Recently, one of our middle school teachers decided to visit a popular social networking website where people post information about themselves and interact with others. The teacher's reaction? "I was shocked and so dismayed...I was able to find about 200 of our own middle school students...There was so much demographic information about them that an internet predator could be at their doorstep in no time."

One of our high school teachers tried the same thing. "My search produced literally dozens of my own students, all with a detailed page including pictures of themselves...most of which were certainly not school appropriate."

We have all seen news stories about teenagers running away from home to be with someone they met on the internet.  We have seen stories where police or reporters use online chat rooms to catch internet predators who are trying to hook up with children. The danger is real, and parents must be prepared. 

Lake Havasu Unified School District is serious about protecting your children when they use school computers, and we comply with the Children's Internet Protection Act. Parents need to make sure their children are safe when using the family computer. At the bottom of this page, we offer links to helpful information about internet safety.

Some things to consider: Several of these sites recommend keeping the computer in a public area of the home, such as a family room, rather than in a child's bedroom. It makes it easier to monitor what your child is doing online, and your child is less likely to do something foolish online if there is a chance you will be looking over his/her shoulder. Even though your child may be surfing safely at home, the CNET site has this caution.

It's one thing to safeguard your own PCs, but that doesn't help when your kids are online at their friends' houses. Communicate with other parents. Relay your concerns and share tips with them to make sure your child surfs safely, no matter whose computer he or she uses.