Richard Carroll Elementary urges families to talk cyber safety

Richard Carroll Elementary used a May 19 post titled “Cyber Safety - Children Online” to push Bamberg County families to talk now about what children do on phones, tablets, games, messaging apps and social media as summer free time approaches.

The timing was hard to miss. The school calendar on the RCES news page showed Memorial Day holidays beginning May 22 and the last day of school set for May 28, a stretch when many children spend more hours online with less day-to-day oversight from teachers, coaches and school staff. In that shift from classroom routines to open-ended screen time, the school’s message pointed parents toward the risks that most often grow when supervision drops: cyberbullying, scams, suspicious messages, grooming behavior and content that is not age appropriate.

The Federal Trade Commission says the most effective step is not just limiting access, but building habits. Parents are urged to talk with children about family rules and expectations, then use parental controls to reinforce those habits and create safer online spaces. The agency also says families should protect kids’ devices, keep software updated, use strong privacy settings and teach children not to share personal information with people they do not know.

That advice fits the summer moment in Bamberg County, where many children will move between home, camps, relatives’ houses and friends’ devices with less structured time than during the school year. It also reflects a broader policy shift: in April 2025, the FTC finalized amendments to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule to update the rule for changes in technology and online practices.

Families looking for practical help do not have to start from scratch. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s NetSmartz program offers free, multimedia internet-safety presentations for parents and communities, along with materials for teens, tweens and younger children. NetSmartz includes age-appropriate videos, activities and tip sheets meant to help children make safer choices both online and off.

For Bamberg families, Richard Carroll Elementary’s reminder was a simple one with immediate stakes: the safer summer conversations happen before a child gets an odd message, a risky friend request or a link that should never be opened.