The Good

Recent studies have shown that if parents limit the type of video games (non-violent) and amount of playing time (30 minutes max per day), children are less likely to display aggressive behaviors.

The Bad

According to the recent Brain Health report by Dr. Amen, a leader in brain SPECT Imaging (SPECT is an acronym for Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) that measures blood flow and activity patterns in the brain, video games work in the same area of the brain as cocaine and methamphetamine. Video games increase the amount of dopamine released in the brain and for those of you who don’t know, dopamine is the chemical messenger for pleasure and plays a major role in addiction. Now, is there any wonder why kids love video games? The amount of dopamine released while playing video games is so substantial that it depletes the brains reserves leaving little if any dopamine to be released during everyday activities and relationships that would normally make them feel happy. Subsequently they are left feeling nothing at all.

The Ugly

Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine say that brain scans of kids who played a violent video game showed an increase in emotional arousal and a corresponding decrease of activity in brain areas involved in self-control, inhibition, and attention. Another study found that playing violent video games is related to having more aggressive thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

If we want to know what is going on in the cyberworld with our kids,

we need to get into the cyberworld!

A new frontier has developed and for many parents it is foreign to us.  This new frontier is the Cyberworld.  This world offers our kids some pretty amazing things that can help foster their growth as an individual and provide information that accelerates their educational learning opportunities.  Developed as an educator’s tool for sharing, the internet and cyberworld has quickly taken on a dark side.  To understand the risk factors associated with this dark side, parents must get into the cyberworld immediately. 

For some parents, navigating in the cyberworld is an everyday occurrence and something that comes naturally.  For a much larger population, the cyberworld can be intimidating and an environment parents hesitate to frequent.  Bottom line though, is that our kids are there, so we must be there too. 

The following will help parents get into the cyberworld with their kids. By no means are these tips universal and work for every situation.  We need to understand that the dark side of the internet and the actions in the cyberworld is a human behavior, and working with a human behavior, nothing is universal.  Each family is different and each family needs to take the time to discover what works for your situation and your family.

1.                  Centralize the computer –Put the online accessibility of the computer in a room that is frequented by parents constantly.  Make the computer screen be viewable.

2.                  Consistent Communication – Probably the most important strategy we can resource to as parents is simply establishing consistent communication with our kids who are going online.  Establish proactive communication with your kids that focuses on their online etiquette and behavior.  This channel of consistent communication will not only develop trust, but will also serve as a lifeline for our kids when they experience a threatening situation in the cyberworld. 

3.                  Online Experience and Knowledge – Parents must become tech savvy and experienced with online applications.  It is critical that parents spend time navigating through the internet on their own and learning the capabilities of the computer.  Sign up for classes which keep up with the currents trends and changing technology.  The more knowledge a parent can develop about the internet and risk factors associated with it, the better equipped parents will be to secure the safety of children while online.

4.                  Blogging, Chatrooms and Social Networking Sites – Along the same lines as Online Experience and Knowledge discussed in #3, parents need to develop an understanding of how Blogging, Chatrooms, and Social Networking sites operate.  Create a user identity and spend time in chatrooms which your kids might frequent.  What are the discussions like?  Are they appropriate? When MySpace and other social networking sites are used with responsibility, they are a tremendous tool for kids to connect with one another and stay in contact.  Unfortunately it is when these social networking sites are abused do they turn into a risk factor for our kids.  Spend some time in the social networking sites and discover the safety features each one has to offer.

5.                  Be There: Establish an Emergency Communication System – Assure rapid communication with your child while they are online.  Parents can not spend every minute of the day next to their child while online.  Software is available to help your kids report and document these situations.  CyberBully Alert allows parents to be notified by their child and parents will have a saved screen shot to use for documentation.

In Broward County, Florida on Wednesday, November 26, 2008 a 19-year-old male took his own life. While this tragic event unfortunately occurs time and again, the particular circumstances surrounding this suicide are worsened by the man broadcasting his death on the internet and the internet bullying that ensued.

The man, identified as Abraham K. Biggs, announced his intention to kill himself in an online forum. One report indicated, he went on a www.bodybuilding.com forum, where he was reportedly a member under the pseudonym “CandyJunkie,” and he posted the amount of drugs he was going to take in order to overdose with a link to a live video. Biggs also posted a suicide note online.

