Savvy young Web surfers know there’s more to the Internet than bizarre chat rooms and dark stuff that their parents don’t want them finding. Throughout the World Wide Web, sites designed for the adolescent crowd offer information and entertainment worthy of a PG rating.
Nevertheless, realizing that today’s kids are as interested in hints of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll as their parents were at that age, we found some healthy sites that should appeal to their hormones:
– Delightful ’60s graphics decorate this cool site, called–for no particular reason–The Vertigo Lounge (www.clearasil.
com). Kids can click on “Head Spins” to pick up summer job-hunting tips and to see sample SAT and ACT questions; “World in Focus,” for updates on fashion, hairstyles and makeup (they also have a chance to become an on-line tour guide about teen life); and “Basement,” with news, sports and entertainment. They also can click to get information about skin care, of course.
– Teens who want to check out current flicks for date planning can look at www.sony.com; just click on “Movies” in Sony’s site to find up-to-date choices. For instance, “Men in Black” is heavily promoted, as is “My Best Friend’s Wedding.”
– There’s nothing more wholesome than milk, but the national milk producers make www.whymilk.com most attractive to young people. “Famous Faces” shows various hot celebs–such as Spike Lee, Tyra Banks, Matthew Fox and Yasmine Bleeth–who appear in print ads with the trademark milk mustache, and “Celebrity Screensavers” allows surfers to download a face for free.
– Yahooligans of the world, unite. An entire search engine (www.yahooligans.com) from the folks at Yahoo! is just for kids. “Comics” offers Calvin and Hobbes, Uppercrust and lots more; “Computers” offers games, software and such; “TV” provides links to cartoons, game shows and other networks; and “Science” has all sorts of dinosaur, space and nature links. An interesting place to go in “Entertainment” is “Drama,” where “Showtime at the Apollo” previews the legendary theater’s upcoming shows by Hootie and the Blowfish, the Braxtons and Snoop Doggy Dogg, among others.