| Today, kids start wading into the social networking | | | | their kids in an online world, by offering tools that |
| waters as soon as their little fingers can type, | | | | bridge their communication. Kids can set goals with |
| exploring digital "communities," many of them | | | | their parents, can shop responsibly with parental |
| designed mainly to stoke their fascination with | | | | oversight and can share calendar events with their |
| particular toys. New sites launch constantly, targeting | | | | friends and family. In fact, parents can even peer into |
| an ever-younger audience. | | | | their child's profile and help manage their account, |
| KINDERGARTEN THRU EARLY SCHOOL AGE | | | | such as accepting/rejecting friends requests and |
| The focus is on communal game-playing and earning | | | | overseeing their daily calendar. Scallyroo takes more |
| points to buy virtual things, rather than socializing. | | | | of an academic approach then the others with its |
| There's some messaging between friends, but most | | | | scholastic tools and can be useful for both younger |
| sites allow young kids only to post messages using | | | | and older kids as it caters to a wider age range. This |
| prewritten, generic phrases or words from a tightly | | | | site really strikes the balance between what's cool |
| restricted dictionary. Kids can't share personal | | | | for kids and what parents want as far as online |
| information like a home address. Among the most | | | | safety is concerned. |
| popular: | | | | YOUNG TEENS AND BEYOND |
| Webkinz.com: Free for one year with purchase of a | | | | Myspace and Facebook were once the realm of |
| Webkinz or Lil'Kinz toy. Owners feed and clothe digital | | | | college students and grown-ups, but high school and |
| versions of their plush "pets" and play games to earn | | | | even middle school kids have discovered them. |
| virtual "KinzCash." They can play video games against | | | | Facebook is now open to anyone 13 and older, and |
| other kids or take quizzes designed for players 5+. | | | | the minimum age on MySpace is 14. Sound far away? |
| They're rewarded for spending lots of time on the | | | | Your kids may already be seeing their friends' older |
| site, so you may need to impose time limits. | | | | siblings using these sites, or they may even have |
| Safety-wise, kids can't type messages that go | | | | fudged their birthdate to register themselves! If |
| beyond select phrases unless a parent approves their | | | | you're not already using them, learn about them now. |
| access to the "KinzChat PLUS" area. In that area | | | | Both sites offer broad freedom to post words, |
| (recommended for ages 10+), kids can only use | | | | images, audio files and video. So step one is talking |
| words from the site's dictionary. | | | | with your kids about the importance of not sharing |
| Clubpenguin.com: This hugely popular Disney-owned | | | | personal information with strangers, not posting |
| website charges a membership fee (about $5/month, | | | | photos that could embarrass themselves or their |
| depending on the plan you choose). Kids are | | | | friends, and steering clear of cyber-bullying. But the |
| represented by penguin avatars rather than by | | | | risk with these sites is that anyone can post a |
| images of themselves. By playing games, they earn | | | | comment about your child or identify them in the |
| virtual money to clothe and accessorize their | | | | caption of an embarrassing photo—kids can't |
| penguins and decorate their igloos. They can send | | | | control their friends' behavior. Older versions of a |
| other penguins a "buddy invite," visit their igloo, chat | | | | web page are stored on servers and can pop up |
| using predetermined phrases—unless they get | | | | when your child least expects it — like during the |
| clearance from parents to chat freely—and send | | | | college admissions process. |
| postcards, among other things. (They can also snub | | | | Your child shouldn't accept "friend requests" from |
| each other!) Designed for kids 6-14, but open to all | | | | people he or she doesn't know well (another benefit |
| ages. | | | | of a site like scallyroo.com; having control over who |
| ELEMENTARY and MIDDLE SCHOOL | | | | your child is friends with). Join these sites along with |
| Scallyroo.com: Free, designed for teens and tweens | | | | your kids and immediately set up a "friend" |
| 8-15 years old. Like Webkinz and ClubPenguin, it is | | | | connection with them. They may not like it, but then |
| extremely safe and has elements that involve the | | | | you can see who their friends are and what they're |
| parent. Scallyroo takes another approach from all the | | | | posting. |
| others. This site strives to better connect parents to | | | | |