Parents,

The Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA) requires that I let you know what information might be collected from your child under the age of 13 on this website. I think that’s a great idea!

Sometimes, I offer a writing contest to children in schools that I visit. If your child enters a contest, the entry form will ask for your child’s first name, teacher’s name, and school in order to award the prize. Children have the option of including a parent’s email address. Children who contact me through the website’s contact form are also asked to provide a parent email. I like to respond to my readers, so I will use that email for a one-time response to your child. Any further contact between us would require your written permission. All information about your child will be deleted immediately following that response or the end of the contest.

Other information that you might want to know: this site includes external links, such as links to bookstores, other author sites, and my public appearances. There are also buttons for “liking” my page on Facebook, Twitter, and for sharing to another WordPress site. While these are intended for use by teachers and writers, they could be used by children who have accounts with these social media platforms. Likewise, this website collects analytic information that describes what countries users are from and which pages have been visited. This information is not personally identifiable and is given as aggregated numbers. I use this information to improve the website function.

Thank you for sharing the excitement of science with your child, and if you have any question, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Jodi Wheeler-Toppen