Online friends and strangers
About this resource
This presentation follows the story of a young student called Abigail who makes a friend online and starts to question their unusual behaviour. Students are encouraged to examine and discuss what to do when an online friendship becomes unsafe or worrying.
Target audience
Level
Middle primary, Upper primary
Keywords
Unwanted contact, Respectful online relationships, Online friends
Type of resource
Slide deck, lesson plan
Timeframe
40 minutes
Australian curriculum
Key learning areas
Health and Physical Education, Digital Technologies
General capabilities
Personal and Social General Capabilities
Key outcomes
By the end of the learning, students will be able to:
- identify and establish personal online safety boundaries
- develop skills to identify problematic situations which may impact their online safety
- consider appropriate help-seeking and reporting strategies for dealing with unsafe situations online.
Lessons can also be tailored to suit different student needs.
Using this resource
Recommended teaching approach
- Show the presentation to the class and work through the questions and answers together.
- Reinforce key messages and generate deeper discussion.
- Encourage the students to complete the personal reflection activity.
Downloads
Social media changes are coming
From 10 December 2025, certain social media platforms won’t be allowed to let Australians under 16 create or keep an account. Under-16s will still be able to see publicly available social media content that doesn’t require logging into an account.
What you need to know:
- Educators need to be aware that age restrictions may apply to platforms they currently use for educational purposes and to communicate with their school community.
- The age restrictions are likely to apply to Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube, as well as other platforms. See the latest list.
- Find out more about the exclusions for educational tools such as learning management systems.
- Schools may need to explore alternative methods for communicating with parents and students.
- For further guidance, including if educators will be able to use their own accounts to share age-appropriate education materials, please refer to school or education sector policies and procedures.
Find out more at eSafety’s social media age restrictions hub.