Everyone felt the pain from lockdown, we used Phones and devices to keep kids happy and under control. Now we want that time back.
During COVID19 kids spent more time online, gaming or permanently attached to devices. Netflix, Playstation, Minecraft made fortunes. Roblox for example grew from $45 million in sales in 2017 to $945 million for 2020, with 30 million players daily spending on average 3.5 hours per day since the start of COVID19. Sony Playstation says 2021 will be the best year ever for the company. Better even than 2020, their best year to date.
It's a fact that most kids have a phone now. We do online based safety talks for Kids worldwide but do not include results from other countries in the above just UK and Ireland.
For example, never give out. The big Five
1. Name 2. Address 3. Phone number 4. Email address 5. Date of birth even your dogs name online.
Here are some of the guidelines that have been around forever but must be followed. The Internet is all common sense, but it is still a learned habit. Kids need to learn (constantly reminded) about internet safety and their online habits.
Never talk to strangers online, never arrange to meet them. Social media is at least 13 years old or older, which means your kids will be exposed to advertisers and inappropriate content. School Talk Page
Most kids think Google is cool, not a greedy money bot with it's own agenda. Google occupies the two top spots online. Google and YouTube. Is Google the right search engine for kids at all with 96% plus of European search. If Tesco had that market share, they'd be riots/
Consider switching over www. duckduckgo.com as a search engine instead of Google. No adverts, no tracking, take a look, see what you think.
Kids quickly the cultural difference between Google and DuckDuckGo. Ask your school to talk about other search engines as well. Another one is wackysafe.com (which is too childish). Our best Talks, podcasts are on Patreon
Easily influenced by media images and personalities, especially those that appear “cool”. Exposed to search results with links to inappropriate websites Feel comfortable online & confident they can protect themselves online Kids not so worried about being punished Learning good habits, agree usage time and parameters (consider penalties and bonuses) Appropriate surfing age for kids, when not supervised. How to avoid/deal with cyberbullying & developing online etiquette
Allow 5 hours a day maximum on devices (if you can) for the summer holidays. It'll be different in the new school year. #takebackcontrol We think that 5 hours a day would be a good target for the summer holidays, followed by a reduction to 4 hours a day in the school year, but built around sports, school work, and other activities.
Ask your Kids which YouTube influencers they like and check them out. Be sly about if needs be and check them out. Check Influencers for suitability - Racism, Language, Fake News. Are the Influencers just clickbait? Looking to go viral, get more views, followers and sell merchandise. Everyone knows about gaming but we think that YouTube Influencers and TikTokers are just as big an issue. How to setup Privacy on TikTok here.
Kids acting up, don't worry about it too much, you are not alone. Fights in the house, screaming, pulling, kicking just to get the phone off them. We've never been done so many private parents talks as summer 2021. We think Schools need to do more (and update their thinking) when they want to do less. Parents need to do more, more talking, more enforcing the rules, more insisting. The Industry does not want to give up its COVID19 gains. The biggest issue is the amount of time online or gaming. So the fight is on. Private Talk email us
Pay, just be done with it. For £/€/$50 or so you can get an effective parental control app. Check summer specials for promo offers. Apps that;
Norton 360 Premium App - Catch a summer bargain limited numbers available at this price... Check Pricing
Making TikTok private
How to make TikTok safer but not SAFE.
The Right Social Media profile for Kids aged 8-11
Online Safety Talks for Primary School.
Talks for Teenagers & Secondary School
Dealing with Porn & Sexting for kids
Social Media Tips for Kids
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