Club Penguin questions & concerns

[TwingleMum]

My kids have just started to get into Club Penguin this weekend. They have been going online as non-members. They are 9 and 7. My DH is upset because the 9 yr old told him 2 people were "in love" and asked to hook up or similar words. MY DH is really upset that this is a site or game geared towards kids and this cyber dating is being introduced. He says (and I think he has a valid point ) that there are plenty of other places for this sort of thing and it has no place on a kids site. I was thinking of getting them memberships from Santa but DH is really upset and wants to hold off. we always monitor their internet activity thats how Dh found out DS told him. Does this go on alot on Club Penguin??? Is Club Penguin not a safe place for kids??? Should I forget the membership (which I don't think is cheap to begin with)?? Any input is appreciated.

 

[Hillbeans]

My kids have just started to get into Club Penguin this weekend. They have been going online as non-members. They are 9 and 7. My DH is upset because the 9 yr old told him 2 people were "in love" and asked to hook up or similar words. MY DH is really upset that this is a site or game geared towards kids and this cyber dating is being introduced. He says (and I think he has a valid point ) that there are plenty of other places for this sort of thing and it has no place on a kids site. I was thinking of getting them memberships from Santa but DH is really upset and wants to hold off. we always monitor their internet activity thats how Dh found out DS told him. Does this go on alot on Club Penguin??? Is Club Penguin not a safe place for kids??? Should I forget the membership (which I don't think is cheap to begin with)?? Any input is appreciated.

My almost 10 year old boy has been on Club Penguin for at least 2 years and I don't remember him ever saying people said stuff like that to him. He is not at all interested in girls but I know he has some girls as "buddies" on his list. I know there is a talk feature but not sure how he was able to have a conversation since there are no chat rooms on the site.

 

[padams]

FWIW I didn't let my kids do Club Penguin at that age. I didn't think they needed to be online with strangers even if it's a kid friendly site. They managed to live without Club Penguin, and were happy enough with their non-online computer and video games.

Some of their elementary school classmates who loved Club Penguin moved on to World of Warcraft and Halo before they reached junior high.

 

[Acklander]

DS's outgrown it so hasn't been on in a few years but from what I remember there were just canned phrases kids were allowed to click on to say to each other, they couldn't actually have their own conversation with each other. Unless things have changed I couldn't see how kids could "hook up" with each other

 

[Acklander]

FWIW I didn't let my kids do Club Penguin at that age. I didn't think they needed to be online with strangers even if it's a kid friendly site. They managed to live without Club Penguin, and were happy enough with their non-online computer and video games.

Some of their elementary school classmates who loved Club Penguin moved on to World of Warcraft and Halo before they reached junior high.

DS11 has moved on to Roblox

 

[mom2boys77]

My son is 8 and has been on for about 2 years..we've never had anything like that happen at all. My son really just likes the games on there and decking his penguin out with new clothes. The only people he even "talks" to on there are his friends in real life. They mostly follow each other around and play the games.

 

[hambirg]

My DD8 likes to play on Club Penguin. So I just asked her about it and if she's run into anything like you described. She told me that when you sign up there is a choice of only being able to use smilies to talk to people or being able to type in whatever you want. In all honesty I've only seen her playing the games and dressing up her character. So I asked if people talk to her, and she said no. Only one time there was somebody that kept asking her if she wanted to play a mini game and she kept telling them no. I wonder if there is some way for you to report what your kids ran into. It seems like there should be. Also change them to the "only smilies" option.

 

[dislaney]

Mine played and I remember when they first got on only letting them use the smilie option then later letting them be able to talk more freely. I thought it was a good introduction to learning how to play safely online and kind of used it as a teaching tool. Of course they really just wanted to play the games.

 

[mom2boys77]

There is a report button. You click it and then it asks why you are reporting another penguin..it gives you different choices like rude language..stuff like that.

