Inside NetSmartz Workshop
Educate. Engage. Empower: Safety - It's A Family Thing!
Baseball games, late-night movies, and family game nights--these are summer traditions which never fail to bring in family fun! This summer, NetSmartz Workshop worked hard to help families start a new tradition: a month-long celebration of safety for Internet Safety Month in June.
Clicky, the NetSmartz safety robot, joined the Rockville Fire Department in Maryland at the grand opening of Old Navy to educate families on the importance of staying safer online and in the real world. Then, it was off to Comerica Park for an Internet Safety Day with the Detroit Tigers and the Michigan ICAC. Clicky took over the ball park in-person and on the JumboTron, teaching Tigers' fans all about what it means to be an all-star champion for safety!
NetSmartz Workshop's animations Mike-Tosis, Router's Birthday Surprise, and Way 2 Go! hit the big screen in front of hundreds of families at Cox Communications' Movies Under the Moon event in Fairfax, VA. Then, it was straight to Capitol Hill for Get Game Smart's Capitol Hill Family Game Night. NetSmartz jammed to Rock Band® with Congressmen and their children, who were previewing the latest parental controls and using interactive stations to learn about setting limits for kids' online usage.
Now that June is over, NetSmartz is focusing on making the rest of the summer fun and safer for families across America. Is there a safety event in your area that we should know about? Drop us a line at contact@netsmartz.org!
Bulletin Board: Cyberbully Zombies Attack!
Cyberbullying can be a tricky topic for tweens (ages 8-12). Many do not want to speak up about the bullying for fear of retaliation, and the temptation to respond to the bully can lead to even more problems. So what do you do to spice up an Internet safety lesson about cyberbullying? Introduce zombies, of course!
The newly released Cyberbully Zombies Attack is an action-packed game on NSTeens.org that provides tweens with a hands-on lesson in defeating cyberbullies. In this game, players defend their school against the fast-approaching cyberbully zombies. Each zombie represents a different aspect of cyberbullying. For example, Blah Blah Betty is a gossip zombie who spreads rumors all over the Internet. To defeat the zombies, players use "weapons" such as ignoring the messages, blocking the cyberbullies, and telling a trusted adult.
Rather than a traditional lecture, this kind of educational game presents the lessons in a fun and unexpected manner. Cyberbully Zombies Attack keeps tweens engaged and energized, so they are learning how to deal with cyberbullies without even knowing it. Before long your tweens will know exactly what to do to keep cyberbully zombies from sending them mean messages...oh, and eating their brains.
Social Spotlight: Jay Poupard
Meet Detective Sergeant Jay Poupard, Commander of the Michigan Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. As a seasoned law-enforcement professional and an expert in evolving technological trends, Sergeant Poupard knows the importance of educating communities about Internet safety.
Q: What do you consider to be the most important issue for parents trying to teach their children Internet Safety?
A: Spending time with their children online and understanding how to administer their computer network at home.
Q: What was the biggest technological advancement of your generation?
A: Cellular devices and their extraordinary data capabilities.
Q: Who is your favorite NetSmartz character?
A: Router.
Q: What is the best advice you have for parents who want to keep their kids safer online?
A: To be aware of the capabilities of the electronic devices they allow their children to use.
Q: How did you get involved with NetSmartz Workshop?
A: As a law-enforcement professional some of my responsibilities include educating parents and children about internet safety.
Q: What social networking sites do you use?
A: Facebook and Linkedin.
Q: What do you think is the biggest safety risk to youths online?
A: Sharing too much personal information with people they only know in a virtual environment.
Q: What advice do you have for young people online?
A: It's ok to keep some details about your life private and offline. Remember "Once you post it you can never get it back."
Q: What is your favorite online activity?
A: Playing Medal of Honor.
Q: What do you think the Internet will look like in five years?
A: The web will be even more widely available and very personalized for individual users.
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Any views or opinions presented in Social Spotlight are solely those of the interviewee and do not necessarily represent those of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.