On February 24, the NRHEG PTO presented Internet Safety Night at the Elementary School library in Ellendale. The event was facilitated by NRHEG English instructor Mark Domeier, along with guest speakers Angie Aaseth and Steele County Investigator Troy Matejcek.

Safety speakers informed parents of the potential dangers our children may encounter on line. While even one incident is too many, the likelihood that their child will be contacted by a sexual predator is very slim.

"Technology is a great thing, but presents dangers," Aaseth said.

The greater online dangers are that your child will be bullied or that he will reveal too much personal information.

"Educating children to use technology wisely is absolutely necessary," Matejcek said.

Teaching children the following steps are vital in assuring internet safety:

• Not everyone on line is who they say they are.

• Never give out identifying information, including their name, address, phone number, and school name.

• Never send photographs on line or send them to anyone who isn't a close personal friend or a relative.

• Have youths choose a username that doesn't reveal anything about them and is not suggestive or provocative.

• Instill in children to never download or click on anything without checking first  with a trusted adult.

• Remind kids to never open an e-mail from someone they don't know.

"We are first-generation Internet parents, and our kids know more than we do," Domeier stated. Other important precautions to keep your child safe are to keep the computer in a common area of your home where the monitor is visible to others.

Parents are encouraged to use the parental controls in the browser or antivirus security software. Most have parental controls and allow you to block Web sites by categories or even age.

Parents should consider installing Internet monitoring and filtering software. Parents should also become familiar with the sites their children visit.

Parents need to sit down with their child and ask them to identify each name on his friend or buddy list. If your child cannot tell you where they live, they should immediately be removed.

Lastly, children are our most precious gift, just as we've taught them to stop, drop, and roll, repetition and awareness are the key to success for Internet safety.