Technology is a big part of children's lives, so helping them understand how to use it safely is an important part of our computing curriculum.

We use the Common Sense Education scheme to support our teaching of online safety. Children have a dedicated e-safety lesson once at the start of every half term, covering a range of topics that are appropriate to their age.

Online safety isn't something we want children to learn about once and then forget. At the start of each consecutive computing lesson, we revisit the key messages from our previous online safety lesson. This gives children regular opportunities to remember what they have learned and think about how it applies to their own lives.

As children move through the school, they revisit familiar ideas in more detail and are introduced to new topics. These include:

• Keeping personal information private
• Creating and looking after passwords
• Being kind and respectful online
• Digital footprints
• Cyberbullying
• Scams, phishing and clickbait
• Spotting misinformation and fake news
• Healthy and sensible screen use
• Knowing when to ask for help
• Using artificial intelligence safely and responsibly

The examples we use are different for each age group. A discussion with a five-year-old might be about being kind when using a device, while older children might be thinking about whether something they see online is genuine or what information they are sharing.

We also take opportunities during the year to talk about online safety when it is relevant to what children are doing in school or to things happening in the wider digital world.

Most importantly, we want every child to know that if something online makes them feel worried, uncomfortable or unsafe, they should tell a trusted adult. They should never feel that they will be in trouble for asking for help.

We know that children use technology outside of school too, so we encourage parents and carers to talk to their children about what they are doing online and to take an interest in the games, apps and websites they use. Working together helps us give children the confidence to make sensible choices both in and out of school.