Posting a suicide note and detailing how he was going to kill himself was not the end of this calamity. In addition to the online forum postings, Biggs had streamed a live video of himself during and after his suicide. The broadcast showed his consumption of several pills. Then, as hundreds of web surfers watched the live feed, Biggs took his last breath and lay lifeless on his bed. Several hours passed before website viewers and those that participated in the online bullying became alarmed. The live video had been streaming for hours while Biggs’ motionless, lifeless body lay on his bed. Finally, someone called the police. According to one report the website’s moderator informed the authorities of the video. Other reports say viewers of the broadcast eventually called police. With the live video still streaming, police broke down the door, found the lifeless body, and turned off the webcam. It had been 12 hours since Biggs began blogging about his intended suicide. According to one report, at the time the police entered Biggs’ bedroom about 1,500 people were viewing the video.

The website Biggs chose for his final moments was Justin.tv. Michael Seibel, CEO of Justin.tv said “We regret that this has occurred and respect the privacy of the broadcaster and his family during this time.” Seibel continued, “We have policies in place to discourage the distribution of distressing content and our community monitors the site accordingly. This content was flagged by our community, reviewed and removed according to our terms of service.” Since the incident, the disturbing video feed has been taken down; however, clips of the unfortunate event still remain. Internet surfers have posted clips of the video and copies of Biggs’ suicide note all over the internet.

A very disturbing circumstance of the young man’s death is that in response to Biggs’ forum posts and the broadcast of his live video, viewers and members of the online forum taunted Biggs, bullying him over the internet and encouraging him to commit suicide. “You want to kill yourself?” “Do it, do the world a favor and stop wasting our time with your mindless self-pity.” Several individuals continued the internet harassment of Biggs all throughout his video as well as bullying him on the internet after his death, believing it was all a practical joke. After learning of the live broadcast of his son’s suicide, Biggs’ father, Abraham Biggs, Sr., said he was upset that Justin.tv streamed the video. Biggs Sr. stated, “There seems to be a lack of control as to what people put out on the Internet . . . There’s a lot of garbage out there that should not be, and unfortunately this was allowed to happen.” Because the troubled young man had supposedly threatened to commit suicide many times before, the webcast’s viewers and internet bullies believed Biggs was not serious about his intentions. They taunted him, insulted him, and continuously bullied him. The online bullying and internet harassment lasted for hours. Was it this internet bullying that finally made him commit the fatal act?

Unfortunately, advancements in technology have resulted in an epidemic of worldwide bullying on the internet. For example, in 2007, a British man hanged himself live on a webcam with hundreds viewing the broadcast in a chatroom. Supposedly, the depressed man ventured into a chatroom pondering suicide and online bullying ensued. The internet harassment consisted of chatroom members reportedly telling the man, among other things, to “F**king do it. Get on with it.” Since 2001, according to a charity that works to prevent suicide, there have been at least 17 deaths in Britain involving websites and online bullying. Internet harassment is an ongoing, growing problem. For the safety of troubled persons and for online child safety, something should be done to monitor disturbing internet bullying sites.

The times are definitely changing, not only politically, but also socially and technologically. Bullying was once “just part of being a kid” some time ago, and continues to be part of the lives of today’s children. Bullying has gone to the World Wide Web and created the term cyber bullying, where kids are using text messages, social media communities and other multi-media to hurt the feelings of their fellow classmates.

Principals, teachers and other school officials are well aware of the ongoing of cyber bullying and traditional bullying on the playground, although some of these adults take bullying with a grain of salt and don’t do too much to prevent the events. A study conducted by the National Associate of School Psychologists (NASP) found that nearly 25 percent of the polled teachers believe that it is not necessary to intervene in bullying and other forms of disruptive behavior.

Here are some ways that schools can help to eliminate cyber bullying:

