Parental Resources for Safe Online Exploration with Children

In the grand scheme of things, the Internet is a positive thing since it provides access to an infinite reservoir of information. On the other hand, its strengths and weaknesses are the information resources that it offers. The Internet provides your children with limitless opportunities to learn about anything they choose, but it also has the potential to expose them to harmful material.

Family-Friendly Materials for Your Children

Use of Search Engines Appropriate for Children
On rare occasions, children may inadvertently view websites that contain explicit or otherwise inappropriate content. Even though it wasn't the original goal, mere exposure to such websites can pique their curiosity.

However, by instructing your children to use only kid-friendly search engines, you can lessen or eliminate the possibility of unintentional exposure to such sites. Such search engines allow children to enter any term they like, and the results will be tailored to their age group. Here is an example of a search engine like this:

The Internet behemoth Yahoo established Yahooligans (http://kids.yahoo.com) specifically for children as a resource for fun and learning. Yahooligans provides kids with a search engine database in addition to games, music, movies, sports, jokes, and more.

See KidsClick! at http://www.kidsclick.org. - The Berkeley campus of the University of California runs this search engine. Librarians made it specifically for children to use as a web search engine.

Australian Kids Net (http://kids.net.au) The headquarters of this search engine are in Australia.

For younger users, American Online offers AOL NetFind, a search engine.

Searchopolis is an additional search engine that is good for kids.

Sites like Searching with Kids, Safe Kids, and Kids' Search Tools teach parents how to choose search engines that are more suited for their children.

Options for search filtering

If you want to make sure your kids don't accidentally access adult stuff online, one strategy is to keep tabs on their every Internet activity and set up filters for their search engines before they use them. These tasks can be accomplished using Lycos, Ask Jeeves, and Go Network search engines.

Supplemental Kids' Educational Websites

Homework Central: This website offers organized data on a wide range of subjects. Homework Central Junior is for elementary school students; Homework Central is for high school and middle school students; and Encyclopedia Central is for adults and college students.

Cybersmart is an American educational resource that teaches students, educators, and parents how to use the Internet safely. There are a variety of free materials available to help educators teach students how to be safe when using the Internet.

Lycos is another comprehensive website that caters to kids, parents, and educators. The Kid Zone at Lycos is divided into four sections: the Fun and Game Zones, which offer amusement; the New and Cool Zones, which are pretty self-explanatory; the Homework Zones, which offer "safe" websites with information on various subjects; and finally, a section that gives useful information for everyone involved, including teachers, parents, and guardians.

Featuring a search engine, access to games, online debates and projects, and instructive resources, Purple Moon is a website mainly created for young females.

Welcome to Families Connect! We hope that this website will make your goal of exploring the Internet with your children easier and more enjoyable. Here, you can find a variety of options and activities that bring families closer together while teaching them about the Internet.

Black Hole Gang—This organization offers a thrilling, entertaining, and risk-free approach to teaching children about science. The chance to play detective and learn about the wonders of science is only one of the many benefits it offers children.

Additional Guidance on Children's Safe Surfing

You should limit your child's access to the Internet as much as possible. After all, children are children, and accidents do occur. You can't hold it against them if they do manage to access a website with explicit material.

Fix the search engine's filtered results so they stay.

Finally, make sure your children understand the gravity of the situation and the potential repercussions of disobeying the "surfing rules" you've established.