A new website for five- to 10-year-olds will help make learning about Internet safety fun. The site uses a group of animal friends to teach kids how to be safe online.
The Bad Guy Patrol website teaches children through a series of games. By playing the games, children will learn about protecting personal information and that people may not always be who they say they are.
A section for adults provides additional tips on how to keep kids safe. Steps parents can take include:
Placing the computer in a high-traffic area so Internet use can be monitored.
Getting to know your kid’s online friends.
Learning chat room and web lingo — ask your child to explain it to you.
Pre-schoolers are the fastest growing segment of Internet users.
Computer use
21 per cent of children two years and younger;
58 per cent of three- to four-year-olds; and
77 per cent of five- to six-year-olds are using computers.
Source — National Science Foundation Study, Elizabeth A. Vandewater, University of Texas-Austin
The Bad Guy Patrol website is a joint project between the Government of Alberta and Microsoft Canada. The site compliments a similar initiative for teens, weron2u.ca.
