With today's technology at their disposal, school-age children can quickly learn so much about the topics they're studying in class, as well as those that interest them most.

Consider these examples of how computers and the Internet are dramatically changing the way even the youngest students are now learning:

• As early as kindergarten, children learn the nuts and bolts of computers-how to start them, create passwords and log on-and some even try their hands at simple online communication by sending messages to classmates.

• Second and third graders blog (create online conversations) with their peers in other schools about what they've learned during a science unit on painted lady butterflies.

• With just a few computer keystrokes, children use the Internet to access text, photos, even streamed voice and performance clips that make a research project on Native Americans vibrant in ways that mere books can not.

• Through lessons such as these, children practice important problem solving, fact gathering, analysis and writing on computers-skills they'll need for future learning, as well as in jobs and careers down the road.

Safe surfing

Children are still children, no matter how savvy they are with the high-tech tools they use in school and at home. As enriching as computers and other technologies can be, they can also carry potential dangers. Just as children are required to wear helmets when biking, they need protection and adult guidance when working with today's technologies.

To ensure that children are using computers in safe and age-appropriate ways, parents need to educate themselves about the benefits and risks of the tools their children use. The Internet offers a variety of Web-based resources for families, including www.staysafe.org.

Additionally, school technology supervisors, school resource officers and public and private agencies offer these suggestions to help families make their children's tech time safe and rewarding:

• Place the computer your children use in a common space, not in a bedroom or other out-of-the-way place. In many families, children are only allowed to use the computer when parents are at home and are required to ask before using the computer, both for homework and pleasure. This can help you be more aware of when they are online and what they are doing.

• Preview the Web sites your children visit. At school, computers have blocking software that eliminates the possibility of children stumbling onto inappropriate sites. Teachers also take care to preview the sites their students use for research. Similarly, you and your children can search for family-friendly sites for use on your home computer. Little Clickers (www.littleclickers.com) and the American Library Association (www.ala.org/parentspage/greatsites/) offer a host of family-friendly suggestions. Bookmark the sites that your children visit frequently, and teach them how to browse with this tool rather than a search engine.

• Become an informed software consumer. Although there is wonderful software available for children of all ages, some can be sexually suggestive, violent or educationally lacking or may contain advertising.
  
    Before you buy, read software reviews and, if possible, preview the software. Many stores will allow you to try out software before you purchase. You also can borrow software that friends recommend or check out copies from the public library. Parenting magazines and Web sites such as The Children's Technology Review, www.childrenssoftware.com, and Common Sense Media,
  www.commonsensemedia.org, are good resources for software reviews and information.
  
     Make sure that the software you choose for your children is challenging without being too difficult. Check for the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating and content descriptions on the box. ESRB has five ratings, from EC (Early Childhood, ages three and up) to AO (Adults Only, ages 18 and up). For more information on the ESRB software rating system, go to www.esrb.org.

• Instruct children to never give out personal information online. This is particularly important for children in the upper elementary grades and early middle school years who may begin using the Internet with less supervision, communicating with friends online and managing their own Web pages.

For permission to reprint this article, please contact the Capital Region BOCES Communications Service by e-mailing us at dbushsuf@gw.neric.org.

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