 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Wikihow
Common Sense Media says
Sometimes-iffy wiki teaches collaboration -- and skepticism.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this wiki is easier for kids to contribute to than Wikipedia or eHow, but can be just as error-prone. It also contains some mildly objectionable material and sexually explicit Google ads. However, the ads can be turned off and kids can find lots of fun projects to undertake, even writing their own how-tos. Parents might want to supervise, though.
Is it any good?
Despite iffy content here and there, Wikihow is actually a pretty good choice for kids interested in collaborative writing because it's so accessible and relatively safe. Kids can post articles anonymously and do not even have to submit an email address to participate. There's valuable experience to be gained here in learning how to research, write and edit coherently. There are also lots of great how-tos here for kids, too, like making a yo-yo. The most objectionable aspect of the site are the adult-oriented Google ads that can pop up from time to time.These are easy to turn off, though.
Online interaction: The site’s goal of producing high-quality how-to articles encourages contributors to support and treat one another respectfully as they trade edits. Peaceful collaboration seems to be the case for the most part, but kid contributors might have to deal with the occasional dustup including rough or angry language.
Explore, discuss, enjoy
Families can talk about how wikis are by their nature not completely reliable sources of
information. How can kids know when information is trustworthy and when
it is wrong? Where can they doublecheck their research? (See our tips for using Wikipedia.)Families can also talk about respecting others' opinions even if we do not always agree.
Discuss why some entries that do not promote a healthy lifestyle or
attitude are allowed to stay on Wikihow. How can kids respect free speech
while using their own common sense?
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- Teens & kids
Parent of 2, 4, 4, 6, and 7 year old
January 9, 2010
AGE
15 or 16+ but definetely not 13!
I use this website often, but my children, I have decided, are not allowed on until the age of 15 if they decide to join and if of course, the site is still active. When contributing, mant users get upset when they are corrected and start using innapropriate language. However, I will print out articles for my kids that are age appropriate and well cleaned up. This website should be for ages 15 or 16+ because this stuff could be innapropriate for 13 year olds.
What other families should know:
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Kid, 12 years old
June 28, 2010
AGE
There is a lot of good and a little bad. Very educational. Kids can learn a lot. GREAT WEBSITE.
What other families should know:
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Kid, 11 years old
August 8, 2010
AGE
Brilliant Idea =]
Great Site, Really Good. It Tells You Everything You Need (Or May Need) To Know How To Do. Like If You've Fallen Out With A Friend, Just Search "How To Make Up With A Friend". It Tells You How To Keep Diaries Secret, How To Do CPR, Things That Might One Day Be VERY Useful To You. Even Extreme Situations Are All Covered. I Signed Up And I've Never Had Any Issues With The Site. I Love Contributing To Articles, It's Brilliant Fun If You Like Giving Advice.
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Teen, 16 years old
January 2, 2012
AGE
I write articles for wikihow!
I write wikihow articles and I can tell you, all the writers I came across are all friendly and we all try are best to make the website good.
What other families should know:
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Kid, 10 years old
November 4, 2012
AGE
Great!
Nice How To's
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Educator and Parent
November 2, 2012
AGE
Good place to learn writing skills.
wikiHow is a How To site which encourages collaborative writing and editing with the goal of creating accurate instructions. The community is relatively friendly, the users tend to help each other, and the interface is fairly easy to use.
Note that the GOAL is creating accurate instructions. If a user sees a problem with a set of instructions, they are encouraged to fix the problem. Thus, the information is continuously evolving, usually for the better.
The wikiHow community has chosen to ban certain types of articles, including Dangerous, Hate or Racist, Illegal, Sexually Explicit and Political. While the above categories do not weed out all objectionable content, they do tend to make the site a lot more family friendly than most.
Profanity is generally limited forums rather than articles, and tends toward descriptive rather than pejorative use. Kids over 13 should be fine here. Younger children should be more closely supervised.
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Adult
November 1, 2012
AGE
The Truth About wikiHow
It's a great place to find anything. Be warned though, some users will cuss in the forums.
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Teen, 17 years old
November 1, 2012
AGE
wikiHow as seen by Genius_knight
wikiHow is a very unique site where anyone can edit while having an option whether they want to create an account or not. The articles on wikiHow are always changing as a result the quality keeps on increasing as daily new and awesome stuff is added to the article.New users get so glued to the site that they go on a writing spree but those who read the wiki tour succeed tremendously while those who neglect suffer as their article gets compromised. The amazing thing about wikiHow is that even a badly written article gets so much improved by the users that the author feels surprised as whether they are reading their own article or some professional article so one need not worry about quality and vandalism as both are taken care by wikiHowians. People who join the site get rid of many sufferings and become en-lighted by the knowledge. wikiHow is a platform to learn, write and the best to share with the whole world.
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| Genre: | Creating |
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