybe a little snobbish—about using the same shampoo that Selena Gomez uses. You feel special using the same foundation as Kim Kardashian. You send flowers to your mom, just like Justin Bieber did.

It’s natural to feel like you are part of an exclusive, personal group of friends who Selena, Justin and Kim confide in, giving you secret insight into their celebrity lives through their tweets and posts.

Well, hold on to your tablet. Kim and Selena and Justin aren’t necessarily sharing personal information with you. They might not even really be as excited about those products as they let us on to believe. Those cozy tweets and posts might be quick ways for them to make extra money.

Advertising and Celebrity Fashion

Advertising professionals pick celebrities to tweet or post pictures about the products they are trying to sell. Being paid makes a difference.

When we see commercials on television, we know that the stars who talk about products are paid generously. We take that into account when deciding to buy what they are selling. When your friends tell you about a product, chances are that they are not being paid and really do like or use that brand of jeans or hair gel.

Social Media Influencers

Social media is a new form of communication. People feel close to the people they follow. When a social media “friend” tells you about a new movie they like or a skin cream they use, they could be telling you that because a company is paying them lots and lots of money.

How much money? Kim Kardashian, the undisputed queen of making money on social media, makes up to $20,000 for a tweet about a product. She is paid a reported $300,000 for an Instagram post.

Other celebrities that can demand huge amounts are any Kardashian, Jared Leto, Kendall Jenner, P. Diddy, Gigi Hadid, Lindsay Lohan and most sports figures—including Mike Tyson.

Legally, there is nothing wrong with making money by telling people about your interests and the items you use. What is questionable is how consumers buy products solely because a celebrity endorsing it. Is it the best product and do we even need it?

Do celebrities truly love a product when posting a picture or tweeting about it when they are getting a lot of money to do so?

Mind Your Money

The reason these big payments should matter to you is because you end up buying Kim Kardashian million-dollar earrings and Mike Tyson’s new car. When companies pay these celebs money, the companies make that money back by charging you more.

You help pay for mansions, fleets of cars, expensive clothes, luxurious trips and outrageous jewelry.

The other thing to think about is this: What did Kim and Justin give you?

Ever since tech gadgets have become part of our daily lives, the question of whether kids should use is a growing debate.  This is particularly true of smartphones and tablets. Many parents believe that technology is harmful to their health and studies. These concerns are valid if gadgets are provided to kids measures in place by parents to prevent excessive use.

Being born in a highly technological world, kids need to learn and cope with the digital trends that will help them in the near future. Moreover, smart gadgets have enabled parents to keep an eye on their children while not being around them. For instance, the hidden nanny cam can be monitored through your smartphones, which ensures the safety of your kid. 

Instead of focusing on the disadvantages of using tech gadgets, we should try using them for beneficial or educational purposes. Considering it a mere digital distraction may be short sighted. If used rightly, these resources can help kids develop intellectually.

Here are certain tips for you to make smartphones a source of learning for your kids.

Making Tech a Learning Tool

To turn the smartphone into a learning tool for your child, all you need to do is to browse your apple or android app store. There are plenty of learning apps available for iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets that can facilitate your kid’s learning process and stimulate their minds to work more efficiently.

For instance, there are apps for toddlers, where they can learn to tap and swipe things which cause moments of fishes, balloons or fruits. This doesn’t only fascinate them, but it also improves their hand and eye coordination.

Likewise, there are applications available for kids of almost every age which can make them learn things in an engaging way. For example, learning games like hangman helps improve their general knowledge and their vocabulary too.

Getting them proper devices for learning will be a great motivator for further education and evoke a sense of responsibility. You should find some top tier iPad cases for sale so they can protect their device. Make sure to teach your kids how to take care of their tech gadgets to instill a sense of responsibility and ownership in them.

Utilize Phone Accessibility

Sometimes it difficult to search for books in hard copy or they might be too expensive, but they are easily accessible on a phone. Reading books on pdf formats is not only cost-effective but also helps a kid to look for the meaning of difficult words simultaneously.

You will also find a number of YouTube channels for kids that help children learn poems, alphabets, and counting by using attractive and vibrant visuals. Without getting bored, your kids can continue learning multiple things in a more fun-filled way. It’s a great tool for those who homeschool, your toddler or kids aged below 5. In addition, it works as a home tutor.

Explore smart speakers to engage kids with music and safe entertainment, as long as safe search settings and parental controls are in place.

