Staying Safe Online: Personal Safety Basics

Active learning works for this topic because young children learn best by doing, especially when topics feel abstract or distant from their daily experience. Role-plays and games turn safety habits into tangible actions they can practise and remember, which builds confidence and reduces anxiety about online spaces.

• Foundation
• Technologies
• 4 activities
• 20 min–35 min

Learning Objectives

1. Identify trusted adults who can provide help when encountering uncomfortable online situations.
2. Explain why personal information, such as a full name or address, should be kept private online.
3. Demonstrate appropriate actions to take when seeing unfamiliar or uncomfortable content on a digital device.
4. Justify the importance of asking permission before using digital devices.

Role Play

⏱ 30 min·Small Groups

Role-Play: Online Scenarios

Prepare cards with simple scenarios like 'a stranger asks for your photo' or 'a game asks for your address'. In small groups, students act out the situation, choose a safe action such as telling a teacher, then share with the class. Debrief by listing class rules on chart paper.

Prepare & details

Explain appropriate actions to take when encountering unfamiliar or uncomfortable online content.

Facilitation Tip: During the Role-Play: Online Scenarios, assign roles quietly before starting so all students feel prepared to participate.

Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging

Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Role Play

⏱ 20 min·Pairs

Sorting Game: Safe or Not

Print pictures of actions like sharing a photo, asking permission, or clicking unknown links. Students sort them into 'safe' and 'not safe' hoops. Discuss choices as a class and create a visual safety chart for the classroom wall.

Prepare & details

Justify the importance of seeking permission before engaging with digital devices.

Facilitation Tip: For the Sorting Game: Safe or Not, use real examples children might encounter, like their first name or a school photo, so the activity feels relevant.

Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging

Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Role Play

⏱ 35 min·Individual

Personal Safety Pledge

Students draw or dictate their own safety pledge, such as 'I ask first' or 'I tell if scared'. Share pledges in a circle, then display them near devices. Follow up by practising pledges during device time.

Prepare & details

Analyze strategies for safeguarding personal information in digital environments.

Facilitation Tip: In the Personal Safety Pledge, have students sign or initial their pledge to create ownership and make the promise feel real.

Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging

Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Role Play

⏱ 25 min·Whole Class

Discussion Circle: Trusted Helpers

Sit in a circle and pass a talking stick. Each child names one trusted adult for online help and why. Teacher models responses to sample issues, then children practise saying 'stop' to pretend uncomfortable content.

Prepare & details

Explain appropriate actions to take when encountering unfamiliar or uncomfortable online content.

Facilitation Tip: In the Discussion Circle: Trusted Helpers, sit in a circle yourself to model attentive listening and equal participation.

Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging

Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Teaching This Topic

Teach this topic with repetition and positive reinforcement. Young learners need to hear safety rules multiple times in different contexts before habits form. Avoid lengthy explanations that lose their attention. Instead, use short, clear statements paired with actions. Research shows that children retain safety habits best when they practise them in low-stakes, guided situations first, before encountering real online spaces. Always connect rules to their immediate environment, like classroom devices or home tablets, to make the learning feel practical.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students confidently identifying safe choices in role-plays, sorting personal information correctly in games, and verbally committing to safety rules in the pledge. They should also name trusted adults and explain why sharing personal details online requires caution.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Role-Play: Online Scenarios, watch for children treating online interactions like watching TV. Redirect them by asking, ‘Would you walk up to a stranger in the playground and tell them your name? This is the same.’

What to Teach Instead

During Sorting Game: Safe or Not, correct children who think sharing their name or photo is always okay by guiding them to separate personal information (name, school, address) from fun images (drawings, cartoon avatars). Ask, ‘Is this something only your family should know, or can anyone see it?’

Common Misconception

During Role-Play: Online Scenarios, listen for students saying they would try to fix an online problem alone. Stop the role-play and ask, ‘Who in your real life helps you when something feels wrong? That’s your trusted adult too.’

What to Teach Instead

During Discussion Circle: Trusted Helpers, challenge the idea that independence means solving problems alone by having students name three adults they trust and explain why each one is helpful.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

After Role-Play: Online Scenarios, present three scenario cards. Ask students to point to or name the ‘Trusted Adult’ they would tell for scenarios involving unclear pictures or stranger requests, and to ‘Ask Permission’ before using a device for the game scenario.

Discussion Prompt

During Sorting Game: Safe or Not, ask students to explain their choices while sorting cards. Listen for language like ‘only my family knows this’ or ‘I need to ask first’ to assess understanding of privacy and permission.

Exit Ticket

After the Personal Safety Pledge, give each student a small piece of paper. Ask them to draw one thing they can do to stay safe online and write one word to describe how they feel when they use technology safely.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: Ask students to create a ‘Safe Screen Time’ poster for the classroom showing three rules from the activities.
• Scaffolding: Provide picture cards or sentence starters for students who struggle to verbalise their responses during discussions.
• Deeper exploration: Invite a local librarian or digital safety officer to join the Discussion Circle for a real-world connection to trusted helpers.

Key Vocabulary

Personal Information	Details about you that should be kept private, like your full name, address, or phone number.
Trusted Adult	A grown-up, like a parent, teacher, or family member, who you can talk to if something makes you feel worried or uncomfortable online.
Permission	Asking and getting approval from a grown-up before using a digital device, like a tablet or computer.
Uncomfortable Content	Anything you see or hear online that makes you feel confused, scared, sad, or worried.