Online Safety

The Internet has become a second home for the majority of people in today's society, through the use of cell phones, tablets, and computers. People are playing Virtual Games with others, researching, shopping, or chatting on social media sites. With the increased usage, also comes the increase in privacy concerns and safety. How do we protect ourselves from online predators? In my home, I personally do not allow my children to be on the Internet in their bedrooms, my three and four year olds know how to get videos from YouTube and my six year old has mastered Minecraft. They do not take devices to bed with them and the only place they can use them is in the presence of mom and dad. But what about our students? How do we teach them?

First things first, I start every new class out with lessons on digital safety. I use videos, we discuss the videos whole group, and then they have to write a blog post regarding key points to being safe online. The first video I show is Jigsaw: Assembly for 8-10 year olds.


Even though it is geared for younger students, it gets the point across. I teach high school students and this video leaves them feeling creeped out. We talk about their privacy settings and what about the privacy settings of their younger siblings. This is the ticker. They come back the next day and tell me they went home and checked their little sisters settings. We talk about the importance of #1 Never displaying your home address, #2 Never give anyone your password, #3 Never post your schedule of activities, and #4 Never post pictures that lead to your school.

Since my students are so text savvy, I also give them this video, Miketosis. It is great to get the point across that anything you text can fly through many people without you being able to delete it. My students get the humor in this video.

Another video I like is, "Do You Really Have a Private Life Online." Students get the point that even friends can post things of them which you might wish no one had seen. It also discusses the importance of having a good password.



From digital safety lessons, we then jump into lessons on digital footprints. I explain to my inner city students what they post on line is a trail of their digital footprint. What things have they posted would they not want a future boss or college to see? This gets them thinking about all of their social media accounts. I use part of a lesson from Common Sense Media, on the ramifications of a not so good digital footprint. I use an article called, "College Sued over 'Drunken Pirate' Allocations,"to get the point across. Students get heated about this one, claiming it isn't fair for employers or colleges to use a picture found online against you, it stirs up great conversations and gets them thinking. I also use the following video about being careful about what gets online.



Students blog about what it means to be safe online and how they can create a positive digital footprint. I know some educators which need to know this information as well. I hope this helps.
The following example is a post one of my students created last year.