Locating Your Kids

Tracking your kids’ location has never been easier. Your kid’s love for their phones makes sure they take it everywhere they go. Tracking tools can ease your efforts to track down their activities. You can always keep an eye on them without having to call or text them regularly.

By connecting your smartphone with your home security camera via the app, you can see your house and children from anywhere. It helps you to stay connected with them, even if you are held up in an afternoon meeting or in a traffic jam. You can monitor their activities know they are safe.

In case of any emergency or a suspicious situation, you can call a family friend to check up on them or even the police without endangering your kids’ life.

Staying Connected

Keeping kids off their smartphone or yours is a challenge for sure, but tech gadgets offer invaluable assistance in pointing them in the right direction when online or just playing games. From being a home tutor to a surveillance gadget, it serves many purposes.

It’s important for kids to learn how to properly use and control the technology that becomes part of their everyday lives. Our digitized world is not going away. In order to adapt to the changing professional and educational trends, they should be given some exposure to smartphones or tablets with your guidance.

Instead of letting your kids be misguided by their friends or others with influence around them, teach them to use these tech gadgets in a proper way to enhance their learning process and to help keep them safe.

Do you have a Smart TV in your home? Make sure it’s set up safely including implementing parental controls available on Smart TV’s.

In many ways, the internet is a great learning tool and can be wonderful for connecting children with the rest of the world. Unfortunately, there is also plenty of inappropriate content, and online social networks can give other kids a forum for teasing and bullying.

Currently, there are only a few federal protections to keep minors safe online—the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) being the most prominent.

The good news is, states have the power to rein in bullying and inappropriate interactions that happen in the digital sphere—and several are going above and beyond to keep kids safe online. Here’s a closer look at which states are doing the most to keep their young residents protected while learning on the internet.

States Taking Action on Cyberbullying

Many states have implemented some combination of laws specifically addressing cyberbullying (at school and otherwise), online harassment, and texting inappropriate content (known as “sexting”). But nine states have doubled down on establishing protections for kids online:

1. Arkansas
2. Connecticut
3. Florida
4. Georgia
5. Kansas
6. Pennsylvania
7. South Dakota
8. Texas
9. Utah

These states have taken clear legislative action against both cyberbullying—bullying, belittling, or harassment that occurs via digital means like social media or texting—and inappropriate texting with minors.

Arkansas

Here, schools are required to institute and enforce anti-bullying policies. Schools must also offer group conflict resolution services for students and training for teachers to learn how to recognize bullying.

Connecticut

Is a leader when it comes to cyber-bullying policies and resources for students and teachers. In addition to the laws put in place by Arkansas, Connecticut school districts also have strategies for including parents of both the student who was bullied and the student(s) doing the bullying to ensure the safety of everyone involved. Texas also has a strict policy that covers all these bases, though protections for specific classes aren’t clearly delineated.

Florida

This state includes a process for involving families in cyberbullying situations. It also requires districts to keep a list of programs that can offer training for school staff, parents, and students on how to identify and react to online harassment. Like Texas, specific groups aren’t called out in the laws, but state-funded schools are still held to federal anti-discrimination rules.

Georgia

While the requirements in Georgia do not include training for school personnel, the state has implemented character education programs for all grade levels and includes off-campus cyberbullying directed toward students or school personnel in their laws and regulations.

Kansas

Laws in Kansas don’t include off-campus incidents, but they do require training for educators and staff on navigating bullying situations. And Pennsylvania and Utah include everything except offering mental health support for students who have been bullied, even going so far as to require regular policy reviews and to involve families in policy creation, respectively.

South Dakota

South Dakota’s laws focus on responding to bullying as it happens, and while there aren’t plans in place for prevention or family involvement, the state does offer immunity for reporting bullying.

Additionally, all nine of these states have laws that directly address minors sending and receiving inappropriate content via text.

What Can Parents Do?

Regardless of what state you live in, there are some basic precautions you can take to keep kids safe online.

1. Educate yourself on what dangers are out there and how to identify them.
2. Figure out where your state stands on online privacy and safety for minors.
3. Monitor your children when they’re using the internet, keep computers in common rooms, and set up restrictions to keep your kids off message boards, chat rooms, etc. until they’re old enough to engage responsibly.

Last but not least, have a conversation with your children about the importance of being careful with personal information and the potential risks of being online.

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