Educational resources 

Do you know that you can make the online world a better place? If you notice something on social media that hurts you or someone else, let it be known.  

• With a few clicks, you can notify the platform that this is inappropriate content.  
• With a few clicks, you can tell the distributor that this is inappropriate content.  
• With a few clicks, you can notify a friend or parent.  
• With a few clicks, you can notify the helpline or the police who can help you.  

No one should be left alone with their worries.

This is a message from the new educational material for schools 'How to protect yourself and others online' which was created by the Estonian SIC together with experts and students. It contains slides with tips and guidelines, an educational video and an online test. This material can be used by teachers and by older students as well, when hosting awareness raising events for younger students. On 25 January 2022, webinars in Estonian and Russian were organised by the Estonian SIC for teachers and pupils to introduce new educational resources and to provide guidance about how to use those when organising awareness raising events in schools.  

For kindergartens, the Estonian SIC created an educational online resource on how to develop digital competences among children. It contains educational games on the topic, worksheets, points for discussion, and more. On 28 January, the Estonian SIC organised the webinar “Digital competence development activities for kindergarten - games, worksheets, discussions” aimed at kindergarten teachers and educators to introduce the new educational material and to invite them to use it in their classrooms when celebrating Safer Internet Day 2022.  

Safer Internet Day celebrations across Estonia

As previously done in recent years, the Estonian SIC encouraged schools and kindergartens to organise thematic events for and with children and young people to celebrate Safer Internet Day. All activities were registered on the Estonian SIC website and located on the Estonian map of Safer Internet Day events.  

Altogether, more than 12,600 children and pupils participated in the Safer Internet Day 2022 events and activities. Many older students autonomously held Smartly on the Web school lessons for the younger students in their schools using the Estonian SIC educational material provided. Schools and kindergartens organised thematic lessons and workshops for students, carried out online and offline quizzes and online tests, watched thematic videos, made posters and other activities.  

The webinar on Safer Internet Day 

On Safer Internet Day itself, the Estonian SIC organised the webinar 'Problematic situations faced by children and young people online. How to help and support' for parents and carers, and teachers and educators. During the webinar, representatives from the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board, the Estonian Helpline 116111, the Estonian Hotline and other online safety bodies introduced their work and provided useful information on how to support and assist children and young people.  You can rewatch the webinar (in Estonian) below. 

The organisation coordinating the Estonian Safer Internet Centre, the Estonian Union for Child Welfare, regularly publishes the web journal Notice a child (Märka last) with the aim of raising awareness of children’s rights in society and the online world. As part of the Safer Internet Day campaign, a special edition of the magazine named Smartly on the Web (Targalt internetis) was published. The main topics covered in the issue were the datafication of childhood, how to protect yourself and others online, the importance of being a good role model for children and young people online, the new educational resources, and more information about the work of the Estonian helplines and hotlines.  

In addition, these articles were disseminated via the Estonian SIC social media channels and some were replicated on national news portals to reach an even wider audience aiming to provide knowledge and tools for a better understanding of the online risks and challenges, and to support children’s positive use of digital technologies. This year's edition of Safer Internet Day caught the attention of the general public. The theme was covered in various Estonian media outlets, including radio and television channels. 

Find out more about Safer Internet Day in Estonia. Alternatively, find more information about the work of the Estonian Safer Internet Centre, including its awareness raising, helpline, hotline and youth participation services – or find similar information for Safer Internet Centres throughout Europe.