Ages 8+ · Digital Life · Searching and ads
Reading a web address
🏠the house🚪a room🔒padlock🙋ask
The real name comes before the first slash.The big ideaThe real name comes before the first slash. A padlock is not proof. Ask.
How it works
A web address has parts: a padlock, the name, the ending, the first slash, then the page.
The name before the first slash is the house. What comes after is a room.
A padlock keeps the line private, but it does not prove a site is honest.
If an address looks odd, do not tap or type. Ask a grown-up.
Example 1: A room is not the house
- The address was free books now dot com slash sunny hill school.
- The name before the first slash is free books now dot com.
- Sunny hill school after the slash is only a room, and anyone can name a room anything.
Example 2: Same site or different
- The real school is sunny hill school dot org.
- Reading dot sunny hill school dot org is a room in the same house.
- Sunny hill school dash prizes dot org has an extra word, so it is a different site. A different ending, like dot com, can be a different site.
Same house, or a different one?Example 3: Read from the end
- Look at sunny hill school dot org dot join now dot com.
- Usually the last two chunks before the first slash name the owner.
- The owner is join now dot com, not the school.
Example 4: A padlock is not proof
- A sealed envelope cannot be read on the way.
- The seal does not say who wrote the letter.
- A padlock is good to see, but a trickster can have one too.
Words to know
- web address
- The text that says where a page is.
- padlock
- A sign the line is private, not proof the site is honest.
- bookmark
- A saved address that opens the right page with one tap.
Watch out
- Do not trust a school's name after the slash. Anyone can type it there.
- Do not trust a link because of the padlock.
- Do not tap an odd link to see what happens, or type your name, home or password to check it.
- You are never in trouble for asking, or for tapping by mistake.
Try it
- In free books now dot com slash sunny hill school, which part names the site?
- Does a padlock prove a site is honest?
- Is sunny hill school dash prizes dot org the same site as sunny hill school dot org?
- A link looks odd. What do you do first?
Answers: 1. free books now dot com · 2. No · 3. No, an extra word makes a different site · 4. Stop and do not tap
Try at homeAsk a grown-up to show you the address of a site your family uses, find the name before the first slash, and save a bookmark together.
For grown-upsPick a site your family uses, find the name before the first slash together and save a bookmark, so one tap opens the right page.