• See cyber bullying as a problem: Students know that cyber bullying can be painful mentally, but oftentimes don’t realize that it is wrong and preventable, and therefore don’t tell school authorities about specific cases. Raise awareness about the rise in cyber bullying, effects of cyber bullying, and what kids should do if they see it happening.
• Survey the extent of the problem: Make the time to conduct school wide surveys to students and staff about the knowledge and attitudes about cyber bullying. Find out if there are specific places or times when cyber bullying occurs and use this information as a tool to prevent other issues.
• Create a specialized system to follow: Have your school create a value system based on respect for others, personal responsibility and caring to make it clear what is expected from each student and what consequences they can face if they don’t follow the system. Make sure that each teacher and school official is aware of the system and it is also sent to parents of the children so they are aware of the new program. Provide an avenue for them to voice any comments or concerns.
• Bring awareness via the classroom: Set time aside for specialized discussion, lesson plans and critical thinking skills in the classroom to focus on early intervention and risks of cyber bullying.
• Build a team for cyber bullying prevention: If your budget allows, create a team of student activists that will spread awareness of the rise of cyber bullying and prevention. Students can come together to talk about prior experiences, or have fundraising activities to raise awareness. Or, have former victims speak at your school to bring a more personable relation to the idea of cyber bullying.
• Provide interventions and mediation: If cyber bullying cases are apparent on your campus, find a way to provide interventions between the cyber bullies and the victim with a counselor or mediator. Give each child a chance to say what they feel and discuss why cyber bullying is unhealthy.
• Have medical professionals on campus: Principals should work to hire qualified school psychologists or other trained mental health professionals to assist any students and help out with creating a value system regarding cyber bullying.
• Work with other schools in the district: Contact neighboring schools about raising awareness on the rise of cyber bullying. Also, reinstate the ideas of the negative effects of cyber bullying by offering discussion and training tools as students move through grade levels and different schools.
• Enforce consequences: Consequences for bullying and cyber bullying should be known and understood by students. By enforcing these consequences, students will understand the reality of cyber bullying and force them to stop their behaviors.
• Define the difference between reporting useful information and ratting out a friend: Some students will be weary of reporting bad behavior because they may feel like they are “tattling” on a friend. Ensure confidentiality between the student and the school authority and let students know they can trust adults.

Train all school officials: Not only teachers, but also sport coaches, after school supervisors and even bus drivers should be aware of bullying or listen out for cyber bullying events. They should know how to respond to these triggers and how to reinforce positive problem solving.

“Cyber bullying” is a new term that seems to be a household phrase that is infiltrating many homes with teenagers and young children. While it is important to discuss preventative ways to deter these actions, it’s also important to understand why there has been such an extensive rise of cyber bullying.

Traditional bullying occurs in the classroom or on school grounds, but technologically savvy kids are taking their unsettling words to the Internet through email, MySpace, Facebook, other websites and text and instant messages. Cyber bullies are posting disturbing messages, videos and images of their contacts onto the web where millions of other people can see. Cyber bullies can also remain anonymous on websites and through email messages so the increase of bullies on the web is also rising.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noticed a rise in cyber bullying. In 2000, only nine percent of kids ages 10 to 17 experienced this type of bullying. The percentage has now reached 50 percent for 2008. Another study shows that 64 percent of the teens that said they were the victim of cyber bullying were never bullied at school. There are a few reasons why this rate has increased so much. This age bracket is becoming more technologically savvy as a result of entertainment and their other interests going online. Schools are also teaching students how to use the Internet to acquire help with projects and homework. Social media groups also let these kids create a profile about themselves and easy ways to communicate with others.

i-SAFE Inc., a worldwide leader in Internet safety education, conducted a study to prove the rise of cyber bullying. Their conclusions showed that: 53 percent of the 1500 student surveyed have admitted to saying something mean or hurtful to a person through the Internet; 42 percent of those surveyed have experienced bullying online; and 58 percent of those surveyed have had someone say something hurtful to them online. Even more alarming, 58 percent never told their parents about their experienced with being bullied online.

While it may seem like a simple solution to prevent cyber bullying is to take away all computer privileges, many of today’s kids use these websites and Internet tools as another way of socializing. MySpace cyber bullying is a popular mode because bullies can post hateful information on another person’s profile page or on their own page, or a bully can create a separate profile just about bullying this particular person. Facebook cyber bullying is similar to MySpace cyber bullying because they can create fake identities or create a page with the sole purpose of bullying another person. Twitter is another social media network that is adding to the rise of cyber bullying. A user can “follow” another person to post status updates or send mean messages. Users can also post links to websites about cyber bulling as “helpful” how-to guides.

In extreme cases, kids are learning how to create their own websites, free of charge, to target a while site about bullying individuals. The person gains acceptance with their group of friends because they are humiliating the other person for everyone to see. Then, the bully will use MySpace, Facebook or Twitter to spread the word about additions to their hateful website.

Access to the Internet is also increasing. Local small businesses are offering free wireless Internet access for their customers as a marketing tool to increase their sales. Cell phones offer quick and simple access to the Internet. The Internet is offered in school libraries and classrooms for school work and educational tools. If your child is not allowed on the web while they are at home, of course they are going to find alternative ways to stay connected.

