Where the Young Kids Are Online

If you've got elementary school-age kids in your house who are begging to go on the computer often lately, chances are they are headed to one of two places: Webkinz or Club Penguin.

Both sites have captured the imaginations and created buzz among kids too young to start seriously social networking. Odds are strong that they will continue to be the web destinations of choice this school year—after homework is completed, of course. Both sites offer a controlled way to interact with other young members with pre-written phrases and filtered original phrases while they play lots of games to earn cash to buy things for their online stuffed animal counterparts (Webkinz) or penguins (Club Penguin). If your kids and you are new to these sites, here's what you should know.

• Webkinz and Club Penguin have taken off in popularity among the young set. The number of U.S. visitors to Webkinz grew 13 times over the past year, while Club Penguin's visits tripled, according to comScore Media Metrix.

• For Webkinz, you need to buy a stuffed animal, mini or large (about $10 to $15 each), which come with an online code to open up a Webkinz world and are getting harder to find as they grow in popularity. For Club Penguin, you just need to sign up; it's free but you can buy a monthly membership for $5 a month that allows kids to do more things, such as earn more currency to buy more things to decorate their igloos. A big consumerism theme permeates these and other kids' sites.

• Club Penguin provides a safe way for kids to dip their toes into social networking by creating buddy lists and chatting with other members. You can opt for an "ultimate safe" mode to ensure that messages sent and received are only nice, short pre-written phrases. In standard mode, no messages with foul language, numbers (which could denote the exchanging of phone numbers), or even words like "mom" make it from a sender to a receiver. ("Is your mom home?" is the kind of question they're trying to cut off with that move.)

• The rise of social gaming sites for kids at younger ages means parents need to start talking to their kids about safe online communication at ages earlier than we may think we have to. When I broached the topic with my then 9-year-old, right away she showed me while on Club Penguin that you can report a member if they say something not nice or inappropriate.

• The big picture: These are fun sites that do offer a safe place to interact with other kids while playing games and moving furniture around to create creative spaces on the web. I don't mind that my daughter love spending time on Webkinz, as long as she balances it with lots of real-life interactive play.

Feel free to add your comments on what else is important to know about these two popular sites, and other sites your young kids are spending time when they are home from school.

LINK: Sites introduce preteens to networking [AP]

Related: Webkinz Hitting Craze Status
Club Penguin: A Safe Place for Kids to Social Waddle