The eSafety Curriculum at HLC

At HLC we believe that eSafety is an integral part of children’s education for today’s digital world and we ensure that learning how to use the internet safely is embedded across the curriculum at school.

Keeping safe online forms a significant part of the National Curriculum for Computing. Online safety is included in the Programmes of Study for all Key Stages to help ensure that young people are "responsible, competent, confident and creative users of information and communication technology." By the end of Primary School, children are expected to be able to demonstrate that they can:

Use technology safely, respectfully and responsibly;
Keep their personal information safe,
Recognise acceptable/unacceptable behaviour;
Identify a range of ways to report concerns about content and contact

eSafety is taught throughout the year in an age appropriate way to all year groups.

In Early Years, children learn what technology is and how we use it in our lives. The children look at using the internet safely and about stranger dangers. Children learn songs to help them remember and learn who to tell if they are worried about something they see online.

In KS1, children learn to search the internet for information safely, how to share their information carefully and keep their personal details private, and learn how to report anything that they find upsetting or scary to a trusted adult.

Children in KS2 learn about how to ensure the reliability of information online, the importance of maintaining a suitable digital footprints and where the internet offers opportunities for wider communication, both positive and negative.

Parent Afternoons

We also want to help our parents and children improve their own understanding of e-safety issues so they can learn to use the internet and all digital media in a safe and secure way.

Every year in February, we have an open afternoon for parents, where we update parents and carer on the latest apps and websites available for children, and we discuss how we can ensure that children access them safely. Following this, parents are able to spend time in their child’s classroom and join them for an eSafety lesson.

The presentation from these events are available online. Some recent quotes from this year’s parent event:

“I will set a reminder on my calendar to review the parental controls on the apps on my children’s devices to ensure that they haven’t reset. I didn’t even realise this happened.”

“It reminded me that, even at 5 years old, my child has access to too many things that she shouldn’t.”

“Thank you for doing afternoons like this for parents to learn too - it is so hard to know what to believe about the internet these days, and I can’t take it away from her completely.”

“I enjoyed being in class to see how the teacher teaches internet safety. It helps me to copy this style of getting him talking to me about it at home.”

“There are too many things out there for us to keep track of. I like the updates of what to look for.”

What can I do at home?

Following these simple steps can help to ensure that your child is safe online.

Ask your child to show you the sites they use.

By doing this, your child is including you in their online life and social activity. Show an interest and take note of the names of their favourite sites; you can then re-visit these when you are alone. Take your time and explore the space, find out how to set the safety features and learn how to report any issues directly to the site.

Ensure your child has set their profile settings to private.

Although the minimum age for most social networking sites and apps is 13, many are used by children to share information, photos and messages! If you allow your child to use these apps, ensure their privacy settings are to private, and make it clear to the them that they need to think about the information they post online as it could be copied and pasted anywhere by anyone without their permission. Ensure that they do not post images in which they are wearing school uniform, and ensure that location tagging is switched off. It is important that the children know that if this content got into the wrong hands, somebody may wish to use it against them or, more worryingly, try to locate the in the real world.

Set appropriate parental controls on your child’s computer, mobile and games console.

Filters on computers and mobiles can prevent your child from viewing inappropriate and possibly illegal content. You can activate and change levels depending on your child’s age and abilities. You can also set time restrictions for using the internet or games. They can be free and easy to install - call your internet service provider (who often have specialist teams for this) or visit CEOP’s parent’s site (https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/) for further information. Explain to your child that you are setting parental controls when you talk to them about internet use, and be honest with them about the reasons why.

Ensure that your child knows to tell you if they are worried about something online.

Sometimes children get into situations online where they don’t feel comfortable or see something they don’t want to see. By talking to your child about the internet, their favourite sites and the risks they may encounter, they are more likely to turn to you if they are concerned about something.

Useful Links for Parents

Parentzone - https://parentzone.org.uk/parents

Parentzone is a superb website which has a huge range of resources for families to help them meet the challenges of parenting in the digital age. From internet safety magazines and online training, to parent guides on the latest digital trends and platforms, you can find advice and support on their website.

They also have some fantastic step by step resources for setting up and maintaining parental controls on a range of devices and apps. They also publish a free digital magazine aimed at parents which contains updates of concerning new apps and websites. These can be downloaded from https://parentzone.org.uk/projects/digital-parenting-magazine.

Netaware - https://www.net-aware.org.uk/

Supported by the NSPCC, Netaware is your guide to the social networks/apps that children are using. They review each individual network/app, giving a brief overview of its capabilities, scoring it for safety and security and give tips for making it safer for your child, allowing you to stay up to date with all the newest apps.

Internet Matters App - download from Apple Appstore/Google Playstore

More information on https://www.internetmatters.org

‘Internet Matters’ is a new app designed to help parents talk about online safety issues with their children, and to ensure that they make smart choices to stay safe online. It is aimed at children aged between 8-10, and is a split-screen collaborative app helps children to think about what they would do if they were faced with different situations online; from cyberbullying to sharing content with someone they don’t know. Quizzes and games encourage parents and children to collaborate and talk about 9 different e-safety subjects.