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To Willard the key is not to frighten children, but instead teach them proactive ways to protect themselves while adults keep an eye out as well. Willard charges students to act responsibly, such as "Stay Out of the Garbage," and avoid pornography or other "gross stuff" online, and also to "Connect Safely," reminding kids not to send mean or nasty messages. Adults get some advice as well-with Willard cautioning them not to make a big deal if a child brings up something that happened online, such as a stranger trying to gather personal information. Any kind of extreme response, like taking away Internet privileges, could discourage them from bringing up concerns again.

n June 2008 a diverse group of representatives from technology companies, child advocacy and parents' groups, educators, health researchers and policymakers gathered in Washington, DC to begin work on a set of recommendations for best practices that participants in the Internet industry could adopt to help keep children safe and smart when online. The result of the year-long effort is the report PointSmart.ClickSafe.: Task Force Recommendations for Best Practices for Online Safety and Literacy.

Members of an internet safety task force on July 8 suggested several ways to improve cyber safety for children, focusing on three key areas in particular: education before a child gets on the internet, control while the child is online, and having set procedures if problems arise. The task force, which included representatives from Verizon, Comcast, Cox, Google, Yahoo!, AOL, Symantec, Common Sense Media, the Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe), the National Parent-Teacher Association, Family Online Safety Institute, and the Children's Partnership, met for more than a year to develop its report and recommendations.

InfoSource Learning, through their website www.SimpleK12.com, shares a collection of links to resources for teachers, teens, and parents during June 2009 - Internet Safety Month.

If you're attending NECC and have an interest in Digital Citizenship topics, here are some workshops and sessions you'll want to attend:

One problem with most of today's Internet safety messaging campaigns is that there is only one set of messages for the entire population of youth and parents. But, an extensive literature review conducted by the Internet Safety Technical Task Force Research Advisory Board found that "not all youth are equally at risk" and that "those experiencing difficulties offline, such as physical and sexual abuse, and those with other psychosocial problems are most at risk online."

Social media sites should provide simpler explanation and assistance to help school kids navigate cyber-safety issues. That is one of the initial points of advice given to the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, by representatives of the Youth Advisory Group.

How To's and Don't Do's posted By Hemanshu Nigam, Chief Security Officer, News Corporation and MySpace

My message to parents and teachers is simple: embrace the technology that kids use, recognize that whatever you may lack in technology knowledge you make up in wisdom, and remember that you, too, were once a kid. Your first reaction to kid activity that may be a bit disturbing shouldn't be to freak out and shut down access but to take a deep breath, talk with (and listen to) the kids, and do everything you can to encourage dialog.

Extensive information available about all aspects of online safety.

What makes you such a good digizen?

The Cable Industry's effort to educate parents about protecting their child's identity online. Click on the video link at the bottom of the page to access six flash videos: Internet Safety Pledge, media literacy, phishing and predators, kids' blogging content, privacy issues, etc. Resources are in English and Spanish.

From Kim Komando, national radio talk show host.