It’s so important to teach our kids to be internet awesome and prevent cyber bullying from the start. Here are the steps we’re taking to make sure that online bullying is non-existent.
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Be Internet Awesome: How to Prevent Cyber Bullying
Every morning before Branden leaves for school, I remind him how much I love him and to be kind today. And when he gets home from school, I not only ask him about his day but I also him examples of how he was kind that day. I’ll admit that he’s not always thinking about this or able to lay it all out for me, but I try my best to encourage kindness as much as possible. Which leads me to the fact that we have a no tolerance policy in our home for bullying. Which is why I’m so excited to partner with Google today to share a little bit about their online bullying prevention program called Be Internet Awesome, since October is National Bullying Prevention Month.
Important stats about online bullying
Did you know that 28% of students have experienced bullying personally? And that 71% of students have witnessed bullying directly? But, only 20% – 30% of students notify adults about bullying. And over 50% of parents are concerned about their child being bullied. I didn’t either until I did the research. I can’t imagine sending a child to school everyone who was on either end, but the thing is that it doesn’t just end at school anymore. So many children hop online when they get home each day and cyber bullying begins. More stats can be found here
Investing time in Be Internet Awesome
As parents, it’s incredibly important to familiarize yourself with, Be Internet Awesome, which is Google’s free multifaceted program designed to teach kids the fundamentals of digital citizenship and safety so they can explore the online world with confidence. Available in both English and Spanish, it consists of an ISTE standard aligned curriculum, ready-made Pear Decks for each lesson, Interland – an adventure-packed online game about digital safety and citizenship – and plenty of resources for educators and parents.
You can learn more about how to Be Internet Awesome at g.co/BeInternetAwesome and it’s also wonderful information to share with your children’s teachers. The online curriculum is awesome to go over in the classroom!
Learn more internet safety tips for your family here!
Talking to your kids about cyber bullying
I totally get that having these conversations with our kids can be tough, but it’s so important for them to learn from an early age about how to be Upstanders and promote positivity at home, school, and online. This program will cover all the hard stuff such as being positive with friends and family and learning how to show that when we’re on devices and not face to face, as well as showing them situations where it’s better to wait to communicate face-to-face with someone than to text or post—and when to ask a parent or older sibling for help.
With so very few children reportng bullying to adults and teachers, it’s so important that we step in and play an even bigger role than ever.
Mama, I hope that you enjoyed learning a little bit more about cyber bullying and spreading kindness with my today. I know it’s not always easy because we can’t be there to hold our kid’s hands through every situation, but using the Be Internet Awesome Platform is such an amazing way to introduce your child to the best methods to responding to any cyber bullying they may encounter online. And beyond the huge lessons, they will walk away with, it’s fun. You can play Interland with your kids and put your kindness skills to the test at g.co/KindKingdom!
XOXO,
Allison
My kids love the Interland games and I love that they are learning how to navigate the web smartly.