Parent & Child Resources: Elementary, Middle, & High School Safety, Relationships & Worth
- Worthwhile
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 hours ago
Resources for Growing Up Safe, Supported & Confident
Conversations about safety, relationships and self-worth don't happen just once. As children grow, the questions they face change and so do the tools they need.
We've curated these trusted resources to help young people and the adults who care for them navigate everything from healthy relationships and personal boundaries to online safety, social media and knowing when to ask for help.
You don't have to have every answer. Sometimes, knowing where to start is enough.
Elementary School
Best for: Grades K–5
Topics: Online safety, trusted adults, digital citizenship, recognizing unsafe situations
Created by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), NetSmartz offers free, age-appropriate videos, activities, presentations and discussion guides to help children learn how to navigate the internet safely. Resources include materials specifically designed for K–2 and grades 3–5.
Best for: Elementary Students & Families
Topics: Digital citizenship, online behavior, privacy, technology
Common Sense Media offers age-appropriate digital citizenship resources designed to help children develop healthy, responsible relationships with technology and understand how their choices affect themselves and others. Its resources span grades K–12.
Best for: Grades K–3
Topics: Online safety, trusted adults, recognizing inappropriate behavior
Into the Cloud uses videos and activities to introduce younger children to online safety concepts, including recognizing online dangers, identifying trusted adults and knowing what to do when someone behaves inappropriately online.
Middle School
Best for: Ages 10–15
Topics: Sextortion, online exploitation, boundaries, healthy relationships, red flags
This Childhelp resource was created specifically for young people ages 10–15. It addresses personal boundaries, healthy relationships, recognizing red flags and unsafe behaviors, online safety, exploitation prevention and knowing how to get help.
Best for: Middle School Students
Topics: Social media, online relationships, cyberbullying, sexting, privacy
NCMEC's NetSmartz provides middle-school-specific presentations, videos and tip sheets covering the digital situations tweens and young teens are increasingly likely to encounter.
Best for: Middle School & Older Teens
Topics: Boundaries, respect, communication, healthy and unhealthy relationships
love is respect provides resources to help young people understand healthy relationships, recognize unhealthy behaviors and learn about boundaries and relationship rights. It also offers resources specifically for parents of young people.
High School
Best for: Teens
Topics: Healthy relationships, boundaries, dating abuse, digital abuse
A strong resource for teens navigating dating and relationships. love is respect provides information and support around communication, respect, boundaries and recognizing behaviors that aren't healthy or safe. Free guides and relationship resources are also available.
Best for: High School Students
Topics: Sextortion, social media, online exploitation, digital safety
NetSmartz's high-school resources address more advanced digital safety issues, including sextortion, social media and online exploitation. NCMEC also provides specific resources for teens around sexting and what to do if something goes wrong.
Best for: High School Students
Topics: Social media, AI, digital well-being, media literacy, online safety
Common Sense Media's teen resources cover everything from social media and digital well-being to AI, online safety and media literacy. These resources can help teens think critically about the digital environments they spend time in.
For Parents & Caregivers
👨👩👧 American Academy of Pediatrics: HealthyChildren.org
Best for: Parents of Children & Teens
Topics: Healthy relationships, technology, social media, communication, digital habits
HealthyChildren.org, from the American Academy of Pediatrics, offers evidence-informed guidance for parents on children's health and development. Its media resources cover family media plans, social media, digital habits, parent modeling and ways to keep conversations about technology open and ongoing.
Best for: Parents & Caregivers
Topics: Social media, smartphones, sextortion, gaming, AI, cyberbullying
NCMEC's NetSmartz parent resources include guides on smartphone safety, social media, sextortion, gaming, AI and other online risks. It also offers resources to help adults become trusted adults and have safety conversations with children.
Best for: Parents & Caregivers
Topics: Social media, family communication, screen time, digital safety
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends making conversations about technology an ongoing part of family life, not a one-time talk. Its guidance encourages parents to ask open-ended questions, understand their children's online experiences, model healthy technology habits and create family expectations around digital safety.
Best for: Parents, caregivers, educators and anyone supporting a young person
Topics: Social media, family communication, screen time, digital safety
If you're looking for more than a single topic, Childhelp's Resource Library brings together prevention, child safety, healthy relationships and parent/caregiver resources in one place. It also provides information about getting help and reporting suspected abuse.
Every young person deserves to feel safe, supported and valued. These resources can help children, teens, parents and caregivers build skills around personal safety, healthy relationships, online safety, boundaries and asking for help.
This article is intended for educational purposes and is not a substitute for individualized medical or mental health advice. If you have concerns about your child's mental or emotional health, talk with your child's pediatrician or another qualified professional.
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