Your guidance can give your children the knowledge to make sound decisions online and the confidence to ask for help when they need it.
For the littlies (under 5 years)
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At this age, kids should always have a grown-up around when they're online. It’s a great time to teach them about what’s good to watch and what’s not.
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Stick to apps and websites that are designed for young children and have strong safety features.
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The Australian Government’s Department of Health recommends no more than one hour of screen time per day for kids aged 2 to 5 years.
For primary school kids (5-12 years)
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Use parental controls on devices and apps to limit what they can access.
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Explain why they shouldn’t share personal information online, like their name, address, or school.
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Keep devices in common areas of the house so you can keep an eye on their activity and join in on their online adventures.
For tweens and teens (12+ years)
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Have regular chats about their online experiences, the good and the bad. Encourage them to come to you if they see something upsetting.
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Agree on rules about what they can do online and how much time they can spend.
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Keep up with the latest apps, games, and social media platforms they are using. This will help you understand the online world they are navigating.
General tips
Monday monitoring
Use every Monday as a day to check in with your children on their online habits. The games they are playing and how they are interacting with their peers. This conversation will soon become a habit and provide you with great insight and give your child the chance to ask any questions, or let you know if they are worried about something.
If they have it, you should have it
While many games and applications have similar social networking, knowing how they work will give you a better understanding of any potential problems or dangers.
Privacy
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Help your child to regularly update their privacy settings. Make sure their profile is set to ‘private’ or ‘friends only’.
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Limit the personal details they share online. For example, avoid identifying photos, their full name, date of birth, home address and telephone number. Sharing these can lead to misuse of information by others.
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Remind your child to carefully consider their choice of profile picture. Using a photo that doesn’t show their face or other personal details is the safest option.
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Encourage them to use a nickname that doesn’t contain their full name or give away personal details.
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Show them how to create a strong password. Passwords should feature a combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols.
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Reinforce that they shouldn't share their passwords with friends or other people and have a routine for updating them.
Have a chat
Encourage your child to be open with you about what's happening online. Often, the fear of losing access to social media or their personal devices is why children are hesitant about talking with their parents about online issues. Teach them how to take a screenshot on their device so they can capture evidence of cyberbullying or inappropriate behaviour.
Knowledge is power
If your children are using social media or on a device you need to stay up to date about what's happening in the online world.
Let's be friends!
If your child is 13 and starting to use social media, make it non-negotiable that you'll be 'friends' with them. If they know you’re seeing what they post they will always think twice before doing anything they shouldn't!
Influencers
A large part of the appeal of many social media accounts for children is that they get to watch and view the content of popular 'influencers'. Talk about who they are 'following' and have a look at the content those people are producing.
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Be a good role model: Kids learn by watching, so show them healthy online habits.
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Teach them what cyberbullying is and how to stand up against it. The eSafety website has great resources on this topic.
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Help them create strong passwords and explain the importance of keeping them private.
The goal is to make the internet a positive place for your kids. With a bit of guidance and some good habits, they can safely enjoy all the amazing things the online world has to offer!
