FAQ

What is Shazoot?

Shazoot is the fun family network where parents work together with their young children to introduce responsible social networking lessons they will take with them for the rest of their lives. Create profiles and add close friends and family as “fans” to share achievements with those who care about them—long before they ask about Facebook.

How does your site work?

Only parents can register, and once registered, only the parents can create profiles for their children. Once these profiles are created for your children, they are undetectable by anyone not approved or invited by you. For those who are approved/invited by you, they can access your child’s profile page and share stories and achievements with them. Through this guided use, your children will learn the basics of using a social network in a safe, protected environment.

Are you connected with Facebook?

We are in no way connected with Facebook. We will never ask you or your child to connect with Facebook and none of your information or your child’s information will ever appear on Facebook. Our goal is to prepare your child for social-networking sites like Facebook once they are old enough to use them. We wouldn’t ask you to involve Facebook if that is the place we are trying to get your underage children to avoid.

Why would I expose my young kids to a social network?

It's a fact of life that social media is becoming more prominent in the world today, especially for the younger generations, and will be a major part of children’s lives eventually. The time for parents to start teaching appropriate social networking skills is at an early age; long before their children are ready to navigate sites like Facebook on their own. Parents need to work with them to help define what constitutes a valid "friend”, what kind of information is acceptable to post, and what sorts of photos and videos are appropriate. Parents also need to teach them time management and how best to integrate social media into their lives--when it makes sense and doesn't; how to make it value-added instead of overwhelming—these are skills they will take with them for the rest of their lives. Lead them by example, build their self esteem, and connect them with the family and close friends that care about them most.

As parents we teach our children how to interact socially, how to make friends, how to stay away from strangers, the right way to answer the telephone, and even how to navigate the web....It's now time to teach them responsible social networking!

What age children are you geared towards?

We are geared towards 6-12 year olds but parents are free to add all their children of any age. At 13, children are legally allowed to sign up for sites like Facebook, and our goal is for you to work with them prior to that point so they are best prepared to do so.

What if I have more than one child?

The more the merrier! You can add as many kids as you have to your family page.

What is a fan?

A fan is our equivalent of a close friend or family member, like a grandparent, aunt, or coach that can visit you child’s profile only after you approve them. Once approved, fans can leave messages on your child’s profile and see all of their updates, news, photos, and videos, helping them stay connected.

How can I control my kid’s "fans"?

Parents are the only ones who can determine who their kid’s fans are. Only parents are allowed to invite and accept invitations. Your kids will never be allowed invite strangers to become fans and no one can access profile pages without being invited. Parents are always in complete control.

Can kids sign up themselves?

Children are never allowed to sign up for an account themselves. Only parents can create an account and build profiles for each of their kids. The parent is always in charge and it is designed as an activity for parents and kids to undertake together.

How do I make someone a “Fan” and make sure only the "invited" people sign on to our family profiles?

We take care of all of that on our end. Unless you have invited someone or have approved their request to join your family network, your family page will be completely inaccessible and blocked. Profile pages are completely blocked to search engines like Google. The only people who will ever see your child’s profile page are the ones you choose and approve.

How do you maintain safety?

Our #1 priority is safety! Again, only people that parents approve or invite will ever see your child’s profile. Kids are never allowed to sign up themselves. Parents are in total control of what goes on. Shazoot is designed for parents to use together with their children as a safe, family activity.

How are you different from Togetherville?

The biggest difference between Shazoot and Togetherville is that there is absolutely no interaction with Facebook on Shazoot. We don’t want to begin the process of teaching children how to interact on a social network by getting Facebook involved. We believe this just adds to the allure of Facebook for children too young to understand it. Our site is completely self-contained.

Another difference between Shazoot and Togetherville is that Shazoot is designed as a family activity. Usage of our site should be done with parent and child together. We do not advocate leaving a young child on the internet alone. We’re the virtual equivalent of visiting with family and friends.

Also, with Shazoot, there is no automatic linking between kids and no kid-to-kid “friending” is allowed. Everything is in the hands of the parents. It’s the BEST way to protect your children from strangers and teach them responsible tools they’ll use for the rest of their lives.

What we want families to take away from each session on Shazoot is the value of appropriate social networking. We feel game playing interferes with this experience. Shazoot isn’t about who can get the highest score on a game, it should be about the interaction between approved friends and the proper way to conduct yourself online.