Helping Canadian Students Be Internet Awesome!
In my family, a common topic of conversation is how young kids are using the Internet, and I know we’re not the only ones who are thinking a lot about this - especially as the school year comes to a close.
Technology can empower kids to explore, create and learn, and the internet can offer an incredible amount of resources at their fingertips. However, as kids today navigate online spaces more than previous generations ever did, they also need to be prepared to make smart decisions.
To help meet this need, I’m excited to share that our Be Internet Awesome Online Safety Roadshow is now rolling out across Canada. We kicked off the journey with a series of interactive school events over the past month in Edmonton and Waterloo Region – two fast-growing innovation hubs at the forefront of Canada’s tech sector.
This included presentations at three Edmonton public schools — Hardisty, Florence Hallock, and Esther Starkman — and three Waterloo Region public schools — Avenue Road, Keatsway, and Forest Hill — to help more than 1,550 elementary and junior high students build the skills they need to be smart and safe online.
With this initiative, we hope to help Canadian students become good digital citizens and raise awareness of online safety skills and best practices, starting at a young age.
Google’s Online Safety Roadshow in Canada
Developed in collaboration with global online safety experts including the Family Online Safety Institute, the Internet Keep Safe Coalition and ConnectSafely, Be Internet Awesome empowers kids with five principles to confidently and safely explore, grow, and play online. The program includes a range of specific resources for children, educators and parents, so everyone has the tools they need to learn and participate in the conversation.
To bring the Be Internet Awesome to life, we created the Online Safety Roadshow, an interactive, assembly-style presentation that encourages kids to interact with the material in a way that will have a lasting impact. While this program has reached students across the U.S. over the last few years, this marks the very first time it’s being delivered to Canadian students and educators.
These 30-minute sessions covered essential digital skills that every young person should know —from recognizing misinformation to building strong passwords and showing empathy in online spaces.
At the heart of the program is the Be Internet Awesome’s five core principles:
- Share with care – Think before you post. Teaching kids to be thoughtful about what they share and with whom helps protect their privacy and avoid tricky situations.
- Don’t fall for fake – Not everything online is what it seems. Students learn how to spot scams, phishing, and false information.
- Secure your stuff – Strong passwords and smart security habits are essential to keeping personal information safe online.
- It’s cool to be kind – The internet is a powerful place to spread positivity. Encouraging kids to treat others with respect online helps create a safer, more inclusive web.
- When in doubt, talk it out – Whether it’s a suspicious message or something that just doesn’t feel right, students are reminded to always turn to a trusted adult.
By helping students understand how to be smart and kind online, we’re supporting schools and families in building digital literacy and responsible tech habits in the classroom and beyond.
A Commitment to Online Safety for Families
Google is committed to creating a safe online environment for children across our platforms. That’s why we’ve built tools and features that help young people and their families navigate the web with confidence:
- Family Link helps parents guide their kids’ digital habits by managing screen time, app downloads, and content settings.
- YouTube Supervised Experiences give parents control over the content available to their children under 13, with customizable settings and screen time tools.
- YouTube Kids is a dedicated app offering family-friendly content, with age-based settings and parental controls.
- SafeSearch helps filter explicit content on Google Search — and it’s automatically enabled for users under 13 and those managed with Family Link.
- Bedtime and Take a Break Reminders on YouTube help kids maintain healthy screen time habits by encouraging regular breaks and downtime.
We’re thrilled to have brought the program to the Edmonton area and Waterloo Region this spring, and we're looking forward to collaborating with partners across the country to expand the initiative and reach as many Canadian students and educators as possible.
Learn more about the Be Internet Awesome program at beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com.
