Teaching Internet Safety on Messenger Kids

• We’re launching Pledge Planets on Messenger Kids: an activity to help kids learn how to use the internet safely and practice making healthy decisions online.
• We developed the Messenger Kids Pledge and the Pledge Planets activities in close partnership with experts in online safety, child development and children’s media.

Today we’re launching Pledge Planets on Messenger Kids. This interactive in-app activity helps kids learn and practice how to make healthy decisions online, stay safe and build resilience. Kids can explore different planets based on the tenets of the Messenger Kids Pledge: Be Kind, Be Respectful, Be Safe and Have Fun.

In each episode, kids help characters navigate various social situations and make decisions that lead to positive outcomes. By completing the games, kids will see that their respectful, safe and fun actions have a big impact on those around them.

Episode One: “Be Kind”

The first episode, “Be Kind,” is rolling out today to all countries where Messenger Kids is available, with new episodes that focus on the other pledges coming soon. In this episode, players are introduced to the owner of a sandwich shop. Through two games, kids will learn and practice how to act with kindness:

• Rough Reviews: Players must help the owner read through the reviews and match the correct online response to each one. This game teaches kids to recognize kind and unkind behavior and become familiar with tools like blocking and reporting.
• Order Up: Players build a sandwich order by selecting the emojis that best respond to the customer’s mood. This game teaches kids how to read people’s emotions online.

To kick off the Pledge Planets adventure, tap the Explore tab in Messenger Kids and select Pledge Planets.

Working with Meta’s Youth Advisors

We developed the Messenger Kids Pledge and the Pledge Planets activities in close partnership with Meta’s Youth Advisors. This group of experts in the fields of online safety, child development and children’s media help us develop new products, features and policies for young people by sharing their expertise, research and guidance. We meet regularly with the group, which includes the Family Online Safety Institute, Digital Wellness Lab, MediaSmarts, Project Rockit and the Cyberbullying Research Center.

Learn more about Pledge Planets and Messenger Kids.

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