The children in year five will be learning all about internet safety as part of their PSHE lessons this half term. We will be covering several different topics, such as:
- electronic communication
- safe use of the internet and search engines
- social media
- online gaming
We introduced the topic today by explaining that it is important to know how to behave safely on the internet so it can be used for some of the good reasons it was invented for. Also, that electronic communication should be treated the same way as face-to-face communication at school.
We discussed some of the more topical issues around YouTube videos and how it is important to understand that not everything they see or read is real and they should speak with a parent or carer at home if they have any concerns.
Finally, we discussed the fact that at their age they should be receiving adult support and guidance when using the internet at home and that many internet apps have age restrictions (e.g. WhatsApp should only be used by those over the age of 16). If they see something on the internet that makes them feel uncomfortable, they should close the site by pressing the X in the top right hand corner and then speak to an adult at home.
We will be covering these and other topics in more detail over the coming weeks.
Mr Faithfull