Alva's World: How to have fun and stay safe online.
the Irish Examiner has once again teamed up with CyberSafeKids and Irish animation studio Kavaleer to make the online world safer for children, brought to life by the wonderful animated world of Alva.
Technology plays an increasingly important and integral part of children’s present and future lives. It is being used more and more widely in schools and while this as a positive, empowering development, even a standard smartphone can potentially allow a child to take risks which were unthinkable 20 years ago.
Children need to be able to embrace the opportunities for learning and enjoyment that technology can deliver, but as parents and educators we have a responsibility to equip them with the tools to stay safe and avoid harm.
Established in 2015, CyberSafeKids is an Irish registered charity which works to empower children, parents and teachers to navigate the online world in a safe and responsible manner. Our founders and staff have backgrounds in cybercrime investigation, law enforcement, psychology, education, online child protection, academia and the not-for-profit sector.
Alva’s World sees our pint-sized heroine pitted against the plots of three duplicitous dunderheads – the Trolls of Gizmo. The fun programme aims to provide a much-needed set of water-wings for a generation of children who will find themselves at the deep end of life online in a few short years.
Gizmo is the world that echoes the internet environment and social-media landscape, with all its wonders and risks. Alva’s World is the systems upgrade for the current preschool generation of digital natives.
HOW TO PLAY
Every time you see Mo, click on him and he will give you one piece of Alva's advice for staying safe online.
Make sure to read Alva's advise carefully. Once you have collected all of Alva's advice, you can test what you have learned at the end.
There are 24 Mo's overall, see if you can find them all, Good Luck!
Every time you see me flying around, Click!
FizzGizz Mania
The Fluffy Spy Effect
For All the Likes in Gizmo
Spy-Fi
The Race
Trollercise
Trojan Troll
Behind the Mask
Spottyitis
Almost there!
Don't forget, you can catch Alva and her friends on RTEjr every week
Alva’s World is now airing on RTEJr,
Broadcasting weekdays at:
08:30, 14:00 and 18:25
and weekend double bills at:
08:00, 11:45 and 18:40.
Bye Bye to Buy Buy
Funny Face
Oolie Reviewlie
Noti-Vacation
Cookie Off
Mo Go Quizmo
Postie with the Mostie
Frighteningly Fearful Feather
Credit Conundrum
The Flungi-ning
Well done, you made it!
Now let's see what you learned.
Before you play games and apps, what should you always check?
Security alerts and notifications:
What should you do if you see bullying behaviour online?
When should you use other people's photos online?
When buying online you should:
If you are using shared devices, you should:
Irish Examiner Longread
Copyright Irish Examiner
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Check out the age restrictions on games and apps before you play - they are there to keep you safe!
Alva's Advice
Don’t give in to peer pressure online, and only do what you are comfortable with and what makes you happy!
Always keep your camera off and covered if you can. Only give access to apps that you trust and people that you know offline. Your image is your own and your privacy is important!
Alva's Advice
Create content and post it because you enjoy it, not for the likes or the followers! If they come too, even better, but be true to yourself!
Never connect to WiFi which isn’t password protected. If you absolutely have to in an emergency, never share personal information or login to your private accounts.
Alva's Advice
Think carefully before you post. Remember that what you put online, including things about other people, will (pretty much) stay there forever.
We all know how rubbish it feels to be left out. Excluding people online or in chat groups is unkind and a type of cyberbullying.
Alva's Advice
Question everything and don’t always believe the first information you come across. Not everything influencers and bloggers tell us is necessarily true, or even well researched!
Security alerts and notifications can be annoying, but keep all your apps and devices updated to stay as safe and secure as possible.
Alva's Advice
If you see bullying behaviour online,
STAND UP. . .
Block the person, report them and tell a trusted adult as soon as possible. It’s not ‘snitching’ — it’s looking out for yourself and others so we can all have a positive online experience.
Always check the source of information you find online: ask who wrote it and when and where was it posted . . . is it trustworthy?
Alva's Advice
Get permission first to buy things online, and agree on what you can and can’t buy, and how much to spend. Check the quality of your online shopping, and double check you’re really getting what you think you are, before you buy!
Only use other people’s photos online if you have their permission. Even if it’s meant as a joke, they might not find it funny!
Alva's Advice
Practise empathy and think about others’ feelings before you post online.
Always log off your accounts if you are using shared devices! That way you protect your accounts and your privacy from prying eyes.
Alva's Advice
If you’re finding it hard to concentrate or you just want a break, look after your digital well being by switching off all your notifications for certain periods each day.
Alva's Advice
Online recommendations come from our digital footprint and can be really useful to find cool stuff. Don’t depend on them too much or before you know you’re in a rut and only seeing one kind of thing. Look around and make your own decisions too!
Alva's Advice
Sometimes adults hate when kids always ask “Why?” but it’s actually a really important skill to question everything you find online. Be sceptical, not cynical!
Not much in life is free, so never click on links for special offers, quizzes or giveaways. They are probably scams and want your personal information!
Alva's Advice
Respect privacy and don’t peek at other people’s messages, however tempting! Have your accounts set to PRIVATE to control who sees what you’re posting
and who is following you.
Do you really need to forward that meme, story or message to other people? If it’s information you’re sharing, do you trust the source?
Alva's Advice
Always credit your sources — websites, images or ideas. Remember just because it’s on the internet doesn’t mean it belongs to you — give credit where credit is due!
Always have your location settings switched off on your devices and individual apps. No one other than your parents or carers need to know where you are!
Alva's Advice
If it looks suspicious, it probably is! Always check where any email or offer comes from. Never click if you’re unsure and ask an adult first!
Try Again!
CORRECT!