Safer Internet Day 2020 Top Tips for 11-18s
Safer Internet Day 2020 is being celebrated around the world on Tuesday 11th February 2020.
The global theme is ‘together for a better internet’ and this year in the UK we are putting the focus on how young people explore and express their identity online.
Everyone has their part to play in making the internet a better place, including you!
Have a look at the tips and links below with some suggestions on how to get you started and help you to stay safe and positive online.
These top tips were created around the theme of Identity Online for Safer Internet Day 2020. For more tops tips, resources and activities for 11-18s visit our advice centre.
More for 11-18 year olds this Safer Internet Day!
Let’s create an internet where we are….
- Free to embrace difference Broaden your feeds by making sure you follow a range of people who inspire, excite or interest you. You can also like and share posts from people who are not well represented online, or who are doing something to tackle this representation gap. Sometimes people worry what others will think if they like or share something a bit different, but there are lots of people doing great things online who we can all help to include and celebrate.
- Free to care Reach out to people or groups who are being targeted online. These are the people who deserve our attention, not those who are being mean. Report negative comments and show support to the person being affected. We can all help to make sure that messages, that make people feel the internet is not for them, are taken down and that others do not have to see them. A small step or action can make a huge difference to someone who has been targeted.
- Free to express yourself The internet is a place where you can express your ideas, thoughts and feelings. This is what makes the internet great! Being free to express yourself also means that you have the responsibility to be respectful so that everyone online feels free too. Only share what you are comfortable with and remember that your personality, interests and identity are made up of many different things – so make the most of it.
- Free to ask for help It can sometimes be hard to ask for help especially if you don’t know what to say, or what might happen next. Find someone that you trust and go to them if something happens online that makes you feel worried, upset or confused. People who care about you want to help you. Even if they don’t know all the answers, you can figure it out together. Asking for help is never a weakness and talking to someone can make all the difference.
- Free to explore and investigate The internet is a place with so many different types of content – from communities, videos and music, to apps, filters and information. You can use it to find information on pretty much any topic that you are interested in! We all have different sides to ourselves, and the internet allows to you to explore so much. Whilst it’s great there’s so much information, not all of it is trustworthy or helpful. Use your critical thinking skills and talk to those around you to figure out what is reliable, helpful and good for your mental health.