How to Teach Internet Safety for Students

Danger is abound on the Internet. This is especially true for children, thus it is vital to teach students about Internet safety. The following methods can help impart these lessons.
Discuss the predators on the Internet and where they may be lurking
You want the children to understand that not everyone is what they seem on the Internet. The fact that they posted an innocuous picture doesn’t change that. You can talk to them about the dangers of chat rooms, bulletin boards and social networking sites. You can have a brainstorming session with them where you discuss all of the places an online predator might lurk. You can ask them to come up with things that an online predator might say. Of course, all of these lectures should be done in an age-appropriate manner. Even if the subject seems mature, however, remember that it is important for children to know about these so that they can avoid them. You can also talk about why it is so important to be aware of the dangers out there.
Have a class discussion on the type of information you should never give to someone online
You can ask that the children come up with some personal information that they should never share online. They may know about some of these such as their parent’s credit card numbers, however they may not realize how much someone can find out just by knowing their name and where they live. You want the children to know that they should never give away information such as their addresses and phone numbers to a stranger online. Once they have come up with some ideas, you can go over a list of everything.
Show examples of Internet scams
Children may be taken in by some Internet scams just as adults are. You can show them one of the e-mails of the common scams where a con artist tells you that they are going to put money into your bank account and asks for your banking information. Of course they instead steal from you. You can talk about other scams on the Internet such as sham money-making schemes.
Make a list of good Internet policies
You may want to sum everything up by coming up with a “do and do not” list of Internet practices. You can include things such as “Do check with your parents before going to an unfamiliar website” and “Don’t open an e-mail attachment if you do not know whom it is from.” You can write these on the board and go over them with the students.
It is important for students to learn Internet safety to protect themselves. Utilize the above tips to help teach this important lesson.