Recent research shows that children are very unlikely to take action when they see harmful content or behaviours online. So what can we do to help? Start off by encouraging conversations about online experiences. If your child describes something distressing, always stay calm despite how you may really be feeling. You can reassure your child that reporting online content that they find upsetting won’t get them in to trouble. Secondly, take time to go through the process of how to report, flag and block with your child and learn together. Remember the process can vary greatly between different platforms so repeat this for each game or app that your child uses. Finally, set an example of what you do when you come across anything harmful online. This could be by simply describing how you have acted in these situations in the past.
