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Is it that news media instinctively know that tweens need social-networking options of their own? That there’s a reason MySpace and other social-networking sites target users 14+? I’m seeing more and more reports around the country about a growing number of options for elementary- and middle-school-age children. For example, the Baltimore Sun zoomed in on Webkinz, where kids can create a virtual … [Read more...] about Growing interest in tween sites

Some good, some not so good, but kids are learning things from virtual worlds targeting them, comments Organic's Chad Stoller in ClickZ.com. Pointing to Disney’s Toon Town, Club Penguin, WebKinz, Nicktropolis, and There.com, he says they learn how to handle (virtual) money, including saving vs. spending (“kids are now discussing the eBay prices of a [Webkinz] Dalmation in classrooms”); “what it … [Read more...] about Kids’ virtual-world takeaways

Maybe what’s happening in the blogosphere will spill over onto the social Web at large. If it just gets social networkers thinking and agitating for civility and integrity in the social sphere as well as in blogging, it’s a good thing. Just look at the sheer size of the blogosphere: At last count, there were 70 million blogs, “with more than 1.4 million entries being added daily, according to … [Read more...] about Call for better Net manners

A Pennsylvania principal has sued four former students for defaming him in three MySpace profiles. “Each of the disputed sites, which went online during the course of one week in December 2005, was removed within days of its appearance after school officials contacted MySpace.com, CNET reports. In the complaint he filed, the administrator said they were imposter profiles that “falsely portrayed … [Read more...] about Principal sues over student profiles

Having a cellphone is something of a fashion statement or status symbol for US 8-to-12-year-olds. For many of their parents, it's something of a security blanket, the New York Times reports, in a thoughtful trend piece. Of course, what's fashionable changes pretty fast in that age group, since the children, the tech, and the coolness factor are all changing at once. Here are some numbers: Nearly a … [Read more...] about Kid phone fashionistas