Today is Safer Internet Day!

It’s one day that can spark a year long pursuit to create, connect and share in safe and respectful ways.

Today’s that day! It’s Safer Internet Day!

This year’s theme, “Create, connect and share respect: A better internet starts with you”, is a call to action. Everyone has a part to play in creating a better internet for everyone. We should do this for those youngest users in our homes, schools and media making spaces. Safer Internet Day brings everyone together to talk and engage in a respectful way in order to ensure a better digital experience. The aim of Safer Internet Day is to raise awareness of emerging online issues and highlight  topics that reflect current concerns. The global site for Safer Internet Day provides resources and links to open the conversations about creating, connecting and sharing respectfully on the internet.

In Canada, the Centre for Child Protection promotes Safer Internet Day with a focus on educating parents about the biggest risks kids face online and how they can help keep their kids safe. On their website are resources to support this initiative.

Not sure what kids are doing online? ProtectKidsOnline.ca provides a reference tool to look at what ages 5-7, 8-10, 11-12 and 13-15 are doing online, what the risks are, and how to talk to children about the creating, connecting and sharing respectfully on the internet.

For teachers, at the primary and secondary level, as well as administrators, there’s another way to build your skills and become informed. This is important since teachers should be able to provide their students with all the necessary tools to face the online world in an empowered and responsible manner. As students create, collaborate, share and connect in online spaces, there are ways for teachers to ensure this is done in a safe and respectful manner. Being an informed educator is the first step to managing this ongoing conversation. The new and updated edition of the Online Safety MOOC will help teachers gain a better understanding of the risks and challenges children face when they go online. The Online Safety course shares strategies for supporting young people to develop safe and responsible online and offline behaviours. A wide range of resources that teachers can use in the classroom will be provided, This can be one way to build a better internet. Completing this course will ‘show you know’ what it takes to teach children about internet safety – the badges will represent your skills.

So send a tweet today, share a post and spread the word! Take a moment to learn more about Safer Internet Day with this infographic. Start today, begin and share. Be part of a global wave of support for creating, connecting and sharing respect on Safer Internet Day!