Watching Content
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If you’re worried about the type of content children or young people are seeing online
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If you’re worried about young people mimicking people they’ve seen online
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If you’re worried about children or young people seeing scary or upsetting content
Behaviours from other categories you may wish to explore:
Being obsessed with celebrities, wanting to be a specific celebrity
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful |
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Role playing or parroting adult content (eg sex / violence)
- Having celebrity role models, aspiring to be like a celebrity
- Role playing age-appropriate characters
Related resources:
Accessing illegal content
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmful | Harmful | Harmful | Harmful | Harmful |
Additional context: Any time a young person accesses any illegal content, a response is needed. This may include explaining why the content is illegal. If a young person accessed content out of curiosity it is still important to discuss what they have seen as they may have been upset by it. If a young person persistently accesses illegal content, it may be necessary to access specialist support.
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Accessing ‘deep web’ sites using browsers such as TOR to explore what is there
- Accessing extremist websites
- Watching adult content
- Sexual webcamming
- Selling nudes
- Accessing the dark web to engage with services (such as buying drugs online or downloading extreme pornography)
Related resources:
- Podcast Episode 13 - The Online Safety Bill
- Podcast Episode 27 - Legal But Harmful
- Podcast Episode 37 - Interview with Laura Higson-Bliss about Online Self Harm Content
Watching age-appropriate digital content with friends unsupervised
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful |
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Playing age-appropriate games with supervision
- Playing age restricted games unsupervised
- Playing age restricted games with direct parental supervision
- Filming themselves / friends playing age-appropriate games
- Age-appropriate multiplayer online gaming
Related resources:
Role playing age-appropriate characters
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful |
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Playing age-appropriate games with supervision
- Playing age restricted games unsupervised
- Playing age restricted games with direct parental supervision
- Filming themselves / friends playing age-appropriate games
- Age-appropriate multiplayer online gaming
- Role playing or parroting adult content (eg sex / violence)
Related resources:
Watching online content on a device with parental controls
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful |
Additional context: For the youngest age groups parents should be supervising their device use. A simple way to do this is to switch off auto-play functions as this will ensure the child has to check in with the parent regularly.
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Unsupervised interaction with a device with parental controls for up to 10 minutes
- Playing age-appropriate games with supervision
- Playing age restricted games unsupervised
- Playing age restricted games with direct parental supervision
- Filming themselves / friends playing age-appropriate games
- Age-appropriate multiplayer online gaming
Related resources:
- Project Evolve lesson plan year 2: using devices
- Parents Podcast Episode 3 - Parental Controls
- Podcast Episode 15 - Youtube
Watching films/TV online alone
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Not Harmful | Not Harmful |
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Gaming unsupervised
- Being left with a tablet / device unsupervised for 30 minutes or more
- Unsupervised interaction with a device with parental controls for up to 10 minutes
- Supervised or unsupervised online schoolwork / homework
Related resources:
- Project Evolve lesson plan year 6: staying healthy
- Parents Podcast Episode 3 - Parental Controls
- Podcast Episode 15 - Youtube
Not being able to sleep after seeing scary or upsetting content online
| 0-5 years | 6-8 years | 9-12 years | 13-15 years | 16-18 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harmful | Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful | Potentially Harmful |
Additional context: Children we spoke to in the 9-12 age group were most likely to mention this. They explained that videos were mainly shared as a joke, but they found it affected them when it came to bedtime. It may be useful to talk about this in class and explain the importance of only sending content if people consent to receive it.
Related behaviours from other categories:
- Reaching for a device as soon as they wake up
- Using screens less than an hour before bedtime
- Use of digital devices after bedtime
- Disrupted sleep from device dependence / gaming
- Compulsive use of social media including checking during the night
Related resources: