On February 11, 2025, families, educators, wellness providers, industry decision-makers, and politicians are all encouraged to celebrate the positive power of the internet and the importance of fostering safe and responsible online habits. The Safer Internet Day global initiative and slogan “Together for a Better Internet” encourages everyone to join the movement, participate, and make the most of the internet’s potential to bring people together. With a global, community-led approach, Safer Internet Day encourages everyone to come together and play their part in educating our young people about the opportunities and challenges the internet presents.
Why Digital Citizenship Matters
While the internet offers incredible opportunities for learning, creating and communication, it also comes with challenges such as:
- Cyberbullying
- Misinformation
- Privacy concerns
- Setting boundaries
- Comparison and self doubt
Children need to have opportunities to learn strategies to deal with some of these challenges in order to participate fully in the positive power of the internet.
Families
For families looking to engage their children in conversations around safer and healthier internet usage, check out these resources and ideas:
- Parent’s Guide to Generative AI
- Parent’s Guide to Cyberbullying
- Tips to Stop Cyberbullying
- Parent’s and Educator’s Quick Guide to Hate Speech
- Parent’s and Educator’s Guide to Combatting Hate Speech
- Parent, Educator, and Youth Guide to LGBTQ+ Cyberbullying
- Quick Guide to Secure Passwords
- Quick Guide to Sexting for Parents & Teens
- Quick Guide to Cybersecurity
- Quick Guide to Misinformation & Media Literacy
- Parent & Educator Guide to Media Literacy & False Information
Educators
For educators looking to engage their students in lessons and class discussions around safer and healthier internet usage, check out these resources and ideas:
-
- Generative AI – These middle and high school lessons engage students in an exploration of how generative AI works and how prompts can be modified to achieve a specific output.
- The Internet Starts with I – “I Take Care of Others”
-
-
- Elementary School – This elementary school lesson gives students an opportunity to reflect on and engage with adults at home in a conversation about their digital habits.
- Middle School – This middle school lesson explores strategies to implement when students witness cyberbullying or digital drama.
- High School – This high school lesson discusses ways that students can be allies to their LGBTQ+ peers online.
- Ask Me Anything (for Students): Bias & Hate Speech – This video highlights the perspectives of Beth Yohe (president of the International Bullying Prevention Association) and London (a 9th grade student) as they discuss ways for students to deal with cyberbullying, bias, and hate speech.
-
- Wellness, Identity & Self-Respect
-
-
- Elementary School – This lesson allows students to explore the concept of focus, reflect on what affects their ability to focus, and develop strategies for better focus.
- Middle School – This lesson gives students the chance to learn about multitasking, attention patterns and strategies for effective studying.
- High School – During this lesson, students will analyze research on attention and technology, conduct structured self-observation of attention patterns and develop evidence-based attention management strategies.
-
- Scams, Predators, and Creeps – “I Protect My Accounts & Devices”
-
-
- Elementary School – In this lesson, students learn about keeping their passwords safe.
- Middle School – This lesson focuses on creating secure passwords and passphrases.
- High School – This lesson helps students build awareness around cybersecurity strategies and threats.
- 2-Minute Tips: Smart Passwords – This video gives 6 tips for creating smart passwords.
-
- Media Literacy and Critical Thinking
-
- Elementary School – In this lesson, students explore the similarities and differences between mistakes and lies and discuss what to do if they see someone share false information.
- Middle School – This lesson gives students strategies for identifying fake news.
- High School – This lesson encourages students to use lateral reading to check the reliability of sources.
While every day is a good day to talk about digital citizenship, Safer Internet Day gives families and educators an opportunity to join the movement for a safer and better internet. Educators are encouraged to share their Safer Internet Day plans with ConnectSafely as they unite with educators, families, and students all over the world to promote a safer and healthier online experience for young people everywhere.
