Here are some things that you can encourage your child to do if they are the victims of Cyberbullying:
1) Tell the Cyberbully to stop in an assertive message
2) Tell your parents. It is important that you do not freak out when they come and tell you that they are victims of cyberbullying. Take a deep breath, understand that it is great that they felt comfortable enough to come to you looking for help. Most importantly do not take the computer away from them. If you take the computer away, they will probably not trust you in the future to help them with their problems. Problem solving together may stregnthen your relationship and assist your child in handling problems in the future.
3) Ignore the Cyberbully—Block or filter the communication with this person by removing them from your friend list and not opening up their messages.
Showing posts with label computer safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label computer safety. Show all posts
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Why Do People Do Things Online They Wouldn’t Do Other Places?
Why do people do things online they wouldn’t do other places? I think that there are some misguided beliefs that leave people feeling more comfortable to bully online much more viciously then they would anywhere else.
1)"You can't See Me, I Can’t See You". This suggest to me that the person doing the bullying believes that there is a level of anonimity when online. Help them to understand that the reality is that you are not anonymous when on the internet.
2) Can't see the other person's face-so bully develops no empathy for the victim. If I can't see that my words are hurting you, they must not be. Make sure that they understand that the hurt is still occuring whether they can see it or not.
3) "What happens online is just a game". Help your child to understand that what happens online IS real. Although there are games on the internet, not everything online can be considered a game.
4) “Everybody does it”. Help them to understand that not everyone does it and that there are consequences for these types of behavior.
Talking to your children. Disputing these misguided ideas may save your child some headaches down the road.
1)"You can't See Me, I Can’t See You". This suggest to me that the person doing the bullying believes that there is a level of anonimity when online. Help them to understand that the reality is that you are not anonymous when on the internet.
2) Can't see the other person's face-so bully develops no empathy for the victim. If I can't see that my words are hurting you, they must not be. Make sure that they understand that the hurt is still occuring whether they can see it or not.
3) "What happens online is just a game". Help your child to understand that what happens online IS real. Although there are games on the internet, not everything online can be considered a game.
4) “Everybody does it”. Help them to understand that not everyone does it and that there are consequences for these types of behavior.
Talking to your children. Disputing these misguided ideas may save your child some headaches down the road.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Cybersafety: What to Teach Your Children about Cyberpredators
It is important to instill in your children the idea that they do not necessarily “know” the person that they may have been chatting to or playing games on line. Cyberpredators often present themselves as young children on line in order to gain information about children. Instill in your children that cyberpredators can be great POSERS. Making your children aware of the “grooming process” that cyberpredators use may go a long way towards protecting them. An instant message of “ASL” (which is asking for age, sex and location) could be the beginning of that grooming process.
Talk to your children about ways that they can stay safe on the internet. They should not give anyone personal information or post pictures. Seemingly harmless pictures can provide predators with clues as to your child’s location. One girl posted a picture of her playing soccer for her eighth grade team. Using the colors and number on the uniform, and the town she was from, he was able to track her down. Encourage your children not to fill out profile information, to delete email from senders they don’t know and never give anyone their password. Assist them in developing their screen names and e-mail addresses so that they do not provide predators with hints to their identity. Examples of some screen names to steer your children away from are: Mary_Smith, SweetGirl12, or Jennifer_luvs_HagertyHS. If someone is bothering your child on the internet, teach your child how to change their screen name or block that person. A good policy to have is to only let friends that they know join their Buddy List. Make sure that they check with their friend before adding friends of a friend to their list, as the friend may not know this person.
Most important of all, teach them never to meet anyone face to face that they only know from the internet. I understand that this is not a popular stance to take and you may run the risk of having your child sneak out and go anyway. Use your best judgment when deciding whether to let them go, you know your child best. Never let them go alone. Go with them and make sure that prior to the meeting that the chat buddy knows that you are going to be there. If this is a predator, they probably will not show if they know you are going to be there.
In today’s society, the internet plays a vital role in our children’s lives. In order to keep them safe in cyberspace, it is important that we provide them with the necessary tools and education about the dangers of the internet.
Talk to your children about ways that they can stay safe on the internet. They should not give anyone personal information or post pictures. Seemingly harmless pictures can provide predators with clues as to your child’s location. One girl posted a picture of her playing soccer for her eighth grade team. Using the colors and number on the uniform, and the town she was from, he was able to track her down. Encourage your children not to fill out profile information, to delete email from senders they don’t know and never give anyone their password. Assist them in developing their screen names and e-mail addresses so that they do not provide predators with hints to their identity. Examples of some screen names to steer your children away from are: Mary_Smith, SweetGirl12, or Jennifer_luvs_HagertyHS. If someone is bothering your child on the internet, teach your child how to change their screen name or block that person. A good policy to have is to only let friends that they know join their Buddy List. Make sure that they check with their friend before adding friends of a friend to their list, as the friend may not know this person.
Most important of all, teach them never to meet anyone face to face that they only know from the internet. I understand that this is not a popular stance to take and you may run the risk of having your child sneak out and go anyway. Use your best judgment when deciding whether to let them go, you know your child best. Never let them go alone. Go with them and make sure that prior to the meeting that the chat buddy knows that you are going to be there. If this is a predator, they probably will not show if they know you are going to be there.
In today’s society, the internet plays a vital role in our children’s lives. In order to keep them safe in cyberspace, it is important that we provide them with the necessary tools and education about the dangers of the internet.
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