Some social media websites require the child’s email address and password to gain access into their account. This limits the ability for a parent to monitor their navigation through certain sites and some parents just aren’t involved enough to be concerned with what is going on over the internet. Without an open level of communication between child and parent, there may be another life your child is leading without you even knowing.

The rise of cyber bullying is definitely increasing with the current times so it is important to discuss this with your children to prevent any serious injury or conflicts.

Children learn from a young age how effective violence and intimidation can be from various media and entertainment outlets. Quirky cartoons portray a loveable character and his or her daily battles with a particular bully. Popular sitcoms and movies depict high school students who sing and dance to popular tunes, but also have to face intimidating bullies in and out of class. Although these characters overcome their plights, there is still a clear message that bullying is an effective way to upset another person and bring down their self-esteem.

Children and teenagers are becoming more technologically savvy and are looking to the Internet and their cell phones for entertainment, and to social networks to meet new people who share the same interests as them. It was only a matter of time before bullying made its way to the Internet, especially through modes like MySpace and Facebook. Cyber bullies have been making news lately with the recent deaths of children across the nation who have perished because of online bullying campaigns. Megan Meier is one of the more noted of these cases.

Some examples of cyber bullying include sending threatening emails, text messages or comments to another person; tricking someone into revealing private or embarrassing information and sending it to others; breaking into someone’s email or social media account and sending false messages to others while posing as this person; and creating web pages to make fun of another person.

Even though the bullying doesn’t take place on a one-on-one basis, MySpace cyber bullying and other forms of cyber bullying still show the same effects. Rather than just being bullied while in the classroom or play ground, children can be the target of cyber bullying 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Some of the more general effects of cyber bullying include poor performance at school, depression and low self-esteem. Because cyber bullying can take place outside of the classroom and at a more frequent rate, the child may experience more extreme cases of these effects. Consider these factors if you suspect that your child is being bullied online:

• You child may feel like there is no escape from cyber bullying. It seems easy enough to close these social media accounts and simply turn off of the computer. However, for some kids avoiding these websites or instant messages may seclude them from one of the most important places they socialize.
• Your child may be at home when they experience cyber bullying, which can lead to a sense of endangerment within the confines of their own room or house.
• Cyber bullies are more likely to say harsher words online or by text message because they don’t have to say it to the other person’s face or see their reaction.
• Your child may feel like they can’t be secure within their own surrounding because some cyber bullies never reveal their identity. The anonymity of cyber bullying can add to their feeling of being unsafe.

A recent survey conducted by i-SAFE America concluded that 58 percent of children who have experienced cyber bullying never told an adult or their parent. There are a few preventative measures that you and your child can take to avert any negative experiences while your child uses the Internet:

• Never give out private information about the child, passwords, school, family or friends. This information is an easy target for an anonymous cyber bully.
• Never exchange pictures with people you meet on the Internet.
• Delete any messages from people you don’t know.
• Because millions of people have access to what is written online, be careful what you say and what type of information you send out.
• Consider setting your child’s social media account to private so people that they don’t know can’t see their pictures or any of the information posted to the site.

Bullying has been around for many generations and some people would say that it is just a part of growing up. If your child experiences physical threats, report it to the owners of the websites or local officials and keep a log of the bullying. As the saying goes, “What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.” However in today’s technologically advanced age, the death of a child is never worth it.

Around the country, more and more of our young people are falling victim to cyber bullying – the use of electronic devices such as an Internet-connected computers to bully, harass, intimidate or humiliate another individual. But where is all of this online cyber bullying taking place? The following list provides insight into the sites most commonly being used for cyber bullying as well as why and how this problem is occurring.

MySpace Cyber Bullying

MySpace is the number one social networking site for high school age students and younger. How popular is MySpace? Rupert Murdoch bought the company $580 millions dollars just a few short years ago and now the company’s value is several times that already huge figure.

Most kids use MySpace to set up profiles and share information about themselves, their favorite music, Hollywood stars and other interests with kids in their school or neighborhood. For most, MySpace represents a fun form of self-expression that utilizes the latest online technology.

But a small percentage of kids use MySpace for cyber bullying. This can be accomplished in several different ways, including:

• Posting hateful information on another person’s MySpace page.
• Posting hateful information about another person on your own MySpace page
• Creating a new MySpace profile for the sole purpose of bullying another individual.

