Tips For Keeping Children Safe Online: Undercover Underage

Presents   UNDERCOVER UNDERAGE ** Series Subject, Child Activist, and Mother Roo Powell  Available for Select Interview Opportunities to Discuss Steps to Keep Children Safe on Social Media **  Five Important Online Safety Tips for Families from Roo Powell and Her Nonprofit SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse)   1. Build a strong relationship with your child. One of the most important things you can do to protect your kid is to develop trust. Have candid, age-appropriate, regular conversations about everything from the great parts of the internet to some of the tough things they could encounter. If you lay this foundation, they're more likely to come to you if something's wrong.  2. Discuss red flags. Grooming can be very subtle — especially at first. Talk through concrete examples of red flags with your child so they're able to identify when someone they're talking to may be trying to manipulate them. Things to watch for can range from an adult paying them compliments to asking them to keep secrets to asking them to send selfies.  3. Explore social media. The internet is always changing, so it's not possible for you to keep up with every single game, trend, or slang term that's out there. But you can spend time exploring the platforms your kid or teen likes best so that you learn how they work. Bonus points if you look through things together! 4. Set healthy boundaries. Every kid is different, so a tech use rule that works for your family may not work for your kid's BFF. Think through — and clearly communicate — your expectations around which apps and sites your child can use, how much screen time will help them feel their best, and when they should set aside downtime from their devices. You can use built-in platform or device parental controls to help with this. 5. Make a plan. If your kid or teen does ever encounter harm online, the stressful situation can make it difficult for them to know exactly how to react. Take some of that decision-making out of the equation by talking through a plan of action in advance.  Make sure to remind them that they should follow the plan even if someone threatens them online — that's a common tactic perpetrators use to exert power over their victims. Let your child know that if something like this happens, abuse is never their fault, and that you're here to help and support. For additional resources, please visit https://sosatogether.org/blog.  Watch Roo and SOSA in Action in Season 2 of UNDERCOVER UNDERAGE   With 5 Convictions Stemming From 16 Arrests Featured This Season, the Pressure is Palpable Over the Course of 8 Explosive and Intense All-New Episodes Watch the Season 2 Premieres on Monday, May 1st at 9/8c on ID and Streaming the Same Day on discovery+  Featuring SOSA’s Roo Powell, Shelby Chikazawa, Matt Monath, Jordan Pérez, & Canadian County, OK Sheriff's Office’s Major Adam Flowers and Sheriff Chris West Child advocate and Safe from Online Sex Abuse founder Roo Powell will continue her efforts to identify some of the internet’s most dangerous child predators.  Every day, countless minors are exploited, groomed and abused in person and online. Enter Powell and her team at the nonprofit SOSA who work in tandem with law enforcement to apprehend child predators by becoming the targets. After a successful first season resulting in four convictions of sexual predators, SOSA multiplies that number in Season 2 of as the SOSA team relocates to embed with the sheriff’s office in Canadian County, Oklahoma and deploys three new underage decoys. As the team launches the fictitious online accounts for a 15, 14 and even a 12-year-old persona, it’s a race against the clock to identify the ACMs (adults contacting minors) and build a case against the alleged predators to enable law enforcement to make an arrest before the perpetrators can victimize other children. About INVESTIGATION DISCOVERY (ID) Investigation Discovery (ID) is the leading crime network on television, delivering the highest-quality programming to approximately 80 million U.S. households. Viewers can enjoy their favorite shows anytime, anywhere on discovery+, the definitive non-fiction, real-life subscription streaming service. ID's true-crime programming is also available via the network’s aggregated TV Everywhere offering, IDGO, where fans can access thousands of episodes from the Discovery family of networks. For exclusive web content and bonus material, fans can follow ID on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook or check out the network’s true crime blog, CrimeFeed. Investigation Discovery is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a leading global media and entertainment company available in more than 220 countries and territories and 50 languages whose portfolio also includes Discovery Channel, discovery+, CNN, DC, Eurosport, HBO, HBO Max, Food Network, OWN, Investigation Discovery, TLC, Magnolia Network, TNT, TBS, truTV, Travel Channel, MotorTrend, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies and others.

Easy Ways to Teach Letters to Your Homeschooler

When our son was about two years old, my husband and I made a very tough decision. That decision was to homeschool him and any other children we may have. I did not take this decision lightly and started researching and planning immediately. By this time, my son could already recognize letters, but I knew there was still work to be done with learning letters. 

I created a curriculum that I would change weekly. It would include specific things to do each day, as well as activities specified for each day of the week. It worked well and it sank in rather quickly. We often found ourselves learning more than one letter a week. My daughter has a much different learning style and with her speech problems, it took her longer to learn the letters. I made the curriculum work for her as well. 

Over the years, I have found some must-have items for teaching letters; most- if not all, are very hands-on. 

1. Magnetic letters are a must-have. Not only can you use them right in the kitchen, but they grow with your child and can be used for alphabetizing and spelling. Also, being shaped like letters makes it easier for tactile learners to grasp the shape of each letter.

2. Sheet protectors and dry-erase markers make tracing letters a breeze. Write it (or print) it once, and your son or daughter can trace it to their heart’s content. Later on, this same tactic can be used for vocabulary, math, and so much more. 

3. Bulletin board letters can be used for many different purposes. I created lacing cards out of them and even use them for flashcards. One of our most fun activities is to spread all the letters on the floor, and she gets me the letter I tell her. 

4. Magnetic drawing boards have been our favorite thing for learning. These toys have so many purposes; we use them like a blackboard, magic tracing (lay a paper over it, trace, move paper, and see what you made), and more. Because they are toys, that adds even more of an element of fun into learning. Plus, they are made for kids, so the wand is also more comfortable for kids to hold than a pencil. 

5. Alphabet beads are great for learning the order of the letters. Each week, when we switch letters, we just leave the previous letters on the string. They help the kids relate to the order in a fun way. 

Naturally, many of the same “school supplies” for older kids are a must and will get your little one excited about school. Grab some pencils, glue, paper, scissors, and crayons. Present your child with these items and explain that they have a class like big kids. I’m always amazed at how this will get a little kid excited. 

One of the first things I bought for my son was an alphabet classroom border. I cut them apart and used each letter one at a time. When we finished each letter, I hung them in his room. This is an excellent way for the kids to be reminded each day of the letters, even during playtime. Plus, it is a simple way for them to relate the upper-case and lower-case letters.

With these simple tools, creating learning time and a learning environment is much simpler than it seems. However, the tools do not provide it all. Over the past 10 years of teaching my children and helping family and friends teach their kids the alphabet, I have learned some other things that help little ones learn. 

Put yourself in their shoes- yes, this may seem so simple to adults, but to toddlers, the alphabet is the hardest thing they have ever tried to learn. 

Make it routine- even if it is three times a week, keep a schedule. Learning a routine is also an important thing the kids are learning during this time. 

Find a trigger that says “school time.” This could be a notebook, a hat, background music, or even sitting in a particular area. When you work this into the routine, the child knows it is time to learn, not play, sleep, or eat. They also know that during this time, mom is their teacher. 

Point out what the child is learning away from home. Standing in the grocery store queue, on road signs, and even on billboards stuck in traffic, pointing out the letters can help your child relate to what they are learning. 

Of course, this is not an all-inclusive guide, but hopefully, these tips and tricks can help you get started and even give you some confidence when starting your child on the journey to learning the alphabet.