The general accessibility of the Internet for citizens, including children, has caused a massive enthusiasm for various games on the Internet, in particular, on social networks.
If there are children in the family, Internet access is already a really urgent need due to the widespread introduction of electronic forms of education (online courses, distance learning, etc.) and monitoring of children’s progress (electronic diaries). .
So parents are wondering how to keep kids safe online and what to do. In case you need professional attention, the Little Scholars teaching team provides high-level educational services with attention to each child individually.
What are the drawbacks of the Internet for children?
However, access to the Internet not only has advantages, but often represents a serious threat to the normal spiritual and moral development of children. We have to admit that most parents underestimate the danger of uncontrolled access to the Internet by minors, or simply do not have information about possible threats.
At the same time, the uncontrolled and arbitrary browsing of websites by children and the creation of personal profiles on social networks carry the hidden threat of turning children into victims of criminal attacks.
Is the internet good for your child at a young age?
Sometimes parents think that there is nothing wrong with their children watching cartoons on Youtube or playing games. But, as a rule, children under the age of 2 are not very aware of what is happening on the screen.
And even if it includes something useful for your child, it does not mean that he will be able to gain specific knowledge. Conversely, some researchers say that teaching young children to use a smartphone and tablet may delay the development of speech skills.
Although from the age of 3, introducing a child to the world of digital technologies will be more productive, of course, with a gradual immersion in the Internet.
Distinguishing between the virtual world and the real world
The father gets more results by keeping the children’s attention. Participation in games, sports, sections, hobbies, friends – all this helps to “unleash” the child from the Internet.
Their care and attention are of particular importance – they directly affect how much the child is drawn to virtual worlds. If you hug a child, ask her about her life, her well-being, give her time and attention; they will have less desire to spend time in other places.
It also helps determine if your child is being bullied online, since you as a parent are building an emotionally positive relationship with your child.
The best example is your own example.
Of course, all children watch their parents: their behavior, actions, words. All these little details are copied and reproduced in the real world of children, so you have to be a little careful.
Think about how often you look at your smartphone screen when your child is next to you. If it is frequent, do not be surprised by the question: “Why can you do this and I can’t?”
It would also be useful to start small traditions: for example, put all smartphones on the table and have an active conversation with your loved ones. So that your child gets used to the fact that the most important and necessary things do not happen on the Internet, but there are many interesting things in the real world.
Explore the Internet with your child
The more often your child is left alone with Internet-connected devices, the less you can learn about what’s going on with your child. Since children are naturally curious, they will want to learn as much as possible about the possibilities of the Internet.
In this case, you better come to the rescue: show what interesting channels are on Youtube, watch videos together, find interesting and educational sites, download safe games.
Without intrusions or censorship, you can build more trusting relationships with them.
Internet is not the best psychologist
Sometimes moms and dads give a child the smartphone to calm him down. Also, when a child cannot fall asleep, parents can give them the opportunity to have a few more minutes on the phone by playing their favorite game.
In this way, children do not learn to solve problems, but to avoid them on the Internet. You are worried? Internet! You can not sleep? Internet again!
It won’t be long while you are facing the problem when your child gets addicted to gadgets and the internet in general. And then there is only one answer on how to be safe online for kids: ban the devices.
Note. Let’s note right away that control, one way or another, can violate the boundaries of the child’s personal space and offend the ethical aspect. However, these methods will help parents to ensure that their children do not find harmful information on the Internet.
Device-level security
In addition to ways to keep up with the things your child is doing online, there are technological approaches that can help.
A few years ago, children’s smart phones and watches occupied their niche by providing the tracking system for parents.
The principle of its operation is simple: if it is not allowed, it is prohibited. From such devices, the child can only call numbers from the white list. An incoming call can also only be from approved contacts.
Parents can also receive information about the whereabouts of the child. You can memorize the desired points in advance (home, park, school) or get GPS coordinates in real time. Some models of smart watches provide for the sending of SMS if the child decides to take them off.
software protection
What to do if your smartphone or computer does not have child mode? And there is plenty of adult content, propaganda, advertising and other dangerous information for children. It’s simple: you need to look for software protection options.
The most popular PC parental control features are available on the most popular operating systems. On Windows, for example, Microsoft Family Safety is responsible for this.
All the solutions listed below work for both PC and mobile devices.
1. antivirus. Many antiviruses have acquired parental controls. Some manufacturers have gone further and released a separate product specifically to protect children.
2. Profiles with limited functionality. For example, when creating a mailbox in Gmail, you can specify how much the content will be filtered by the search engine. There are a few things you can do on social media. For example, limiting the visibility of the page to those who are not included in the friends list.
3. Third Party Services. With it, you can configure flexible access to the World Wide Web, allow or block only certain sites. Some ISPs offer this service as an add-on to the basic rate plan.
4. Router level control. Even budget models have basic parental controls. It allows you to monitor and limit the activity of children on the Web, limit the time they spend on the Internet, and prohibit access to certain sites. It is quite possible that this is enough for someone to calm the child down when he is connected to the Internet.
We hope our list of tips on keeping kids safe online helps you ensure your little one’s safety.
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Categories: Technology
Source: vtt.edu.vn