Third- and fourth-grade students at Hawthorne Elementary School on Wednesday heard from two Utah first ladies - one current, one former - about everything from cyberbullying to whom they should trust, during a presentation that's part of a nationwide program.

In the spotlight were animated and costumed versions of Faux Paw, the real-life cat of former first lady Jacalyn Leavitt and her family. They were used to help the students better understand why it is important to be safe when they are in cyberspace.

Leavitt's Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe) is an organization made up governors, first spouses, attorneys general, public health and educational professionals, law enforcement and leaders from an array of industries.

Current first lady Mary Kaye Huntsman, who was at Hawthorne with Leavitt and a representative from the technology company Symantec, read iKeepSafe's Faux Paw's Adventures in the Internet, the first book in a series of three featuring the "Techno Cat." Leavitt wrote the books when she was the first lady of Utah, from the mid-1990s to 2003.

"We need to teach [the children] that they can't trust everything online. A person who seems like a 13-year-old girl could be a 45-year-old man in real life," said Leavitt.

Another aspect of the Internet that Huntsman focused on was cyberbullying, when one child harasses another online. Huntsman's son, 15-year-old William, was a victim when someone put his picture and name on the social networking site Myspace.

"It happens to kids every day, and it's the parents' responsibility to talk about what our kids are experiencing online," Huntsman said.

Her advice to the students: "Close the window when something bothers you. Click on that 'X' in the corner. And never give your name, address, phone number, school or picture to someone on the Internet."

One of the problems facing children is that many of them know more about computers than their parents, said Symantec's Internet safety advocate Marian Merritt.

"Parents often rely on the kids for IT help, but they can learn along with the kids. And after they talk to their kids, they need to renew that conversation every year."

Third-grader James said that he talks often to his dad about the Internet.

"I always get my dad's permission, and I only play games. I don't look at other stuff," he said.

Hawthorne Principal Marian Broadhead said this was one of the first Internet safety events at the school, and that each of the school's classrooms will have a copy of Faux Paw's Adventures in the Internet for teachers to use with students.

The first ladies brought along with them state Rep. Bradley Daw, R-Orem, and representatives from Zions Bank and Symantec, which have each given iKeepSafe grants that will be used by the Utah Medical Association Alliance to place the iKeepSafe books in pediatricians' waiting rooms.

blange@sltrib.com