Keeping Your Kids Safe whilst Learning Online - Zoom Parents Guide

Due to the world’s technological advancements, schools leap from traditional learning to online learning. Additionally, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit globally, institutions chose to continue with virtual homeschool education. Through this, many use online conference platforms like Zoom.

What is Zoom?

Zoom is an application for video communications. It allows users to perform audio and video conferencing with additional features such as sharing screens, recording, and collaborative meetings. Other than that, Zoom is available in different operations systems which lets your kid join Zoom conferences using any devices.

Many schools today prefer Zoom due to its child-friendly platform. Most importantly, it has free features perfect for meeting and online classes. 

Is Zoom safe for kids? 

Zoom provided safety features for every user. It also helps to prevent risky and harmful strangers online. However, despite the incredible attributes and elements accessible in Zoom, you also need to consider some precautions. 

Verifying your child’s safety is essential both in face-to-face learning and online classes. It is still your responsibility as a parent to ensure a protected learning environment. So, you should protect your child from online danger and technological harm. 

Are you ready to prepare your child from virtual learning? Don’t worry, here are the safety reminders and list of Zoom etiquette tips for your child whilst attending online Zoom meetings.

Safety Tips for Zoom Meeting

#1 Beware of Zoom Bombing or video hacking

Even though there are specialised and customised meeting IDs, strangers can also enter into Zoom meetings. These users are uninvited individuals who gatecrash the conference. 

Sometimes “Zoombombers” uses inappropriate languages, images, and video clips in the meeting. They could also do improper conducts that might be an awful example for kids. 

However, you can still enjoy the Zoom meetings without Zoom bombers. How? Secure your meetings IDs and generate passwords for every forum. Do not broadcast these details. Instead, send this individually to the invited users. 

Other than that, the Zoom host (usually the teachers) should ensure that accepting names in the waiting room area from the list of guests or students. Suspicious names or accounts must not be admitted to enter the meeting.

#2 Prevent sharing personal information

Virtual meetings are broad and extensive. You will never know where news and information will spend out. Worst, it could reach to social media accounts or any harmful activities. 

In this case, you must educate your kid not to share confidential and private information online. You can help them understand the importance of keeping personal information, such as passwords, phone numbers, addresses, or even private accounts. 

Through this, you will prevent them from online hacking, identity theft, or other dangerous circumstances online.

#3 Create random meeting id and disable chat and screen sharing. 

Another important for Zoom privacy and security is generating random meeting IDs. these random IDs will prevent unsafe visitors. Moreover, people who try to enter your meeting will not precisely determine the class’s main conference. So, stalkers cannot track online courses for kids.

Besides that, you may also disable chat and screen sharing during the call. Why? It will prevent participants from accessing group chat during the discussion. It will also stop uninvited visitors from sharing the screen easily whilst the class is on-going. 

#4 Enlighten your kids with the use of online platforms.

You cannot guard your kids 24/7. So, the one thing that you can do is to teach them how to protect themselves by acting on different situations, online or face-to-face. So, you should guide them on the essence of “think before you act.” 

Remind your child of the proper conducts in front of the conference. It will help them avoid becoming the centre of attention in any video conferences. Moreover, you can also instruct them on how to speak and converse during calls. 

As you prepare your child, it will help them practise and master the safety mindset. 

#5 Prepare them to say something when they see something.

During Zoom meetings, train your kid to be vigilant. If they notice something unwanted, remind them that they should voice it out. Through this case, your child will determine the unsafe behaviours and conduct immediately. Furthermore, encouraging your child to speak up is the right way of tracking the things they are encountering throughout the day.

Besides the safety tips for kids during online tutorings, it is also essential for your kids to familiarise themselves with joining a Zoom meeting’s etiquettes. As you begin teaching your child with these protocols, they will be able to practise it until they grow up. So, these children know by heart and mind how to present themselves online.

Etiquettes for Zoom Meeting

#1 Ready and on-time.

Preparedness and punctuality are two crucial things in attending in-person or online meetings. So, your kid should arrange their time and materials for online learning. It will help them to perform lively once they have things in place. Other than that, they will also follow and will not miss anything from start to finish. 

#2 Use a neutral background.

Make sure to use a minimal and light background. Of course, kids would love to try creative filters and backdrops to give extra style on the video camera. But then, you must explain to your kid the importance of using neutral backgrounds.

You can help them arrange their tables near where they can do the video call. If it is not possible, you can create a background for them using cardboards. However, online classes are not actually strict about this, but it is essential to make it look decent and modesty.

Furthermore, setting a proper background will help other learners focus on the teacher, not on the movements on your child’s location.

#3 Choose a quiet and peaceful place for learning.

To make your child focus on online learning, you should ensure the learning environment. Can they hear sounds of pets? Or noise from the kitchen or bathroom? You should also consider if there are voices that can interfere with the instructors. 

So, you must ensure that your child’s learning spot is safe from loud noises and distractions. Furthermore, teach your child how to use the mute and unmute button. It will benefit your child and the whole online class.

Besides that, don’t you want your child to concentrate on solving math problems in a quiet area? 

#4 Provide great lighting

During online learning classes, your child needs to engage with their friends, classmates, and teachers. So, you want them to have a right angle shot and proper lighting. 

One tip to make a great video shot is to place the laptop or camera eye-levelled to your child. It will help to showcase a better framing. Other than that, you should set the camera against the light to prevent silhouette shot. On the contrary, let your child have enough lighting on their face for others to see them correctly. 

#5 Be kind, respectful, and enjoy the virtual class

Teach your child how to be respectful during the class. Zoom meetings have different features such as raising a hand, the camera on/off, mute/unmute, and other elements that can prevent the meeting’s disturbance. Let your child be familiarised on these things for them to know how to utilise the program.

As you prepare them with the Zoom platform, you also help them show good manners and right conduct inside a virtual community. They can bring these preparations to any virtual meetings they will attend. 

What schools can my child learn online?

Several schools are offering virtual classes. One of the most effective is the kids coding school and after school care offered by Skill Samurai. It is a global coding class for kids that offers excellent robotics, programming, and computer classes for kids. Other than that, it can cater to boys and girls from ages 7 to 18.  

Your child can experience the discussed Zoom safety and etiquette as you let them join online classes like Skill Samurai’s STEM-accredited kids coding and robotics learning.