However it is executed, cyber bullying on MySpace remains a significant problem. While many chalk it up to “kids being kids”, more and more are starting to realize that a nasty post on someone’s MySpace page is as bad or worse that a taunt yelled across the schoolyard.

Facebook Cyber Bullying

Facebook is similar to MySpace except that it is geared towards a slightly older audience (the music and customization functionality is a lot less robust than found on MySpace) but is still being used by cyber bullies to harass their classmates and ex-friends. The rules of engagement are similar to those found in MySpace: people will either use their own profile to harass others, or create fake identities and build profiles to harass other people or dupe them into thinking another person is interested in them (romantically or as a friend).

Twitter Cyber Bullying

One of the fastest growing social media enterprises, Twitter allows people to “follow” one another by posting regular updates about their activities. Twitter is seeing a growing number of cyber bullying incidents as more and more kids figure out how to post hateful, harassing information about their friends and deliver it “via Tweet” to as many followers of the site as they can.

Website Cyber Bullying

In the most extreme cases of cyber bullying, many kids are going to the trouble of building entire websites from scratch in order to use them to humiliate another individual. A common method for doing this is to buy a URL from godaddy.com that humiliates the target (such as www.lisaisugly.com) then fill it with unkind postings and photos (Photoshopping a person into uncompromising positions is a highly used form of cyber bullying) then spreading word about the site to others via email, social networking, etc.

Currently, cyber bullying is one of the fastest growing problems facing school administrators and local governments around the country. Cyber bullying is defined as using the computer or other electronic devices to intimidate, threaten or humiliate another individual. Cyber bullying most commonly takes place on the Internet among students from a given school or neighborhood.

What follows is a series of highly publicized cases of Cyber bullying – each one chosen to shed light on the nature of the problem and the fallout that ensues when one young individual uses technology to hurt another person psychologically.

The Megan Meier MySpace Incident

Megan Meier was a 13 year old from Missouri who struck up an online friendship on the popular social networking site MySpace with a person she believed was a new boy in her hometown. In actuality, the “friend” was a group of individuals, including adults, who were intent on humiliating the poor girl because of a friendship with another child that had gone awry. Megan was very upset when she found out the truth, then later committed suicide once the friendship had terminated. The horrifying case stunned the community and caused state government officials to pass some of the harshest cyber bullying laws in the country.

The “Kill Kylie” Campaign of Hate and Homophobia

Kylie Kenney, an eighth grade student from Vermont lost two years of her life as a result of cyber bullying from classmates. From junior high through her sophomore year of high school, Kylie was forced to deal with websites created by her classmates that featured names like “Kill Kylie Incorporated” that were filled with threatening, homophobic remarks about the young girl. These hurtful kids obtained screen names with handles close to Kylie’s name and used them to make suggestive remarks and sexual advances on Kylie’s teammates on the field hockey team. As a result police filed charges of harassments against the individuals responsible.

The “Dog Poop Girl”

In South Korea, a female college student was riding the train with her dog when it defecated on the floor of the subway car. After the girl refused to clean up the mess, another passenger on the train took her picture using her cell phone and posted it online. In the months to follow, it became an Internet sensation in South Korea and “Dog Poop” girl became the target of extreme harassment. Individuals found out her name and address and soon she was forced to withdraw from school and move to another part of the country.

A Fake Facebook Rival

This year in Clinton Missouri, charges were filed against a teenager who allegedly created a fake Facebook account to serve as a competition against a young girl who was interested romantically in a male student. The account was created by another girl who wanted the boy all to herself, the suit claims. As a result, the targeted individual underwent significant levels of stress which affected her studies and her ability to attend school regularly. The case is one of many that feature phony accounts on Facebook or MySpace that are used to harass young people or stir up trouble among friends.

Cyber Bullying has become a worldwide problem because of the difficulty to track its occurrences. It some cases it has been accepted as humor, but when is it taken to far? When a child has taken her own life because she was cyber bullied, we know it has been taken way too far.

Cyber bullying has been present in the 2008 presidential election with the slurrying of both presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. Even the vice-presidential candidates Sarah Palin and Joe Biden have been victims of this abuse. These slanders wouldn’t technically be considered cyber bullying, but are loosely related. Senator Sarah Palin has received the worst of it with the creation of videos mocking her interviews on Saturday Night Live. NBC reports over 7 million views online, with millions more watching it on YouTube and Google video.

CyberBully Alert is an innovative new technology that helps families fight back against online predators and cyber bullies. Visit www.cyberbullyalert.com today for more information.

