Teaching Students about Cyber Safety: Essential Tips for Educators

By Dr. Kathleen Tate  |  09/09/2025

In today’s world, children are digital natives who use technology in many areas of their lives. In 2023, data from the National Center for Education Statistics reported that between 78% to 98% of 3- to 18-year-olds have internet access.

Online activity takes many forms; children access websites and play games. Also, they communicate with friends and other kids around the world and use social media platforms.

There are many risks to consider related to children’s online safety, but educators and families can take steps to proactively help kids navigate the online world. It is important to empower young people to protect themselves from online threats and practice online safety at all times.

International Society for Technology in Education Standards

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) provides standards for educational leaders, educators, coaches, and K-12 students. The ISTE standards for students are categorized into seven areas:

• Standard 1.1 Empowered Learner
• Standard 1.2 Digital Citizen
• Standard 1.3 Knowledge Constructor
• Standard 1.4 Innovative Designer
• Standard 1.5 Computational Thinker
• Standard 1.6 Creative Communicator
• Standard 1.7 Global Collaborator

Standard 1.2 Digital Citizen is subdivided into four categories that apply to internet safety:

• Digital footprint
• Online interactions
• Safeguard well-being
• Digital privacy

This ISTE standard provides a useful framework for educators and parents to help students understand how to make smart decisions online.

Digital Footprint

According to the ISTE, the expectation is for every K-12 student to learn about digital footprints and “manage their digital identity and understand the lasting impact of their online behaviors on themselves and others and make safe, legal and ethical decisions in the digital world.”

Children must learn that anything they share online likely becomes permanent on the internet. They must be cautious about sharing too much about their lives, including personal details and other private information.

They need to know that “stranger danger,” a concept they probably learned in kindergarten about avoiding contact with people they do not know in person, applies to social networking sites and the World Wide Web at large.

Online predators seek opportunities, especially through social media sites, to trick children by acting like a young person or someone of another gender. Kids should not talk to people they do not know on their devices or on online sites. They need to tell a trusted adult if they notice any suspicious activity or inappropriate content.

For example, imagine that an online person asks for information such as a child’s:

• Full name
• Street address
• School name
• Friends or family members' names
• Photos that provide clues to his or her neighborhood

If an online acquaintance asks for this type of content, the child should report the request to a trusted adult in their school, home, or community.

Educators and parents should start an early age and teach youngsters about the risks of sharing information, as well as how sneaky people can be in stealing their private information during data breaches and other crimes. Children need to avoid sharing photos or audio recordings of themselves. With today’s technology, images and voices can be manipulated with artificial intelligence in damaging ways.

Also, parents should talk to kids about risky behavior, such as interacting with people in chat rooms and games where third-party chat rooms are often connected. For parents, these online spaces are more challenging to monitor for online threats due to less visibility.

Online Interactions and Child Safety

Online activities can be fun and educational for children. Due to the anonymous nature of being behind a keyboard, though, there may be the temptation to engage in retaliatory, cruel, or bullying behaviors. Kids need to be aware that they should be respectful online and thoughtful in how they post online.

ISTE Standard 1.2.b Online Interactions states that students should “demonstrate empathetic, inclusive interactions online and use technology to responsibly contribute to their communities.” Online communication should be respectful, appropriate, and productive.

Kids need encouragement and positive modeling by adults to take their time when communicating via social media sites, emails, and texts. They should always realize that their words may be shared elsewhere.

States are increasingly passing anti-bullying laws that allow schools to discipline students who harass other students, even outside of school. Children need to understand the serious school, legal, and possible fiscal consequences associated with bullying and cyberbullying. In addition, they should maintain proper netiquette at all times, both within and beyond classroom walls.

Safeguard Well-Being

ISTE Standard 1.2.c Safeguard Well-Being explains that “students safeguard their well-being by being intentional about what they do online and how much time they spend online.” Many kids spend time on electronic devices at school. After school, they want to continue using smartphones, computers, TVs, and gaming equipment at home.

