A parent's guide to online safety: Ages and stages
Published: December 14, 2004
Whether your kids are Internet beginners or are already Web savvy, you can help to guide their use of the Internet as they grow through different ages and stages in their lives.
Browse the sections below to find out how kids at different ages might use the Internet. Each section also offers a link to online safety tips by age, so you can learn more about what you can do to help improve your children's safety online.
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Ages 2 to 4: Start out
During this stage, online activity will most likely involve parents. Parents can hold children in their laps while they look at family photographs, use a Web cam to communicate with relatives, or visit kid-friendly sites such as the PBS Kids site.
Ages 5 to 6: Do it themselves
By the time they reach age five, children will probably want to explore the Web by themselves. It's important for parents to guide their children on how to surf safely on the Internet as the children start to use the Internet themselves. The MSN Kids page is designed especially for children under eight, and it provides child-friendly search tools.
Ages 7 to 8: Interest grows
Part of normal behavior for children in this age group is to see what they can get away with. While online, a child in this age range might go to sites or talk in chat rooms to which parents wouldn't give them permission. Online activity reports from MSN Premium or other services can be especially helpful during this stage. Kids won't feel that their parents are looking over their shoulders, but the report still shows where they've been. Kids this age will probably still feel comfortable at the MSN Kids site.
Ages 9 to 12: Online savvy
Preteens want to know everything, and they've heard what's available on the Web. It's normal for them to try to see what's there. For subject matter that parents find objectionable (for example, sexually explicit adult content or instructions about how to make a bomb), parents can use MSN Parental Controls to help block the objectionable content. Preteens can also go to MSN Kidz, which is designed for children ages 8 to 13 and provides child-friendly search tools.
Ages 13 to 17: Technically sophisticated
Helping teenagers with online safety is especially tricky, because they often know more than their parents about Internet software. Even with older kids, it's important for parents to take an active role to guide their children's Internet use. Strict adherence to online safety rules agreed upon by parent and child, and frequent reviews of children's online activity reports are especially important. Parents should remember to keep their own passwords secure, so that teens cannot sign in as parents.
