E Safety
E-safety is an integral part of children’s education in today’s digital world and is embedded in their learning at school. We also want to help our parents and children improve their own understanding of e-safety issues so they can learn to use the internet and all digital media in a safe and secure way.
Click on the following link for brilliant resources and information about staying safe on-line:
On-line and Mobile Safety Childline Resources
On-line Safety
At Home
As a parent, you'll know how important the internet is to children - they use it to learn, play, socialise and express themselves. It's a highly creative place of amazing opportunities. But the technology children use every day can seem a bit daunting and you might worry about the risks your child can face online - such as bullying, contact from strangers or the possibility of them seeing illegal or inappropriate content.
You can see a simple checklist and links below that may help you start to protect your children online and decrease the risks they face. Or you can engage with your children regarding their use of the internet while at home. Here are some conversation starter ideas from www.childnet.com
- Ask your children to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online.
- Ask them about how they stay safe online. What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?
- Ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find the safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block on the services they use.
- Encourage them to help. Perhaps they can show you how to do something better online or they might have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.
- Think about how you use the internet as a family. What could you do to get more out of the internet together and further enjoy your lives online
SOME GREAT ACTIVITIES FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN TEACHING THEM ABOUT ON-LINE SAFETY:
Thinkuknow Early Years Activities for on-line safety
Parent Resources
To try and help parents with the fast moving and changing world of internet and social media we've suggested a few internet sites on the right of this page which are fantastic resources, They contain information on different types of social media and how to help keep children safe.
Childnet also produce a leaflet for parents which you can download here.
Privacy settings are an important part of keeping our young children safe and you can find out more information about them here
At School
As part of your child’s curriculum and the development of computer skills, we provide access to the internet only in teacher supervised lessons.
We strongly believe that the use of the web and email is hugely worthwhile and an essential tool for children as they grow up in the modern world. But because there are always concerns about children having access to undesirable materials, we have taken positive steps to deal with this risk in school. Our school internet access provider operates a filtering system that restricts access to inappropriate materials.
At the start of the school year, each class discusses how we can all stay safe online and the dangers we may face on the internet. We then ask every child in KS2 to sign an Acceptable Use Agreement so that we know they have read and understood our school's rules on staying safe.
Click below for some excellent information for parents about on-line safety:
Lancashire Safeguarding online safety
Online gaming can offer many positive experiences. It can give children and young people the chance to escape into a virtual world, to learn, and to connect with others. Access to the internet has never been so vast and continues to spread with the increasing popularity of tablets devices and access through mobile phones.
However, there is a risk of children and young people viewing inappropriate content in games and being contacted by adults seeking to exploit them.
There is also the concern about the children themselves behaving in inappropriate ways.
Gaming
The links below to the activity packs for parents and carers to deliver to their children, explores how they can stay safe while gaming
To support you in protecting your child on line there are some useful links below to sites with tips and guidance:
TikTok – Age 13+
Get clued up on the short video app that has over a billion users.
Click here to find out more about what TikTok is
Click here for a fabulous review of TikTok
Click here for another great review of TikTok
WhatsApp – Age 16+
WhatsApp is great for free phone calls, video calls and messages, but do you know the dangers of it?
Click here for a fabulous review of WhatsApp
Snapchat – Age 13+
What do you know about the app that many people use for communicating or a quick bit of silly fun?
Click here for a fabulous review of Snapchat
Instagram – Age 13+
What is Instagram?
Click here for a fabulous review of Instagram
Digital Parenting Magazine
It is a wonderful resource full of useful information and top tips, covering a huge range of online safety topics.
Click here to view the latest edition of the Digital Parenting Magazine
Click here to view previous editions of the Digital Parenting Magazine
CEOP (Child On-Line Protection) Parents Area
This site offers advice and guidance for all types of online behaviours be it on line gaming, social networking, sharing and much more. Your children will be familiar with the child version of this site as it used in school you could perhaps ask them to help you with navigating through it.
https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/
A Parents’ Guide to Facebook
Would you know whether your son/ daughters profile is set to public or private? Would you know how to check? Do you know what POS stands for when children are online chatting (Parent Over Shoulder)? Do you know what Phishing is? Facebook is very popular amongst young people (and many adults) this guide is produced annually to keep parents up to date with tips for keeping their children safe when using Facebook and informing them of the latest trends for Facebook usage.
http://www.connectsafely.org/pdfs/fbparents.pdf
Cyber Bullying
Cyberbullying is becoming more prevalent amongst children and young people when they are online, particularly as the popularity of online gaming continues to increase. To help parents deal with any incidents of cyberbullying or if you think your child maybe a victim of online bullying there is advice and guidance for you as a parent and how to deal with such scenarios.