Early on, each kid needs to have an email and it's important for parents to consider when and how to let them have one. Gmail is pretty popular and can be set up so it's a safe kids email system. And I quote:
This is how I to set up a free email account so it's 100% safe. As a parent, you can preview all of your child's mail. Or, you can designate which users can send emails to her without you previewing them. Al the others go to you first. This way, you can throw away all the strange email about viagra etc
1. Sign up for a gmail account. Go to: www.gmail.com
2. Click on settings --> filters --> create new filter
Then, fill in these blanks:
to: your childs email address
Doesn't have: list peoples email addresses that you allow them to get email from UNMONITORED (here I have my dd's grandparents, myself, and a couple of kids that she is best friends with.) put OR between them so it looks like this : grandma@grandma.com OR mommy@mommy.com ORbstfriend@bestfriend.com OR bestfriend2@bestfriend.com
3. Go to "next step":
check all these:
Skip the Inbox (Archive it)
Forward it to: youremail@youremail.com
Delete it
This will send YOU all the email that is not from one of the people that you approve. All email from other senders will immediately be forwarded to you and deleted. You can then forward it or delete. You can also go in and add new friends when you think it's appropriate. Their spam folder will always remain empty. If you get something that you want them to see you can forward it to them from you instead if it showing from the original sender. You can always add more approved people later.
Two more points.
If your child would like to see pictures of who they are sending email to:
First, add people to your child's contact list and in the quick Contacts list you can run your mouse over the name and it gives an option to "change picture" I have pictures of her friends in there so she is sure she is emailing the right person.
Setting up an igoogle homepage for your child
This is great. I put her gmail account, her favorite sites (Time4Learning.com, SpellingCity.com, PBSkids.org, LearningGamesForKids.com) on it as well as a quote of the day, this day in history, a dictionary, and her gmail account.
1. Sign up for a gmail account. Go to: www.gmail.com
2. Click on settings --> filters --> create new filter
Then, fill in these blanks:
to: your childs email address
Doesn't have: list peoples email addresses that you allow them to get email from UNMONITORED (here I have my dd's grandparents, myself, and a couple of kids that she is best friends with.) put OR between them so it looks like this : grandma@grandma.com OR mommy@mommy.com ORbstfriend@bestfriend.com OR bestfriend2@bestfriend.com
3. Go to "next step":
check all these:
Skip the Inbox (Archive it)
Forward it to: youremail@youremail.com
Delete it
This will send YOU all the email that is not from one of the people that you approve. All email from other senders will immediately be forwarded to you and deleted. You can then forward it or delete. You can also go in and add new friends when you think it's appropriate. Their spam folder will always remain empty. If you get something that you want them to see you can forward it to them from you instead if it showing from the original sender. You can always add more approved people later.
Two more points.
If your child would like to see pictures of who they are sending email to:
First, add people to your child's contact list and in the quick Contacts list you can run your mouse over the name and it gives an option to "change picture" I have pictures of her friends in there so she is sure she is emailing the right person.
Setting up an igoogle homepage for your child
This is great. I put her gmail account, her favorite sites (Time4Learning.com, SpellingCity.com, PBSkids.org, LearningGamesForKids.com) on it as well as a quote of the day, this day in history, a dictionary, and her gmail account.