Recently, a number of states have passed strong cyber bullying laws that are designed to protect children from being harassed, threatened and humiliated online. These laws represent a crucial step towards National anti-cyber bullying laws which will protect children of all ages in every corner of the country.

Here is a state-by-state look at some of these laws:

Arkansas
In 2007, the Arkansas legislation passed a law allowing school officials to take action against cyber bullies even if the bullying did not originate or take place on school property. The law gave school administrators much more freedom to punish those individuals who sought to harass their fellow students.

Idaho
2006 saw Idaho lawmakers pass a law that allowed school officials to suspend students if they bullied or harassed other students using a telephone or computer.

Iowa
Iowa has passed several laws that force schools to create anti-cyber bullying policies which cover bullying “in schools, on school property or at any school function or school-sponsored activity.”

New Jersey
The Garden State of New Jersey has always maintained tough laws about bullying, but it wasn’t until 2007 that the laws were amended to include bullying via “electronic communication.” These laws give additional power to the school system to enforce bullying-related punishment for actions that may not take place while on school grounds.

Oregon
The progressive state of Oregon really delves into the details of cyber bullying. The laws passed in recent years in Oregon expand the boundaries of what constitutes cyber bullying to include those actions which “substantially interfere” with the education of the young person.

Missouri
The suicide of a 13-year old girl Megan Meier who was the victim of an internet hoax greatly raised the awareness of cyber bullying and its consequences in the state of Missouri. Governor Matt Blunt went so far as to create a task force whose sole purpose was to study and create laws regarding cyber bullying. As a result the Internet Harassment Task Force now stands as a shining example for other states around the country. Missouri has also toughened their laws on the matter, upgrading cyber-harassment from a misdemeanor to a Class D felony.

New York
New York created a system to investigate claims of cyber bullying that would help police and school officials better ascertain the circumstances of each occurrence and prosecute or punish the culprits to the fullest extent of the law.

Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is currently trying to pass a bill that would force repeat cyber bullying offenders to appear in family court, where they would be charged as delinquents under the terms of the state’s laws for young offenders.

Vermont
Vermont has added a $500 fine for cyber bullying offenses to their already stringent laws on the matter. There is currently a bill being discussed that would increase the reach of the school’s powers regarding cyber bullying when the action puts the individual’s ability to learn (or health and safety) at risk.

It is common knowledge that the web is filled with potential dangers for our children. However, kids need to develop their computer skills in order to stay competitive in school, and one day, the job market. With that in mind, we present the following positive, educational or just plain fun activities that kids can engage in online.

Positive Online Activities for Kids

1. Learn about their world. The web is home to some of the most comprehensive almanacs and encyclopedias in the world. The following websites are great resources for legitimate information online: www.encyclopedia.com, www.wikipedia.org, and www.britannica.com. With just the click of a mouse, a child can not only learn about different cultures and bygone eras, they can see that information come to life with full color photos, videos and other multimedia.
2. Keep in touch with family. Young kids and grandparents. A match made in heaven. But what if grandma and grandpa are thousands of miles away and are only able to make limited trips to see the family? Kids can use email to communicate with ALL their relatives around the world – and can even create a family website featuring photos and other cool information.
3. Play educational games. Not all web-based games are mindless first-person shooters. Some actually have educational value. Do some Google searches to find the ones best suited for your kids - be they historical trivia quizzes or logic puzzles.
4. Do research on their homework materials. Online, kids can gather all kinds of reference materials for papers, science projects, oral essays and other school assignments. (Note to parents: Be sure and check the credibility of the source materials your children use. Also, be sure to explain to them how “cutting and pasting” information on the web is plagiarism).
5. Start a blog. Setting up a wordpress blog through Word Press is fun and easy. Why not sit down with your child and help them develop a blog about their favorite hobbies or interests? The child will be learning one of the most valuable web development skills out there today and engaging in a productive activity to boot.
6. Get involved with a cause. There are literally thousands of websites devoted to informing people about important causes and charities around the globe. Many of these sites feature “KIDS SECTIONS” where young people can learn more about the topic and get involved. These kinds of activities illustrate one of the great, unheralded benefits of the Internet: that it makes our world smaller and connects us with one another in powerful ways.

The best thing to remember about kids and the Internet is to keep everything closely monitored and always in moderation. Set aside specific hours when you child can use the computer and always monitor that time as closely as you can. Ask other parents about the activities they engage in with their kids and get ideas from that community.