Messaging friends top online activity for young

Teenagers and pre-teenagers make up at least 15 per cent of the online population, studies suggest, and they use it for many activities.

Schoolwork-related use is high but, on a personal level, children are increasingly using the internet to contact friends.

One study says that, in the United States, at least, teenagers prefer instant messaging (IM) to telephones. Their most popular IM tool is MSN Messenger, but AOL IM is not far behind. ICQ (I-seek-you) is also popular.

Parents should know that all these IM tools require special downloads - or can be disabled if they came pre-installed.

Students are also using the internet to find dates. In Japan,a study said that 13 per cent of young teens had visited online dating sites - and that girls were more likely to visit them than boys.

One child in four uses the internet to find health information, particularly reliable, confidential insights into weight issues, mental health, drugs and alcohol, and violence.

PriceWaterhouseCoopers says teenagers go online most of all to use e-mail, followed in descending order by engaging in research, playing games, using chat rooms, downloading music/videos, sending e-cards, shopping and following news or sports.

Another survey says 8-to-12-year-olds are more likely to play games online than use e-mail, but they also like to chat and enter contests - both high-risk activities.

More statistics are available at CyberAtlas.

Good sites for kids

Older children chafe at restrictions, so give them really varied acceptable content. Good starting points: Net-mom - 100 hot sites for families; Bonus.com - a protected portal with a wide content aimed at children and families; Kids and Teens Directories - a large directory of family-safe websites from a group with emphasis on "ability" issues.

CyberAtlas


Bonus.com

Kids and Teens Directories