My DD8 likes to play on Club Penguin. So I just asked her about it and if she's run into anything like you described. She told me that when you sign up there is a choice of only being able to use smilies to talk to people or being able to type in whatever you want. In all honesty I've only seen her playing the games and dressing up her character. So I asked if people talk to her, and she said no. Only one time there was somebody that kept asking her if she wanted to play a mini game and she kept telling them no. I wonder if there is some way for you to report what your kids ran into. It seems like there should be. Also change them to the "only smilies" option.

 

[diznygirl]

Club Penguin has two ways of chatting. Some servers let you type what you want, but there are filters. You can get immediately banned for typing something inappropriate. The "hooking up" talk happens, but mainly is ignored.

There are other servers that only let you choose phrases. Parents can choose the "all-time ultimate safe chat" feature when they sign up.

There are also moderator penguins walking around that can report other penguins for what they are saying.

My kids play with their friends on Club Penguin by calling them, putting the phone on speaker, and then logging in. Yeah, they find it tons easier than typing what they want to say.

My son has been playing for about three years now - there have been no problems.

 

[ilovejack02]

You can keep them in safe chat mode at all times, only can use smiles or canned phrases. Not a problem.

DS8 has been on it since 6, the girls do pull stuff like throwing up the heart sign and Ive seen him tell somebody "hi sweetie" . But not had a big issue with anything specific. I haven't noticed talk of hooking up and I asked him if he has , he says no and then asked what it means. lol, just that the little girls like you . I did tell him, lets hold off calling the girls sweetie for a several years.

Im not that concerned about that , kids at school and church bat their eyes at each other and giggle about liking each other , no different than on the computer. They don't have a private chat option . I just keep an eye on him when he is on , and look over his shoulder to check stuff out . I think it is a pretty safe site, they will ban you quickly for infractions.

 

[Mom21]

I think they are well moderated. When my dd was 11 she asked someone "where did you get the shirt?" meaning she wanted to buy the shirt their penguin was wearing. Except she typed "where you get da shirt?" without the "r" in "shirt". She got banned for 30 days. She cried and asked me to write them and tell them she wasn't a bad girl. ROFLOL. I just laughed and told her take her 30 day banishment and learn to type next time.

 

[Avalon_toon]

My DS9 and DS6 have played Club Penguin for a couple of years - we signed them up for the "safe chat" only option, and have never had anything like that happen. I think the site is exceptionally safe for kids when you choose "safe chat."

 

[Ceila]

This is a great example of why parents need to review sites before letting their kids play on them. I always check out sites myself before letting the kids on, so I can review the chat options, make sure they can't download stuff I don't want on the computer, etc. Mine have both been on Club Penguin, Webkinz, and a couple of others and wherever there is a chat option I have it set to safe chat.

 

[Kimberle]

My 11 yo has been playing since the beginning of the site. It's very safe for kids. Like the others have said, you can control their "chat". They are also very responsive to emails. If you have any questions, just email them.

 

[famofsix]

I think they are well moderated. When my dd was 11 she asked someone "where did you get the shirt?" meaning she wanted to buy the shirt their penguin was wearing. Except she typed "where you get da shirt?" without the "r" in "shirt". She got banned for 30 days. She cried and asked me to write them and tell them she wasn't a bad girl. ROFLOL. I just laughed and told her take her 30 day banishment and learn to type next time.

this happened to one of my kids too....

My 11 yo has been playing since the beginning of the site. It's very safe for kids. Like the others have said, you can control their "chat". They are also very responsive to emails. If you have any questions, just email them.

I did email them and set it straight but he was banned 7 days that time LOL

we have used the report button but mostly we have been happy with the site...we don't have a membership but sometimes buy items like stuffed puffles that come with codes that allow the penguin to have extra perks.

We also had an issue with Hacking because my child's user name was very similiar with his password but we changed passwords and he was OK. For example and I am totally making this up LOL... if he was santapenguin he would use the password "Christmas" so it is a good way to teach them to be safe online

 

[TwingleMum]

Thanks everyone. I'll check into the safe chat mode. My kids are very aware of our rules that is why DS told Dh about the hooking up remark. The computer is in the kitchen/great room where we are 90% of the time so the kids are always monitored. We also didn't know about the reporting feature which we will keep in mind. They were able to type in their own words because younger DS would ask how to spell different words.