The American Academy of Children & Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) reports that kids ages 8-18 in the U.S. spend 7 1/2 hours per day using or viewing screens. To reduce the time that children spend online, AACAP has these suggestions:

• Permit limited screen time
• Disallow devices during family time
• Avoid screen time 30-60 minutes before bedtime
• Remove devices from bedrooms at night

AACAP also highlights issues related to too much screen time, including:

• Sleep, weight, and mood problems
• Lower grades in school
• Poor self-image
• The reading of fewer books
• Insufficient outdoor or physical activity

Teachers and families should become partners and teach children about cybercrime statistics and problems so that they understand what may affect them in harmful ways. Young students should engage more in real life with family, friends, and nature.

These concepts should be explicitly connected to screen time usage and incorporated into lesson plans. To help children be more thoughtful and proactive about their digital activities, instructors could offer lesson plans that include:

• Health lessons focusing on tips for well-being
• Math lessons exploring data related to the negatives associated with too much device time
• Social studies lessons about friendship and community

Digital Privacy

ISTE Standard 1.2.d Digital Privacy explains action steps to protect a device’s digital privacy and also manage online personal data and security. At a young age, internet safety and digital safety are necessary topics for educators and families to address. Experts have noted that identity theft involving children continues to increase as kids share sensitive information online.

Youngsters need to maintain privacy online and be encouraged to apply common sense when using various devices. They should not share their private information with anyone.

Children may be more likely than adults to share about their lives on social media, especially with other kids who are actually adult predators posing as younger people. Discussing the dangers in the digital world along with the short- and long-term financial and safety consequences of sharing too much information online may help those children to grasp the importance of being cautious and staying safe online.

Three Tips to Help Children with Online Safety

Simple tips for digital privacy include telling kids to avoid sharing passwords. They should also look for suspicious links and remain alert when accessing public Wi-Fi.

Lesson plans and digital safety reinforcement at home can focus on basic knowledge, such as:

• Looking for “https” in a web address, which stands for “Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure.” The “s” shows that the website uses encryption to protect communications and data transfers. This form of security helps prevent hackers from stealing valuable information such as passwords.
• Resisting the urge to click on links, especially suspicious-looking ones that appear like gibberish. Children should be able to identify links to malicious software in text or email messages; they should also not open email attachments unless they are sure about their source and safety. If an online link appears interesting, children should simply review the key words within it and type those words into a search engine as a safer alternative to accessing the website while avoiding potential malware.
• Exercising discernment when using Wi-Fi in public locations. When kids use devices away from school and home, it may be best to use their personal phone hotspot. They should learn to create strong passwords, consider two-factor authentication, and only use public Wi-Fi for simple transactions. When using their devices in public, children must protect their screens from the view of passersby, who may be looking to steal information such as sensitive data.

Children should also know how to create a strong password to stay safe online. Many internet users tend to use the same login credentials or easy-to-guess passwords. Students should know how to create a strong password that uses a combination of uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.

Lessons and activities at school can be accompanied with memos and newsletters sent home to parents to help extend conversations, awareness, and learning. However, communications sent by teachers should first be approved by a principal.

Additional Resources for Teaching Online Safety

The following resources may be useful for teachers, educational leaders, and families:

• The Federal Trade Commission suggests deleting computer and cellular phone data when replacing electronic devices.
• Any suspicious or fraudulent activity should be quickly reported to IdentityTheft.gov so that identity thieves cannot use children’s personal information for credit or healthcare frauds.
• The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) recommends knowing the dangers of cyber activity. They recommend keeping children safe online through personal involvement, such as having them use devices in open areas at home and other security precautions.
• Teachers and parents should feel comfortable talking with kids of all ages about staying safe online.
• For additional assistance, parents should consider talking to a school counselor about available resources and ideas.

The Master of Education in Online Teaching at APU

For interested educators, American Public University (APU) offers a Master of Education in Online Teaching. In this degree program, students will take courses such as classroom management for the digital educator, co-teaching and collaboration for all learners, and powerful technology applications for the active learning environments. Other courses include online learning for the adult and K-16 learner and different perspectives on teaching and communicating.

For more information, visit APU’s education degree program page.

Note: This program has specific admission requirements.