Keeping up with your child’s online activity can be challenging as they jump from app to app. If you’re a parent navigating your child’s online life, you’ve probably asked yourself some version of these three questions: what can my kid see, who can they communicate with, and how do I keep them safe?
Roblox has been working to address these questions directly. The platform recently launched two new age-based accounts, called Roblox Kids and Roblox Select, that have default safety settings based on age, rather than applying the same restrictions across the board.
Roblox Kids is built specifically for children ages five through eight. Chat is turned off by default and access is limited to games rated as Mild or Minimal. Users ages nine to 15 are automatically placed into Roblox Select, which opens up a wider range of games rated up to Moderate, all of which still go through Roblox’s safety and content review process while keeping parents in the driver’s seat.
Beyond account type, through parental controls, parents can set monthly spending limits, block specific users or games, manage their child’s Friends list and how they chat, and grant access to games outside their child’s default tier when they decide it’s appropriate.
“Parents deserve the tools and control that help them keep their kids safe while still having fun online,” said Eliza Jacobs, Vice President of Safety Product Policy at Roblox. On top of new age-based accounts and parental controls, Roblox also monitors communication across the platform, applies extra protections to younger accounts, and doesn’t allow images or videos in chat.
Parents Play a Critical Role
Technology can be an asset for our children’s learning and development, but it works best when parents stay engaged. That doesn’t mean monitoring every move. It can be as simple as asking your child to show you what game they’re building or playing, or share more about who they play with and talk to online. Basically, the same questions you’d ask about their offline experiences, including what to watch out for. Those conversations build trust and make it easier for children to speak up if something online makes them uncomfortable.
Get in the Game Together
To facilitate these conversations, it’s helpful to understand what your child does on Roblox. Now, there’s no better substitute than jumping in alongside them. This is the idea behind Family Zone, a newly introduced Roblox game built for parents and kids to play together.
Inside, parents find tutorials that walk them through the platform, Roblox’s parental controls and how to set them up. Eventually they’ll find well-being and safety modules built with global safety experts on topics like scams, bullying, and recognizing predatory behavior. Once parents explore Roblox through Family Zone, they will find a wide selection of family-friendly games for parents and kids to play together. This includes games in our Learning Hub – a collection of educational games where families can immerse themselves in a variety of real-world topics and skills development.
The best part about Family Zone is that it flips the typical learning dynamic – kids guide their parents around, showing them how to move and explore. Research supports the benefits of intergenerational co-play, finding that playing video games together cultivates family bonding and creates opportunities for learning and well-being, with kids benefiting from the rare chance to teach their parents something for a change. Other researchers have highlighted how co-play between parents and kids can promote healthy digital habits and digital literacy.
So the next time your kid asks to play Roblox, ask if you can play with them. Play a few games together and allow yourself to learn something new, opening up an ongoing conversation about staying safe online.
This is a Sponsored Post from Roblox.
